Fulham engineer crowned Young Woman Engineer of the Year

Ella Podmore built the McLaren Automatic material investigations department from the ground up, and she’s only 25.

It’s no surprise that the Fulham-based superwoman of the supercar industry was crowned Young Woman Engineer of the Year.

The winner of the Institution of Engineering and Technology’s (IET) award wants to continue to use her platform to “encourage the next generation of engineers and scientists to push the boundaries of what’s possible.”

Raised in Oxford, Ella’s desire to go into engineering started at a young age, as she used to watch her father deconstruct objects, from dishwashers to cars.

She was fascinated by her father’s way of identifying and solving issues with machinery, which “instilled a logical, problem-solving mentality within her”.

Her love for sciences, especially chemistry, blossomed during her time at school.

She used to immerse herself in experiments and analysis and this solidified that she wanted to become an engineer.

Ella studied Materials Engineering at the University of Manchester and in her third-year, she joined McLaren as an intern engineer in 2016.

Today, Ella she is a key member of the high-performance supercar brand.

Her work focuses on concept drawings all the way to customers in the field, and she spends her time between experiments and leading technical meetings.

Ella also juggles her busy work load with being a STEM ambassador and committee member of the McLaren’s women’s society.

On top of this, she has given numerous talks, such as at the Autocar’s Great British Women awards and at the Goodwood Festival of Speed.

Last year, Ella also helped to launch a McLaren Automotive competition with BBC Blue Peter, asking children to design a ‘supercar of the future’.

Commenting on becoming an IET finalist, Ella said: “I am honoured to have been chosen to represent so many incredible women in the automotive industry and hope to inspire many more!”

The IET believes that role models like Ella can help tackle the fact that only 12% of those in engineering and technical occupations are women.

The Institution wants to change the perception that engineering is predominantly a career for men, by banishing outdated engineering stereotypes of hard hats and dirty overalls.

Having Ella as a role model, the IET believe that her charisma and personality will inspire more girls and women to go into engineering careers.

Alongside Ella, three other women won IET awards and the three finalist runners-up were highly commended.

Jo Foster, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Manager at the IET, said: “I’d like to congratulate our fantastic winners and finalists of this year’s awards.

“They are a real credit to the engineering profession and will make excellent role models to young girls who might be thinking about a career in engineering and technology”.

For Ella, she’s excited for what the future will bring: “This year is going to be epic, stay tuned”.