Tina Baker, Software Project Manager at the access security product manufacturer TDSi will be addressing students as an ambassador of STEM at the ‘Women in Engineering Day’, at the RNLI College in Poole on Thursday, June 23. The event, which has invited female pupils from local Dorset schools, is designed to promote the opportunities for women in engineering.
Tina, pictured, said: “As an ambassador for STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Network) I am delighted to take this opportunity to speak directly to potential young female engineers. The RNLI College has important connections to Poole, the wider area and its maritime technology economy, so it is the perfect venue for the event. The approach we are taking is an interactive ‘People Like Me’ quiz where the audience get to learn and discuss career opportunities with people already working within the engineering sector. Despite huge improvements in gender equality, there is still work to be done to encourage young women to take an interest and actively look for career opportunities within the engineering and technology industry.”
Having worked for TDSi for over 12 years, Tina has been central to the company’s development of software-based systems for the physical security market. As the pace of physical and logical security systems integration has rapidly increased, so too has the company’s focus on these vital solutions. She added: “Software has been important to our business for a long time, but in the last few years it has really become the central focus of much of what we develop. TDSi’s EXgarde security management software for example can bring together access control, CCTV, intruder alarms and fire detection equipment and present all this information to an operator using any Internet-connected device. Powerful software like this has been a game-changer when it comes to monitoring and integrating safety and security in ways that simply weren’t possible before.”
The pace of development means there has never been a better time to train in and take part in technology and engineering, as Tina said: “From personal experience I know that future development is fueled by upcoming as well as current talent. We need to make sure that the younger generation can see the opportunities for them to carve out a very rewarding career and to ensure that any residual misconceptions based on gender are addressed. We have a huge amount of technology talent in the region, so I believe promoting the opportunities will ensure that the sector continues to grow along with the wider economy, which is beneficial for us all.”
