Rewiring the Pathway to Engineering: Rosie Redshaw’s Inspiring Journey with Viritech

In the first of our Park People series, we speak to Rosie Redshaw, Junior Technician at VIRITECH about her unusual journey into her current role and why MIRA Tech Park is so important as a place of opportunity…

Growing up in Hinckley, I always thought of MIRA Tech Park as a mysterious place! I knew there was a test track and my Dad and Grandpa talked about visiting here. It’s a site that has been part of the area for generations and you just knew there was something exciting going on. I went to NWSLC (North Warwickshire & South Leicestershire College) to do my degree in art and design and would sometimes be working with engineering students taught at the MTI. When they talked about MIRA, it sounded magical!

When I left college, I didn’t know what career path to take but I knew I didn’t want to go to university. I had my qualification, and I knew I was clever enough to learn when I found what my next step would be. So, I looked for a job that would cover the bills. I saw there were flexible hours on offer with We Clean to clean MIRA Tech Park, so I applied. I thought if I was going to clean anywhere, I wanted it to be a place that was interesting!

And it became my MIRA Tech Park apprenticeship! I cleaned every building on the site and got to know the people who work for HORIBA MIRA and the MIRA Tech Park tenants. I asked a lot of questions and people were happy to chat to someone who showed real interest. I have my own project car and have helped my Dad out with boat engines, which is part of his business, so I had a good understanding of how things work. I didn’t take a route into engineering straight from school because I didn’t have enough information about what a career in it would be like and you didn’t see people like me doing those kinds of jobs. I thought I wouldn’t be taken seriously. So, I was happy with my love of motorsport and my project car as my hobbies. But when I got talking to people at MIRA Tech Park and asking questions, I got excited about what I could do.

I was cleaning the building for Viritech, who are one of the Tech Park tenants, and I got chatting to Matt Faulks who is the Chief Innovation Officer and Co-Founder. I was fascinated by what they were doing and kept asking questions and sharing the knowledge I had from motorsport. After a while Matt told me he was impressed I knew my stuff and he said they had an opening for a Junior Technician role. I applied, got the job, and started in April 2022. The role is a bespoke trainee position, and I am learning all the technical aspects of the business from vehicle build to electronics and circuit boards. I love it! I am on the journey with an exciting start-up, and we are all learning, troubleshooting, and making things work together. In Viritech everyone is valued, and my input is just as important as anyone else’s. I love I can point out when something drawn in CAD needs amending and I am handed the responsibility to do it.

I have done so much I am proud of in the last two years. Mule 2, our first fuel-cell vehicle, I built from the ground-up with our Head of Vehicle Development. And for Project ICEBreaker I did my first wiring loom on my own with a five-metre cable! That was pressure but it was also amazing to be working in partnership with HORIBA MIRA and Intelligent Energy on such a game-changing technology. I love being part of that. I also love changing people’s expectations about being an engineer. I’m playing an important part in the future by challenging perceptions. When a visitor to Viritech asked if I was the receptionist, I pointed to Mule 2 and told them I built it and I love that totally shocked them. To get more women in to engineering we need to flip the narrative in a positive way. It’s my power move!

If I was advising someone who wants to work here, I would say don’t be afraid to start at the bottom in a support role and work your way in. My cleaning role was a gateway. I knew I wanted to be somewhere like MIRA Tech Park and part of what was going on here but there was no clear path for me unless I wanted to do more formal qualifications. I might do that in the future but right now I develop my skills through figuring it out with the support of those around me (especially because in a start-up developing a new technology, we are all figuring it out!) and through the HORIBA MIRA short courses in electric and fuel-cell vehicles and high voltage training.

If I was advising a company on recruitment, I would say look to provide more junior roles that give opportunities to people who have capabilities and are eager to grow but who might not tick all the qualification boxes. They will be loyal and valuable to you because they can think creatively and problem-solve across the business. Make room for the generalist and value multiple skills. I’m making progress every day and taking on more and more responsibilities.

MIRA Tech Park is a place of opportunity. It’s a people place. Everyone is comfortable learning and growing together and making the future better. It’s the best motivator!