Profile
Victoria Sharpe
Curriculum Vitae
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Education:
University of Bristol
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Qualifications:
MEng Mechanical Engineering
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Work History:
Rover/BMW (car manufacturer), Lombard Medical (medical devices), Renishaw (measurement devices),MAATS Tech (cable and pipe laying equipment)
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Current Job:
Product and Continuous Process Improvement Manager
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Employer:
Corin Group
Hip and Knee Implant Manufacturer
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About Me
A mechanical engineer working in medical devices, married with 2 childrenwho enjoys playing hockey at weekends
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I live in a the picturesque Stroud district with my husband, 2 children and two cats. We all play hockey for Stroud Hockey Club which means there is a lot of work/ life balancing to do while the season is in full swing! I am a chocoholic at heart and hopefully my running and hockey eat up the calories.
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My Work
I manage a team of design and development engineers who work on improving Corins Hip and Knee implant designs to make them more effective and the manufacturing process more efficient.
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My work involves leading a team of development engineers which continue to develop and improve Corin’s products and manufacturing processes to produce hip and knee implants. The work is pretty varied from assessing new suppliers and materials, to understanding and resolving problems that arise both on the shop floor and in the field in the form of feedback or complaints. Being in medical devices, it is also important that the products remain compliant with ever changing standards and that the testing / scientific evidence remains valid.
The day to day work involves updating designs carrying out testing and implementing changes to product and process via a strict change control procedure. A lot of my team, spend time investigating the root cause of an issue that was not identified when the product was developed which has arisen as a result of producing products in the 1,000’s. Finding the root cause and solving it, often involves applying and learning a variety of engineering and process knowledge. It is very rewarding once your solution has been implemented and the first time pass rate improves. As engineers we work with all areas in the business from commercial and marketing to manufacturing and quality.
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My Typical Day: I arrive at 8:30, I spend the day in meetings discussing project progress on engineering solutions, and reviewing and approving drawings, reports and processes at my desk. Somehow I manage to fit in lunch with colleagues around 12:30 and head home around 5pm.
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Ater dropping my daughter off at school, I head into the office for 8:30. After saying hello to my team, I log onto my computer check my emails and calendar. I generally have several meetings a day, some meetings arewith my team where we talk about workload and exchange information and ideas on how we work, others are discussions on engineering issues that have arisen or we are currently solving. When not in meetings, I am responding to queries, reviewing drawings, process sheets or reports. I have a lunch break at 12:30 and head home just after 5pm
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What I'd do with the money
Donate it to the Women’s Engineering Society
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I went on a careers course ran by WES at the age of sixteen, thinking that engineering wasn’t for me. How wrong I was, I loved it, I found out that what I had learnt at school really did have a practical application in the real world. I was totally inspired and wouldn’t be where I am today if it hadn’t been for WES offering such courses. I know that if I win, the money will be well spent and will open up and inspire more teenagers to use their skills to make the world a better place.
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My Interview
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How would you describe yourself in 3 words?
Sporty, multi-tasking, determined
What's the best thing you've done in your career?
Developed a medical device – an aortic stent graft – that is still saving lives today
What or who inspired you to follow your career?
I attended an introductory course on engineering at Imperial College run by Women in Engineering during my A levels. We did lots of lab tests and I enjoyed using my maths and physics skills to solve real world problems.
What was your favourite subject at school?
Maths and Physics
What did you want to be after you left school?
Accountant
Were you ever in trouble at school?
No, I was a bit of a swot and always wanted to learn more
If you weren't doing this job, what would you choose instead?
Probably work in finance but it would no way be as fun
Who is your favourite singer or band?
U2
What's your favourite food?
Chocolate Cake
What is the most fun thing you've done?
Travelling / Backpacking in Thailand and Brazil
Tell us a joke.
How do you hide an elephant in a cherry tree? Paint it’s toenails red!
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