As part of International Women’s Day we’ve conducted a series of interviews with women working in the LPG industry.

Mary has worked for Calor for the past 18 years beginning as a university placement student and later joining the company and working her way up to her current role which sees her taking overall responsibility for all domestic and non-domestic customers.

Mary has a rich and varied educational path and has continued to develop her skills and knowledge with further education and qualifications alongside her working career.

You can connect with Mary on LinkedIn here

What inspired you to join the industry?

I started my professional career with Calor after university. The role appealed to me due to the people I had met in the industry during my placement with the company. Their drive and passion to deliver energy to everyone regardless of location and application really appealed to me.

What did you study at university and how has that translated to your roles within industry?

I studied at North Down Regional College and achieved a GNVQ and then a HND in Mechanical and Electrical engineering. I then went on to Ulster University and achieved a BSc in Technology and Design with distinction. The University was close to my home town and I loved being able to work part-time while completing my studies. A few years ago I returned to the University and graduated again with a Master’s in Business Development and Innovation.

Having worked since I was 16 to fund my studies, I was keen to experience full-time work. I took a year out of university, and this is when the LPG industry changed my life. 

Since then, my entire professional career has been in the LPG industry in the range of roles in engineering, business development and sales. In recent years I have led new innovative product introductions utilising my technical and commercial experience.

Through my career I have covered every county in Ireland and had a European remit. The EU remit was supporting the launch of bioLPG into six European countries and co-ordinating the key relationships ranging from the supply chain through to customers. Another interesting role was in Ireland, as one of the managers leading the activities to supply the first LNG customer in the country.

I have come full circle back to my original team in Northern Ireland previously as Business Development Engineer now I am the Regional Sales Manager.

What does your role as Regional Sales Manager involve?

As the regional sales manager based in Northern Ireland, I have the overall responsibility for our existing domestic and commercial customer base and promoting LPG/ BioLPG to new customers. Leading an experienced and dedicated Sales team, we deliver great customer service as our focal point. Our future solutions are just as important, so I also work alongside public affairs partners like Liquid Gas UK to secure LPG and BioLPGs position in future policy.  

What are your career aspirations?

LPG is a great lower carbon solution today; however the importance of sustainable off grid fuels like BioLPG will increase in the wider energy industry. My main aspiration is to support my customers to navigate the new challenges they will encounter, while continuing to support our industry’s energy transition.

What positives would you tell women coming into the industry?

There are so many opportunities within the LPG industry. You need to be ready for all the doors that could be opened to you as a result, and don’t fix your sights on any very specific role in the LPG industry too early.

This industry pushes you to constantly learn and stay up to date with an ever-evolving industry. Ten years ago, renewable BioLPG would have been considered impossible, and today it’s my day job.

What have you been most surprised about the LPG industry?

One trait that continues to surprise me, is our drive and passion as an industry to remain relevant to the marketplace. Through adapting to involving customer needs and increasingly in the last decade environmental policies. After 80 plus years these drove us to consider how we could deliver future proof solutions. I was able to be part of delivering one of our solutions, BioLPG and brought it to the marketplace before the larger energy providers even released their future vision.