WOMEN IN INDUSTRY AWARDS 2021
Challenge accepted IT WAS A COMPETITIVE NATURE THAT LED NOELLE PARLIER TO STUDY ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING AT UNIVERSITY. NOW SHE HEADS UP A TEAM OF MORE THAN 120 ENGINEERS FOR ONE OF THE WORLD’S MOST RECOGNISED TRUCK MANUFACTURERS. THE 2021 WOMEN IN INDUSTRY AWARDS FINALIST SHARES HER JOURNEY.
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ever one to shy away from a challenge, the chief engineer of PACCAR Australia, Noelle Parlier, says the “taboo of engineering being a male-dominated field” first drew her interest. That, and wanting to do one better than her older sister. With a passion for maths and science, and based on her college test results, studying engineering “seemed like a good choice”. But it wasn’t until her university placement interview at Seattle University, USA, she decided on a double major in electrical engineering and physics. “My sister was studying mechanical engineering. When I was interviewed by the university for my placement, they asked me what I was interested in, and I asked them: ‘What is more challenging than mechanical engineering?’,” Noelle says. “They said electrical engineering and so that’s what I chose. I was very lucky in that I absolutely loved the subject. It was at a time when computer engineering was just starting to become a discipline. “I feel like the taboo of engineering being a male-dominated field drew my interest. I wanted to prove that I could be successful in the field, regardless of my gender. “In reality, I have benefited from the diversity of thought and experiences I have had growing up and studying in a
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Noelle Parlier is a finalist in the Women In Industry, excellence in manufacturing award.
male-dominated field and now a maledominated industry.” Originally from Kirkland, Washington, home of the Kenworth Trucks Company in the USA, it seems a natural transition from study to sign on with PACCAR, among the largest manufacturers of medium- and heavy-
duty trucks in the world. Noelle’s been there as the industry has undergone huge technological growth. “When I started, the common phrase was the truck industry is about 10-15 years behind the automobile industry,” she says. “The expectations were that new technology had to be proven and
