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Gender revolution at GM Powertrain in Turin
2011-07-15
Share This- GM invests 20 million euros in its groundbreaking engineering center in Turin
- Engineering center tripled in size over the last six years
- Around 20 percent female engineers
Turin. GM announced today an extra 20 million euros in funds for its Turin engineering center, in which women make up around 20 percent of its engineers. GM now has the edge over many of its competitors and over much of Italian industry when it comes to gender equality.
The women who together with their male colleagues are developing the next generation of green powertrain technology are also quite young: the average age is just 34 with some already in managerial roles. “It is a result of impartial hiring policies,” says Pierpaolo Antonioli, the managing director of the centre.” Mr Antonioli believes the old prejudices about women in the automotive industry have shifted -- especially at General Motors in Turin, thanks to a young management team.
In 2008, GM moved onto the campus of the prestigious “Politecnico di Torino”, making it the first car company to be part of a university. This has allowed GM to target elite graduates: around 60 percent of the workforce graduated from the “Politecnico” which is officially ranked the number one university in Italy. The engineering center was founded six years ago but has since more than tripled in size: 450 people are now employed there.
Rita Forst, who heads up GM engineering operations in Europe, was one of the first managing directors of the centre in Turin. She says she is proud of how the site has gone from strength to strength. “It is always electrifying to come back to Turin where the young spirit and energy are tangible,” she says.
The Turin center has established itself as the place where all the diesel engines for General Motors passenger vehicles from around the world are developed. It also leads the way in GM’s innovative diesel control systems and new technologies for hybrids.
