As the theme of International Women’s Day this year is ‘Embrace Equity’, Samsung Climate Solutions is spotlighting female talent within the HVAC industry, particularly in the low carbon heating sector.
This International Women’s Day, Aimee Holloran, pictured, business development manager in low carbon heating at Samsung and Leah Robson, managing director at Your Energy Your Way, a trusted installer partner of Samsung, are keen to share their experience and advice about working in the low carbon heating industry.
Aimee began her path with a plumbing apprenticeship, achieving her NVQ2 and NVQ3 Qualifications and winning BBC Young Plumber of the Year in 2010. She then spent time on the tools, including air conditioning, before transitioning into sales development and low carbon heating.
Aimee said: “In my time on the tools I’d often get asked if I could lift a boiler, or questioned if I could do what the men on my course or team could. To that I’d say of course I can, but in actual fact a lot of the job is down to technique not pure strength, and anybody can learn that. It’s a wonderful industry for anyone to get involved in and this isn’t restricted for women. As the renewable and low carbon industry grows, there’s huge growth opportunities for women looking for purpose in their job. One of my biggest satisfactions is delivering training presentations and sales pitches to convert people to this low carbon technology.”
Leah added: “For me the best feeling is when you finish the heat pump install and you feel the heat coming through in the radiators for a happy customer. It’s a really rewarding job where you work with great, passionate people dedicated to changing the way we heat our homes. There’s no reason why women can’t succeed in this industry, and there’s so many opportunities now with the need for a skilled workforce in low carbon heating and renewables installation.”
Leah originally trained in IT before switching to low carbon heating and renewable installation after having children and wanting to make a difference to the climate. She now works to encourage others, in particular women, to do the same.
She said: “I set up Your Energy Your Way in 2018 specifically to bring more women into the industry. Since then the business has grown organically, with turnover trebling since its foundation, with increasing demand for our services installing and integrating Heat Pumps, Solar PV, Solar Thermal, Batteries and EV charging. In the last year our workforce has expanded to seven and our ability to meet the demand for low carbon heating and renewable energy solutions is still constrained by its size. As part of this, we are working to establish a female traineeship scheme to support the training and development of the next wave of installers.”
When asked their best piece of advice to women joining the industry, Aimee said: “My best piece of advice is always look out for opportunities to learn, there is no reason why you can’t do it so don’t give in to assumptions and forge your own path.”
Leah added: “Don’t be afraid to try something new and try an alternative path – the most important thing is to follow your passions and don’t let anything stop that.”