Ciara Barskietis
Logistics Manager
Sandvik
Ciara is Logistics Manager at Sandvik Mobiles. Looking back on her time in education, Ciara says there was an assumption that Manufacturing was simply standing on an assembly line and there wasn’t an understanding of all the other areas that feed into that such as supply chain, logistics, finance and engineering. Ciara has seen the industry move forward leaps and bounds and as more women are attracted to a career in engineering and manufacturing, she hopes to see this trend continue into the future.
Mackle Petfoods
Mackle Petfoods is a family-owned industry leader known for premium brands like Naturo and Brandy. Operating high-tech sites in Moy and Moygashel, they are wet-food specialists producing over 100 million units annually. Their “farm-to-bowl” philosophy relies on locally sourced ingredients and state-of-the-art production lines that focus on nutrition science and sustainability. As the 2025 Grocer Gold “Employer of the Year,” Mackle is recognised for its “people-first” culture.
Andrew Frizelle
CNC Machinist
Northern Hydraulics
Andrew is one of the lead CNC (Computer Numerical Control) Machinists at Northern Hydraulics Ltd based in Coalisland. Andrew controls machines to make products; setting up different machinery to perform different jobs. After a couple of years of university and deciding this wasn’t the right path for him, Andrew went to Belfast Tech to complete a HND in Manufacturing and Engineering. Shortly after that, he joined the team at Northern Hydraulics and has been there ever since.
Simon Parr
Product Solutions Engineer
CK International
Simon is a Product Solutions Engineer at CK International Ltd based in Dungannon. Simon helps the sales team to provide the correct solutions so the customer, technically and design-wise. Simon studied a Level 3 Extended Diploma in Engineering at South West College before studying Mechatronic Engineering at Ulster University.
Bert Elliott
Welding Supervisor
Specdrum
Bert grew up in Dungannon and went to St. Patrick’s College. The subjects that interested him most were Science, Technology & Design. Bert left school to work as a bricklayer but quickly changed career paths when the housing market collapsed. He started work in Specdrum in 2011 as a welder and was promoted to welding supervisor in 2014. Bert not only completed all his welding qualifications but went onto achieve a HNC in Manufacturing & Engineering and a L3 ILM Certificate in Leadership and Management.
Euan Speirs
Electrical Engineer
TES
Euan did his A-Levels and then went onto do a Gold Engineering apprenticeship at SWC. He is now studying towards his foundation degree and enjoys the fact that he can now relate the theory learned to real life problems and tasks in the workplace. Euan has leant a lot since working at TES and would encourage young people to consider doing an apprenticeship.
Kirsty Mincher
IMS Co-ordinator
Dawson Manufacturing & Engineering
Kirsty works for Dawson Manufacturing & Engineering Ltd. She is the IMS Representative and looks after HR & Health and Safety. After school Kirsty did a business degree and started her career working in an administration role which led to working in health & safety, quality and environmental. She loves the variety in her job and the fact that every day is different.
Julie Burnett
Manufacturing Engineer
Terex
Julie studied at Ulster University and graduated top of her class with a first-class honours degree in Clean Technology. She went to school in St. Joseph’s Grammar, Donaghmore were she studied Maths, Biology & Home Economics at A’Level and History to AS Level. She had originally planned on studying Biomedical Engineering or Dietetics before she changed her direction to study Clean Technology.
Julie loves her job as a Manufacturing Engineer in Terex, Dungannon.