Ruth Hunt is a Chartered Engineer and Organizational Excellence Manager for the Metal Detection business within the Product Inspection Division of METTLER TOLEDO. To celebrate International Women in Engineering Day on June 23, we spoke with Ruth to learn about her role and how she "stepped out of her comfort zone" to build her career in Engineering.
Read Ruth’s interview below.
Para celebrar el Día Internacional de la Mujer en la Ingeniería, hablamos con Ruth Hunt, ingeniera colegiada, de nuestra empresa de detección de metales. Ruth nos habla de su función y de cómo "salió de su zona de confort" para desarrollar su carrera en la ingeniería. Lea la entrevista completa haciendo clic en el enlace a continuación: https://www.mt.com/global/en/home/library/product-inspection/women-engineering.html to do with production and manufacture, and it also included some engineering, and he felt that my skills were better suited to that area. So it was a sliding doors moment for me in that it pushed my career path to a totally different area than I originally considered. And so I became an engineer. I'd recommend for anybody coming into engineering is don't just focus on one area, look at everything. Don't just consider engineering as engineering. In theory, as an engineer, is you're looking at things, the intricate detail, you're pulling things apart, you're trying to see how they work, trying to see how they can be improved. You can apply that principle to everyday situations, to processes within business, to people. You can make that difference at a much higher level than just purely sitting and designing. There's so many areas that you can go into. As far as I'm concerned is I feel that sky's the limit on what you can achieve as an engineer.
Q: Tell us more about your current role and what it involves.
A: I’m based in the UK and I work for the Metal Detection business within METTLER TOLEDO. We design and manufacture industrial metal detection systems that are used to inspect and reject metal contaminated food, non-food and pharmaceutical products during production. My current role in Operations focuses on change management and continuous improvement activities across the business. Before this, I managed a team working on engineering customer-specific systems to transport packs and products through the metal detector ready for inspection.
Both roles require technical expertise, problem solving, project management and relationship building skills. Working with other departments and business units and sharing best practice through collaboration is key to influencing change and promoting a growth mindset.
Q: Have you always wanted to work in engineering?
A: I've always liked fixing things; trying to find a solution to something blocking my path. It's not attributable to any one person or point in time, it has just always been there. I never really knew it was engineering until my lecturer pointed me in that direction. I actually started my career as a product designer and planned to study industrial design at university. My lecturer told me about a new Masters of Science course with a greater focus on engineering, that he felt my skills were better suited to. I enrolled and my path was laid out before me. Few people can say that they truly knew the direction their working lives would take from an early age. The key is to recognize the moment when it comes and make the best of it. For me, the aptitude for engineering was inside, just waiting to be unlocked!
"As an engineer you are looking at things with intricate detail and seeing how they can be improved. However, you can apply that principle to everyday situations and make that difference at a much higher level."
Ruth Hunt, Chartered Engineer and Organizational Excellence Manager, METTLER TOLEDO
Q: How did your engineering qualification bring you to METTLER TOLEDO?
A: I’ve worked in several different industries in my career. In one company, I stayed for a decade, working hard and gaining experience.
I spent a long time in the same role with one company, hoping that someone would give me the opportunity to climb the ladder. I knew what I was capable of and after ten years, I decided to step out of my comfort zone and find somewhere that would recognize my abilities.
Here I am at METTLER TOLEDO, and they have given me that chance to shine.
Q: What are you most proud of in your engineering career so far?
A: I am very proud of the people I work with and what we achieve as a team. I work with people who have widely different cultural and professional backgrounds and I believe this diversity of life and work experience is richly beneficial.
Q: What advice would you give to somebody wanting to work in engineering?
A: Don't just focus on one area. Look at everything. Don't just look at engineering as engineering. In theory, as an engineer, you are looking at things with intricate detail and seeing how they can be improved. However, you can apply that principle to everyday situations and make that difference at a much higher level than just sitting at a desk and designing. There are so many areas of engineering that you can explore – the sky is the limit on what you can achieve!
Final Thoughts
I am ambitious to make a real impact in my industry. I want to leave a legacy within the company and feel like I have made significant changes that will last. Hopefully, I can inspire someone, or I can change a process that makes a real difference. There are lots of avenues to explore.
Hear From More Women Working in the Engineering Industry
Watch these videos to hear the voices of three more METTLER TOLEDO women working out of Canada, the UK, and India.
podemos esperar una mejor tecnología de inspección y, por lo tanto, mejoras en la detección de contaminantes en los productos alimentarios. Habrá más colaboración entre las agencias reguladoras, los actores de la industria y los proveedores de tecnología, así como soluciones combinadas, como la combinación de pesaje y la detección de contaminantes. También veremos una mayor integración de la inteligencia artificial y la automatización de los procesos de seguridad alimentaria, lo que facilitará y acelerará la respuesta a los problemas de seguridad.
S.W.
Sales Engineer, Canada
Los detectores de metales detectan metales no deseados, pero también contribuyen a la seguridad alimentaria de varias otras maneras relacionadas. En primer lugar, al identificar y detectar de forma fiable metales extraños, los sistemas de detección de metales como RM33R minimizan el riesgo de retiradas de producto derivadas de incidentes de contaminación. Esto ayuda a proteger la reputación de la marca y genera confianza y seguridad en los consumidores respecto del compromiso de una marca con la seguridad alimentaria. En segundo lugar, desempeñan un papel realmente crucial para cumplir los requisitos normativos de seguridad alimentaria. Al implementar estos sistemas, los fabricantes demuestran el cumplimiento de las normas y regulaciones del sector y pueden evitar sanciones y problemas legales. También evitan que los contaminantes causen daños en los equipos de procesamiento, lo que prolonga la vida útil de la maquinaria y reduce los costos de mantenimiento. Esto mejora la eficiencia operativa general. Y, por último, los detectores de metales pueden contribuir al control de calidad al identificar irregularidades y anomalías en el proceso de producción. Al detectar metales, los fabricantes pueden investigar y abordar posibles problemas, y esto les ayuda a lograr una calidad de producto constante y la satisfacción del cliente.
Kati Hope
Global Key Accounts Manager, UK
La tecnología de fricción está optimizada en todo momento. Esto significa que las tecnologías de detección de contaminantes ofrecen un alto nivel de sensibilidad de detección para identificar cuerpos extraños no deseados, protegiendo así la seguridad del consumidor, ayudando a evitar retiradas de productos y evitando beneficios de mantenimiento, aumentando el tiempo de actividad y, por lo tanto, impulsando la productividad. El formato de precios y el coste de cualquier problema pueden identificarse antes de que afecten la producción y la seguridad del producto. Seguridad de los datos, del producto y de la marca. Instale los últimos parches de software cuando sea necesario. Mantenga los sistemas optimizados. Proteja la integridad de su marca, de su producto. Con el cumplimiento de las normas regulatorias, minoristas e información contractual.
