2026 Highlights

Rachel Piper

Principal Engineer

WSP

Rachel Piper MEng CEng MICE FICE, is a Principal Chartered Civil Engineer and ICE Fellow, working in the Civils business at WSP. She is currently the Project Manager delivering the independent CAT3 checking works for 80 major assets across HS2. 

Rachel is Chair of the WSP UK & Ireland Transport & Infrastructure Inclusion & Belonging Committee delivering campaigns across the business and creates industry-wide change through her role on the Institution of Civil Engineers “Fairness, Inclusion and Respect” Committee. Rachel is also an ICE STEM Ambassador and has introduced over 40,000 young people across the UK to the world of engineering. 

Rachel was named as one of the Women’s Engineering Society Top 50 Women in Engineering in 2025 and has won numerous other engineering awards including the Ford Women in STEM, UK Construction & Engineering Undergraduate of the Year, ICE Southwest STEM Ambassador of the Year and was one of the ICE’s President’s Future Leaders 2022/23. 

Dr. Yali Feng

Chief Electrical Engineer

Sulzer Services

Dr Yali Natalie Feng is a specialist in electromechanical design.  Through her coveted experience in commercial and academic organizations, she has developed a highly in-depth understanding of electrical machine design and HV insulation that she applies to real-world operational challenges.

Natalie started her career as a junior machine designer for a motor OEM in China and, after qualifying as a chartered engineer, working on a key project in the development of high efficiency IE2 and IE3 motors, which were sold in Europe in 2002.  Following that was seven years in academia in university of Manchester UK.  Researching her PhD, she developed a new analytical model for the accurate evaluation of losses in induction machines.  She also collaborated with industry on R&D projects, including the development of superconducting technology on electrical machines and nuclear power plants. 
 
In 2010, Natalie joined Sulzer and has been providing expert technical support for customers’  electrical repair, overhaul and rewind projects on HV/LV generators and motors.  

Natalie earned her Bachelor of Engineering at Shenyang University of Technology, China and her PhD from the University of Manchester, UK.  Her work has been extensively published in academic journals and presented at international conferences.

Karen Horting

Executive Director & CEO

Society of Women Engineers

Karen Horting, MBA, CAE, is the executive director and CEO for the Society of Women Engineers, a position she has held since Dec. 31, 2013.

SWE is a 50,000-member global professional organization for women and allies in engineering. Horting has more than 25 years of experience in association management. In her various roles, she has been responsible for development activities, including corporate partnerships and more traditional philanthropy such as foundation and government grants, individual gifts, and bequests. She has also driven a variety of programs and services, including professional development, pre-university outreach, the annual conference, and SWE’s global expansion. 
 

Giampiero Pari

Advisor & Mentor, Global Coil Winding Industry

Marsilli Automation Technology

Early career in Cape Town (South Africa), as Production Director in Industrial Chemicals followed by a challenging Quality Management position near Johannesburg, for a world leading Phosphor Bronze Foundry which successfully supplied Boeing and Airbus with quality high-precision bearings.

Settled in Lugano (Switzerland) in 1985 to join AUDEMARS, renowned micro components producer for the Swiss watch industry and then one of the European pioneers of RFID, until the founding of DATAMARS, today a world leader in its field. From 1987, joined MARSILLI of Castelleone (Italy), as Area Sales Manager for Switzerland, gradually expanding the responsibilities to include China and the Far East, the current Czech Republic, Poland, Turkey, Brazil and Portugal as the main growing markets. As Key Account Manager, later promoted MARSILLI globally and besides sales & marketing responsibilities, often took-on a public relations role, also contributing to its growing leadership in the industry worldwide.

Ultimately concluded the sale and supply of innovative winding machines and production lines in 28 countries. Extensive world travel in major industrialised zones, primarily experienced in covering the international automotive industry and modern factory automation. Instrumental in opening two MARSILLI own branches / subsidiaries, in China and Russia.

Retired from operational responsibilities, but still actively occupied with mentoring, training, consulting and advisory mandates besides which, Currently Director of MARSILLI AUTOMATION TECHNOLOGY and Member of the CWIEME Advisory Board since its inception.
 

