ACR Journal

ACR industry Soraya Pratten is the services coordinator at Hydratech - glycol experts for process and hydronic systems. Having progressed through the organisation, Soraya is now responsible for coordinating the engineering team and water treatment projects as part of Hydratech's Fluid Management Services Team. gave me the opportunity to take on a new challenge as part of Hydratech's FMS (Fluid Management Services) Team. My previous job roles have included recruitment, accounts and administration in various sectors such as logistics, steel fabrication, public sector and automotive. I have built up considerable experience in planning, sourcing and customer relations. It's put me in an ideal position for my new role. I love working within a fast-paced environment, dealing with customers and providing solutions, and it's the type of career that suits me down to the ground! What are the key responsibilities in your role? As services coordinator, I'm responsible for coordinating the engineering team and water treatment projects. I record incoming enquiries, input customer system data and help to plan, prepare and brief the engineers. My role is diverse, to say the least! It is challenging at times, and you must adapt quickly, helping to provide solutions to whatever comes your way. Describe a typical day's work. We work with a diverse range of partners across many business and industry sectors, including food and drink, power stations, data centres, water and waste, construction and renewables, so no two days are the same. I usually start the day with a team briefing to ensure our projects are running as smoothly as possible. I'll then check our email inbox for any new enquiries and input relevant data as necessary. I act as a link between our customers, our lab technicians and our FMS engineers. As our FMS engineers cover the whole of the UK, it is quite a task to keep up with all of them. So, for example, if fluid samples have been taken from customers' closed-loop systems, I'm responsible for sending the lab results and recommendations to our engineers on the road. We may receive a customer call or email at any time of day or night to say they have a system failure or system leak and require our assistance. In these cases, I'll set up a meeting with the customer and our engineering team leader to assess the situation and establish the best course of action. What skills are needed for this role? Strong organisational skills are essential to coordinate an engineering team. You need How did you get into a career in cooling and heating systems? I joined Hydratech over six years ago as an administrator in the order processing department. As my knowledge and understanding of working fluids (glycols, process coolants, secondary refrigerants etc.) and the associated systems have developed, so my responsibilities have grown. Hydratech has been formulating and manufacturing heat transfer fluids for over 25 years. However, following consistent demand for technical advice and engineering support, the company recognised the need to take things a step further and provide 'hands on' system filling, flushing and remediation management. The progression into engineering services December 2021 | January 2022 Volume 8 No.1 42 WOMEN IN ACR