When Chloe Sales turned up for her first day at work, she asked some of the men to help her lift something.
As soon as one came over to help, she picked it up and walked off.
“I couldn’t resist,” she admits. “It was too tempting. I love proving that I’m meant to be there.”
Chloe, aged 24, is the only female welder at the manufacturing company in Staffordshire where she works - but that is something she is determined to change.
As a schoolgirl, Chloe says she had ‘no idea’ what she wanted to do. She tried courses in both health and social care and hairdressing but neither of them felt right for her.
Chloe ended up getting a job as a carer but left to look after her nan after she became seriously ill. When her nan later went into a care home, Chloe needed a new job and ended up applying for a warehouse role.
Chloe, who was 21 at the time, said: "The warehouse belonged to an engineering company. While I was working there, I heard that they were experiencing a shortage of welders so I put myself forward for a position. They were very happy to let me have a go and I loved it."
Chloe was offered an apprenticeship and enrolled at Stoke-on-Trent College so that she could gain qualifications while getting on the job experience.
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She’s the first woman that the college has trained as a welding apprentice.
Chloe, who lives in Tean in the Staffordshire Moorlands, said: "When I was offered the apprenticeship, I was so excited and couldn’t wait to share my news but I faced a lot of opposition from friends and family.
"No-one thinks of welding as being a woman’s job. It is seen as noisy, harsh and dangerous, and I think they were worried that I’d find it too exhausting – both physically and mentally, being a woman in a male-dominated environment.”
Despite the advice of her friends and family, Chloe decided to go for the apprenticeship.
She achieved her full diploma with three distinctions, two merits and a pass.
And earlier this year Chloe was named STEM Apprentice of the Year by Stoke-on-Trent College.
Now she has just started a new job at Stafford-based Alpha Manufacturing, a custom metal fabrication company which supplies metal components to companies in a range of sectors, including automotive, retail, electronics, agricultural and technology.
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She said: "I love my job because it’s different. I like doing my own thing and being in my own lane. I enjoy the variety of work and the feeling of satisfaction that I get when I’ve finished a job. It’s well paid too. I don’t have a problem with being a woman in a man’s environment. I feel like I’ve found the right career and I’m looking forward to seeing what the future holds."
Today marks the start of Tomorrow's Engineers Week - a national event to which aims to inspire more young people to consider careers in engineering.
It is estimated that, while 47 per cent of the 海角视频 workforce is female, the figure for those working in core engineering occupations is only 12 per cent, according to Engineering 海角视频.
At the same time, the 海角视频 has a shortfall of 59,000 engineers a day.
Chloe is determined to see more women filling the gap and now visits schools to talk to girls about STEM careers.
She said: "Everybody told me not to do it. That’s why I go out to schools and tell other girls not to listen to their friends or people who want to put them off. They can do it. I did. And I love it.
"I never had anyone to look up to in a careers way, so I’d love to be able to help at least one person, to inspire someone not to give up and to follow their passion."
Ryan Johnson, campus director for STEM and Construction at Stoke-on-Trent College, said: "Chloe worked exceptionally hard to achieve her Diploma and was a very deserving Apprentice of the Year.
"She has also proved to be an inspiration for women in STEM by giving her own time to visit schools and work as an ambassador at our open evenings, highlighting the opportunities a career in engineering has for everyone – especially women.
"The lack of diversity in STEM has been well-publicised and we hope that stories like Chloe’s will encourage more women to consider it in future."