Katharina Kunz

Employee Community Specialist

Hitachi Energy

Matrishvan Raval

Head of Product

Turntide Technologies

Matrishvan leads the product strategy and management for Turntide’s vehicle electrification portfolio, overseeing the development and delivery of innovative next‑generation electrification solutions. He brings deep experience in designing, engineering, and commercializing advanced electrification and control systems across the automotive, motorsport, and aerospace sectors. His work spans high‑performance powertrain technologies, safety‑critical software, and complex systems integration, positioning him as a key contributor to Turntide’s growth in the global electrification market.

Before joining Turntide, Matrishvan led engineering teams at McLaren Applied, where he focused on sophisticated control systems for both automotive and motorsport applications, supporting programs that demanded high reliability, precision, and performance. He also contributed to the development of sensor and software technologies at Meggitt, strengthening his expertise in highly regulated, safety‑critical environments. Earlier in his career, he held roles at GE Aviation and Rolls‑Royce, where he worked on major aerospace programs including the power systems for the Boeing 777X and engine control software used across multiple Airbus aircraft platforms.

Matrishvan holds a bachelor’s degree in Communications and Electronic Engineering and a master’s degree in Safety‑Critical Embedded Systems from the University of Leicester. He is also an alumnus of Harvard Business School’s General Management Program.

Peter Purcell

Head of Transformer Insulation & Components Europe

Hitachi Energy

Magdalene Amegashitsi

Founder & CEO

Anaiya Group

Magdalene Amegashitsi is a technology strategist and the founder of Anaiya Group, a consultancy dedicated to helping organisations build responsible, human-centred AI. She advises leaders on navigating the complexities of digital transformation, but her true passion is in empowering the people who will build the future.

With a career that began in engineering and evolved through advising FTSE 100 leaders, Magdalene has seen firsthand how technology can reshape industries. Her work is built on a simple but powerful premise: that true transformation happens at the intersection of people, process, and technology. She challenges the next generation of engineers to think beyond the code and consider the human impact of their work.

As a recognised thought leader in the Digital, Data, and AI space, Magdalene is a passionate advocate for ethical AI and human-centred innovation. She believes the most powerful engineers are those who lead with both competence and conscience, and she is dedicated to providing them with the tools and insights to do so. Her firm’s mission is to empower changemakers to design and deploy intentional intelligence that amplifies human potential.
 

Jenim Patel

CEO & MD

Infigrow Ventures UG

Jenim Patel is the Founder & CEO of INFIGROW AI, a Berlin-based startup building an AI-powered platform that helps industrial OEMs navigate market entry and find the right distribution partners across international corridors, with special focus on the European and Asia-Pacific markets.

With over 9 years in international B2B business development, Jenim has held channel sales roles at CEDES AG (Swiss IoT & sensor technology company) and relayr GmbH (Industrial IoT, acquired by Munich Re). His experience spans building distributor networks, managing cross-border channel strategies, and selling AI-powered SaaS to industrial OEM's across EMEA & APAC.

Jenim holds a degree in Industrial Automation from VGEC- India and a Master's from Hochschule Furtwangen University (HFU),Germany. He is based in Berlin and is an active member of the local AI founder community.
 

Amir Rohi

Manager, Electrical Engineering

BorgWarner

Amir Rohi was born in Tehran, Iran, and grew up in Germany near Heidelberg. He holds a B.Sc. in Mechatronics from TU Darmstadt and a M.Sc. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Mannheim.

He currently leads a mechatronic product engineering team within eLine, part of the Global Product Engineering organization at the Kibo Tech Center, BorgWarner Systems Engineering GmbH, in Kirchheimbolanden, Germany.

In his role, Amir is responsible for electromagnetic motor design, industrialization and launch of electrical systems, and product sustainability initiatives, contributing to advanced high-voltage solutions such as HV eTurbo and HV eFan systems.

His work focuses on translating sustainability targets into robust, scalable engineering solutions across the product lifecycle.