Asila is one of Tenable Fire Engineering Consultancy’s (FEC) senior fire engineers and has over six years of industry experience. After completing her degree in fire engineering in the UK at the University of Lancashire, Asila returned to Oman with a wealth of knowledge and broad skill set. We spoke to Asila about her career aspirations, her proudest moment so far, and the challenges female engineers face.
- Who/what inspired you to start a career in fire engineering?
Even from a young age, I have always had a keen interest in helping people and protecting the environment from risk. I used to volunteer in the local community, which pushed me to research potential career paths that aligned with this passion. While in high school, I already knew I wanted to specialise in a technical subject, and engineering was a natural choice for me. During my second year of college, we learnt about building safety, particularly fire and life safety. This part of my education and ongoing industry research led me to fire engineering.
With a clear vision for my future, my family were incredibly supportive and encouraged me to pursue what is still a very niche but critical aspect of engineering.
- What unique challenges have you faced throughout your career?
Challenges arise daily and, in order for a fire engineer to succeed, it is critical to take these in your stride and remain focused. This is not only vital for the safety of a project but also for the service we provide to our clients. As a team, Tenable FEC works on some of the region’s most prestigious and iconic projects, and we manage each one with the individuality it deserves. The forward-thinking architecture we are now seeing more and more means our performance-based design approach is sutilised within most of our projects. We come together as a team to find the most viable solution for all stakeholders without compromising on safety.
- What is the most rewarding aspect of your role?
Developing my technical skills and guiding members of the team are the most rewarding elements of my role. As fire engineers, we are exposed to a variety of technical stakeholders across all phases of a project’s lifecycle, including mechanical engineers, electrical engineers, architects and interior designers. We are constantly gaining new technical and industry knowledge by working with so many other professions on a wide range of different projects.
By learning from others, I also have the privilege of sharing the expertise I gain with my junior colleagues. I can acknowledge each person’s strengths and preferred areas of development, which reinforces my knowledge and helps me grow as a team leader. Building these professional relationships, both with colleagues and clients, helps me to grow my network and allows me to identify areas I would like to improve on in the future. In an ever-changing industry, learning from others’ successes strengthens us as individuals and as a team.
- What is the proudest moment of your career so far?
During the early phase of my career journey, a consultancy manager selected me to be a team leader. This transition was a steep learning curve for me. Still, we are always encouraged to push the boundaries of our capabilities and grow by Tenable FEC’s founder and CEO, Sultan Al Maskari. We are encouraged to learn about all elements of the business, not just the technical areas, so we are developing a comprehensive skill set that will later become valuable when transitioning into more senior positions.
- What are the most common misconceptions about women in engineering?
From my personal experience, as women, there are often doubts surrounding our capabilities and commitment to professional life. People assume that just because there may be a career pause when we want to start a family, this is as far as our career can go. Unfortunately, this is a bias that is common across all industries. It is now much more common for women to start a family and still strive towards career goals by staying focused and establishing a clear definition between work and home life.
- What advice would you give to young women looking to enter the field of engineering?
My first piece of advice would be to start an internship as early as possible, while you are still syudying if possible. Real-world experience is invaluable when determining what avenue you want to take, the areas you are most interested in and your unique skill set. Before deciding fire engineering was the career for me, I interned as a fire safety advisor, fire inspector and fire officer. Each was different, giving me the freedom to evaluate the best path for my future while learning from industry experts.
Secondly, and maybe most importantly, be confident but remember to be humble. It can be hard to speak up in a room full of men, but people appreciate it when you speak up and allow your voice to be heard.
Lastly, develop a curiosity and a love for learning as it will allow you to create new innovative solutions to the many hurdles you will face throughout your career. As engineers, we must maintain the passion for creating something new and different, as without these qualities, our job would be much more difficult.