ACE chair
Engineering a female
perspective: Michelle
McDowell’s first interview
as ACE Chair
Michelle McDowell has
become the first female
chair in the Association
for Consultancy and
Engineering’s 97 year
history. Gavin Pearson
went to BDP’s London
offices to meet her.
M
ichelle McDowell leads the civil
and structural engineering team
at BDP. As the year starts she
is focused on the intense bidding for
contracts under the new city academy
and BSF programmes.
“It’s very frenetic as we have to produce
more and more of better and better quality
within a very tight timescale. And you have
different programmes going on at the
same time. So it’s good to be busy.”
2010 is unlikely to slow down for
Michelle. BDP has engineers, architects
and designers working together from the
very start of design work on projects all
over the world. While Michelle expects a
busy year with her company, she is thrilled
to be even busier following her election as For example, proposals to decarbonise opportunities out there. Small firms
ACE’s chair for the year. existing homes, build vast new offshore are concerned about fees, and about
“For me, ACE does absolutely fantastic wind farms, and design electric cars insurance costs, so we must listen to
work. It’s very, very effective as an all present unique infrastructure and what they tell us and help them address
organisation with a small staff. And for me technological challenges. It will be the their problems.”
it’s about getting all that good news out innovation and experience of engineers On her election, Michelle set out a
there to government and ACE members. that overcomes them. desire to really promote engineering as
We need to talk to our members and really “ACE can tell that positive story and an attractive career for talented young
listen and act on what they want from us.” ensure Ministers turn to our industry for people. She hopes this, along with other
There is a lot of good news to tell right solutions. And in turn, our industry is measures, will help the industry avoid the
now. There is a new political consensus ready to respond and expand to meet the worst consequences of the last recession
on driving economic growth through needs of a greener Britain.” this time around.
technology. Proposals and projects that While national developments are “I’m keenly aware that the last
help reduce carbon emissions are also important, Michelle wants to ensure recession created a gap in skills. When
proliferating. the industry’s bedrock of small firms we were looking for senior engineers there
”Engineering is at the heart of efforts to continues to thrive. weren’t any around - they didn’t come
green the economy and return the UK to “ACE must ensure that small into the profession five or six years before
growth. We must ensure that politicians, consultancies have the advice and when there was a recession. It works its
clients and the public all recognise that. support needed to take advantage of way through.
10 | Impact • February/March 2010
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