Students from the Isle of Man’s University College were lucky enough to get an insight into the creation of a hybrid super car.
The arranged event, on Monday, coincided with National Apprenticeship Week.
Robert Yates, Ella Podmore MBE and Beth Elliot from McLaren Automotive delivered two sessions which included a presentation about their experiences in engineering, followed by opportunity to walk around an Artura supercar and meet with local industry experts.
The first event was for UCM’s engineering and motor vehicle students, with the second event being open to the public.
Across both events 80 young people aged over 14 attended. Robert Yates is a body engineering project manager at Mclaren and is originally from the island having completed his secondary education at St Ninian’s High School.
He said: ‘It’s been wonderful to come back to the island, this time being able to promote STEM and the wide range of exciting careers that come from these subjects.
‘I am very fortunate to work in such a fantastic industry, doing something I love and working for a company which makes some of the most exciting and technologically advanced cars in the world, and I want to inspire others to do something they love.’
Ella has won the IET’s Young Woman Engineer of the Year 2020, been named Surrey’s Top 40 Under 40 in 2022 and more recently received an MBE in Her Majesty The Queen’s Birthday Honours List for contributions to engineering, innovation and diversity. Beth is a graduate engineer at McLaren Automotive in the powertrain department and joined through the graduate scheme straight from the University of Sheffield, being with the company now for more than a year.
Sam Warren, head of faculty for environment and sustainability, said: ‘We’re extremely grateful to Robert, Ella and Beth for coming across to the island to share their experiences and inspire the next generation of engineers.
‘We also want to thank Love Tech, the Department of Enterprise (DofE) and the Awareness of Careers in Engineering team (ACE) who have made this visit possible.
‘Not only was this a great opportunity for our students but we were pleased to welcome in other young people who might be interested in a career in engineering.’