Addressing the Society of Operational Engineers she said: “As an engineering community we need to stop hiding our lights under bushels, start blowing our own trumpets and herald what a fantastic career engineering can be.”
Watson praised the Bloodhound project as an example of an engineering achievement to shout about, saying it epitomises the brilliance of British engineering.
“This is British engineering at its peak, leading the World and pushing back the boundaries of what is achievable by man and his machines.
“Without people with the right skills, however, this project would never have come to fruition.”
Engineering needs a resurgence the length and breadth of Britain, she said, but warned that the looming skills crisis could cost the country £27billion per annum.
“We need an extra 800,000 additional science, engineering and technology technicians to avert a crisis,” Watson said.
She asserted that young people needed to know how exciting a career in engineering can be, and bemoaned the loss of STEM graduates choosing careers outside the sector and that inadequate careers advice is part of the problem.
However, Watson told the society that hundreds of engineering firms are signing up to Semta’s STEM Exchange to offer opportunities for educators to be educated about the world of work in the sector.
