As a market leader in the industrial gas industry, Air Products, is showcasing their commitment to a journey of diversity and inclusion of females in the engineering and manufacturing industries by partnering with the Forbes Africa Leading Women Summit which takes place in Gauteng on 8 March 2024.
As a market leader, Air Products supplies gaseous oxygen, nitrogen, argon, hydrogen and carbon dioxide to major companies in the steel, stainless steel, petrochemical and engineering industries. These industries are historically known as being male dominated, however, there has been a definite growth in the number of females in key positions within these industries over the past few years.
For more than 50 years, Air Products has been touching the lives of consumers every day and served customers across industries such as food and beverage, mining and petrochemicals,primary metal and steel manufacturers, welding and cutting applications to laboratory applications. The females within Air Products are well respected by key customers in these fields, whether it leans more towards engineering or not.
Arthi Govender, General Manager of Marketing at Air Products highlights that there are a number of females who work at Air Products’ facilities nationally. She explains that the company not only has females in support functions, but they are also in operational and management roles. As one of the female executive leaders within the company, she is committed to play a role in creating a mind shift within Air Products as well as the wider industry. She believes this can be facilitated by providing opportunities for females to have access to mentorship, a culture of encouragement and by emphasising inclusion and diversity.
Govender concludes by commenting: “At Air Products we believe that females are remarkable employees and have a lot to offer in terms of knowledge and experience. We are using this sponsorship to show that we believe females add incredible value, especially in the engineering and manufacturing industries. The event further provides an opportunity for selected Air Products female employees to network and interact with like-minded professionals from other industries. At Air Products we perceive ourselves as forward-thinking within our industry, and this sponsorship underpins our intention to remove the barriers for females to access the industry”.