Three women pilot global aircraft engine maker Pratt and Whitney in India

A glance of the International Women's Day programme to be held at Indian Institute of Science (IISc) on Wednesday shows two women piloting the course of global aircraft engine maker Pratt & Whitney in India.

The two are Dr. Dheepa Srinivasan, Chief Engineer, Pratt & Whitney R&D Centre and Rema Ravindran, General Manager - India Engineering Centre, Pratt & Whitney.

Srinivasan is one of the convenors of the programme "Celebration of Women in Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics, Medicine, Education, Entrepreneurship" to be held at the IISc and Ravindran is one of the Speakers.

Interestingly Pratt & Whitney India is headed by Ashmita Sethi. In effect, the Indian operations of the global aircraft engine manufacturer is piloted by three women.

The Bengaluru-based Srinivasan, with over 34 patents, has developed over 50 technologies/process applications that are now running in several gas turbines.

Srinivasan has over 20 years of experience in developing advanced materials and manufacturing technologies for gas turbines. She was with GE - power, oil and gas businesses.

A pioneer in the area of Metal Additive Manufacturing (AM), she has developed several applications for metal laser AM as a unique technology enabler for aerospace, automotive, healthcare and engineering sectors.

Srinivasan has also made outstanding contributions in new technology areas such as Advanced Thermal Spray and Cold Spray Coatings, Turbine Component Lifing, from ideation to prototyping to production, in an accelerated manner, for gas turbine advancements.

She has played a key role in developing and qualifying over 25 Indian suppliers, in casting, forging, and fabrication for turbo machinery components.

Pratt & Whitney India Engineering Centre's General Manager Ravindran was earlier with Collins Aerospace as Director-Engineering and also served as Metier Manager, Train Control Systems at Alstom, and as Vice President, Engineering at Faiveley Transport.

In her corporate career, Ravindran has a long tenure at GE Transportation where she worked as Manager for over 12 years.

At Pratt & Whitney, she plays a key role in recruiting engineers for its India Engineering Centre, Bengaluru, which focuses on providing contract engineering services and works work closely with centers in the US, Canada, Puerto Rico, and Poland.

Very few corporate communication managers rise up to the level of a CEO and enter the corporate boardroom. And Sethi is one such rare corporate executive.

Sethi, President and Country Head for Pratt & Whitney, United Technologies Corp India, provides strategic direction for the company's growth in India. She drives all of Pratt & Whitney's new initiatives and existing operations in India.

Prior to Pratt & Whitney, Sethi was the Vice President Communications and Public Affairs, South Asia, for Rolls Royce and Director, Communications and Corporate Affairs at Boeing, as per her LinkedIn page.

(Venkatachari Jagannathan can be reached at v.jagannathan@ians.in)

--IANS

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