Without her, some innovations would have never happened.
Without her, some projects would have never been possible.

"Without Her" is a project (a series) featuring Mitsubishi Electric's very own women engineers, and their commitment to making the world a better place.

Third in our "#WithoutHer" series, featuring Mitsubishi Electric's women engineers and their colleagues, is from our UK branch. We interviewed Mhairi Mallon, who led the design and implementation of a new production line for outdoor air conditioners at Mitsubishi Electric Air Conditioning Systems Europe (M-ACE), and her team.

The Best Outcome for the Self, the Team, and for Everyone.

"At certain points, we were working with over 150 different contractors," reflects Mhairi, who was the lead engineer in implementing a new production line for outdoor AC units at M-ACE — a large-scale project that took place over the course of over two years. The project required using brand new technology to create a new production line for AC units that use more environmentally friendly gas. "No company in the UK had ever done something like this."

Creating a new production line also meant designing a new testing facility for the product. From mechanical to electric design, nothing installed could be off the shelf. Chemical, electric, mechanical engineers and other specialists and contractors had to work together to build the facility.

With a team so large, making sure everybody could focus on their task at hand and connect it to the next person was key. In order to make sure everything was running smoothly without hiccups, Mhairi put a big emphasis on open communication.

"I wanted everything to be as clear and open as possible. Who’s working on what today? This week? We made sure everyone in the space was on the same page about what was happening there that day." She believed this line of communication played a crucial role in making sure there was no trouble between workers, and for ensuring everybody’s safety in a busy space. Mhairi also mentions that everyone having a shared understanding and being aware that they are working towards a common goal, was probably one of our main drivers.

"If I or my team made a mistake, it would’ve affected everybody. It motivated us to try to get the best out of ourselves, and the best out of our team, and to work towards the best outcome for everyone."

Building Relationships, and Delivering Results.

"Everyone was surprised by the scale of the project. Mhairi was a direct communicator who could get people to work with her, and ensured the job was getting done" remembers team member and production engineer John Greg. "She’s willing to help younger engineers develop, and also help the most senior engineers. She is a people person who gets work done." Electrical engineer, William McLean says, "Even in parts she is not as experienced in, she puts in the work to learn. This came from a place of ‘wanting to support’ everyone. She showed me that with hard work and determination, anything was possible."

Both of her teammates say working with Mhairi was not only fun but full of learning. Mhairi says, "Knowledge transfer is very important. I think that’s what motivated us to get this project to the best standard, and hopefully as advanced as it could be at the time. Maybe in 10 years’ time, they’ll be updating the production line again, and we’ve used what they’ll see is the best technology and best way forward in engineering at this time."

Please check out this video of a team that learned together and took on a challenging project with grace and joy.

(This article was originally published on May 27, 2022)

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