ACR Journal

CMYK / .ai CMYK / .ai CMYK / .ai acrjournal.uk 57 SPONSORED BY VRF? GOHEAVY … and Claire McGuiness, Technical Support Manager at Koura. How long have you been in the role? Two years How long have you been in the industry? 28 years. What made you get into this industry? I loved science at school and wanted a job that was hands on, as well as intellectually challenging. Where are you based? I work in the research and development department of Koura, based in Runcorn What products do you work with? Propellants Who are your customers? Pharmaceutical companies From start to finish, what is a regular workday like for you? There is no such thing as a regular workday in research. I answer customer enquiries, problem solving, plan experimental programmes for the team, and ensure the experiments and products are complying with Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) standards. What is your favourite part of your job? Interacting with people and problem solving Have you seen a change in the number of women working in the industry? Yes, when I started in the early 90s there was a ratio of about 2:1 male:female but now it seems much more equal. However, there are still very few female process operators and engineers, so there are some areas which are still predominantly male. Why do you think more women don’t go into STEM roles? I believe there is a lack of encouragement and positive role models within the industry, and many young girls are being influenced by what they see on social media and TV, which isn’t always a very wide variety. How has your job changed since you started? I started as a sponsored student (apprentice). I worked in three diŠerent areas whilst studying for my degree part- time, including a Quality Control laboratory on plant, research and a semi-technical plant. I then worked in the development of a CFC-free medical propellant, 134A. When this was launched as a product I moved to research into refrigeration, looking at improving energy e–ciency and reducing global warming potential. I worked in process chemistry researching production of low global warming potential (GWP) refrigerants and propellants and I have now come full circle, working on medical propellants to introduce a low GWP propellant to the industry.