QLD Manufacturing Minister, Volvo Group encourage female participation in industry

Inspiring women to take up a career in manufacturing is a key priority for the Queensland Government according to Minister for State Development, Manufacturing, Infrastructure and Planning, Cameron Dick.

More than 170 manufacturing professionals, innovators and students including Volvo Group Australia came together to celebrate women in manufacturing for the first 2020 Women in Manufacturing industry breakfast at Customs House in Brisbane on 10 March 2020.

"These networking events are a key part of our Advanced Manufacturing 10-Year Roadmap and Action Plan," said Dick.

"Already we have seen 14 state-wide Women in Manufacturing industry events rolled out in partnership with the Australian Industry Group.

"We are excited to partner with them again this year to deliver nine more events across the state in 2020," he said.

Australian Industry Group's Queensland Head Rebecca Andrews said they are honoured to continue with the Women in Manufacturing series again this year.

“Each year we shine a light on inspirational women that are leading the way in the manufacturing sector," said Andrews.

"We are also very pleased to see an increased participation of students and teachers from around the state in this event.

"We all need to continue the message that manufacturing is a viable career path for our future workforce," she said.

Dick said manufacturing contributes around $20 billion each year to the Queensland economy and is a major employer with around one in four being women.

"We want to continue to build on this and encourage females to pursue careers in manufacturing, because attracting and retaining more women is important to a stronger manufacturing sector," he said.

Brisbane speakers included Dr Cori Stewart from the Advanced Robotics in Manufacturing (ARM) Hub, Amelia Luu from Design Robotics, Heather Sinclair from Volvo Group Australia, Shantelle Loyden from Tubeworx and Tim Morgan from Arnott’s Biscuits.