OREANDA-NEWS. One of the UK’s top apprentices will be helping to launch the opening of nominations for the next prestigious Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering (QEPrize). Abigaile Gibson, recently voted Apprentice of the Year by Tata Steel, will feature in one of a series of online videos designed to encourage women to enter the exciting world of engineering. The fuel technician who works at Tata Steel’s Scunthorpe site joined female engineers from a number of other companies to help launch the opening of nominations for the 2015 prize www.qeprize.org/createthefuture

Tata Steel’s chief technical officer Hans Fischer said: “The Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering is leading the way in promoting engineering as a career, particularly among women - so I am delighted Abigaile has been chosen to help reinforce that message to millions of women around the world who could have a fulfilling and exciting career in engineering.

“At Tata Steel, we know the difference that engineering makes. The world needs the brightest talents and the sharpest minds to join the profession, to help us meet the needs of industry and the global challenges of the future. By shining a spotlight on what engineers do, the Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering is helping to inspire the next generation and we are proud to be associated with this prestigious prize.”

Ms Gibson said: “I was honoured to be asked to represent Tata Steel and women engineers everywhere by taking part in promoting the Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering.

“Engineering has already opened so many doors for me and it is important young people are shown the incredible opportunities available in an engineering career.” The international GBP 1 million prize aims to raise the public profile of engineering and inspire young people to take up the challenges of the future and become engineers.

The QEPrize was launched in 2011 to address the need for more engineers and to celebrate the remarkable achievements of today’s engineers.

The QEPrize is awarded biennially and the search for the winner(s) will demonstrate the importance of engineering to societies across the world. The judging panel for the 2015 QEPrize comprises some of the biggest names in engineering and science from around the world, including Professor Brian Cox in the UK, Professor Calestous Juma in the USA and Narayana Murthy in India.