Freudenberg Helps Women Succeed in Pursuing Technical and Industrial Careers

MANCHESTER, N.H., March 9, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- At Freudenberg North America Limited Partnership (FNALP), engineering is an equal-opportunity profession.

Just take Mary McInerney and Terezie Zapletalova as examples. McInerney has recently been appointed the director of Supply Chain Management for FNALP company, Freudenberg Oil & Gas. Zapletalova, Application and Development Laboratory manager for Freudenberg Nonwovens, another FNALP company, has spent the past seven years working on proprietary engineering technologies that have helped Freudenberg perfect its spunbond nonwoven process. Both women are breaking traditional gender barriers in their respective industries and finding the challenges of doing so immensely rewarding.

"I think the oil and gas industry has always been male-dominated because of the lifestyle that accompanies it," said McInerney, who works in Freudenberg Oil & Gas' Houston headquarters. "Oil rigs run 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year, in some of the most remote locations in the world.  Because of this, I think women have not historically been attracted to the industry.  Men have spent entire careers in the industry and dominate many of the technical and upper management positions."

"But I love my job, and I would recommend that women not be intimidated by a male-dominated field," she continued. "If you work hard and show results you can achieve anything.  I work with the entire team from product conception, to manufacturing, to getting the finished part in the hands of the customer."

Zapletalova agreed.

"Being involved in spunbond nonwoven production can be quite time demanding and requires significant engineering background," Zapletalova said. "Engineering has traditionally been dominated by men. While there are still some aspects of production that are handled by mostly men, there are other areas that are inherently more gender neutral, such as finance, customer service, sales, quality assurance and research and development."

Freudenberg Oil & Gas provides sealing solutions for the global upstream segment of the energy industry which includes drilling and oil well production activities. McInerney is responsible for helping the company develop a comprehensive global supply chain strategy. She works with sales representatives, engineers and manufacturing plants to evaluate and select vendors who can supply materials to help the company meet its customers' requirements.

Before accepting her current position, McInerney worked for the company as a materials and procurement supervisor, where she developed a procedure to evaluate and improve inventory control that improved accuracy from 35 percent to 93 percent in just seven months. She holds a bachelor's degree in industrial engineering and master's degree in business administration, both from the University of Oklahoma.

Freudenberg Nonwovens is the world's largest producer of nonwoven fabrics.  The company's products are used to produce interlinings in the garment industry; headliner and carpet systems in the automotive industry; carpet backings and building materials; filtration systems; sound absorption materials; flame-retardant mattress materials; and weed block fabric for the landscape industry.  Zapletalova, who works in the company's Durham, N.C. headquarters, was recently promoted to Application and Development Laboratory manager in charge of two technicians who perform analytical research and development and quality tests on products and materials. She oversees testing that often helps customers overcome product challenges and also leads the organization's efforts to maintain its TS16949 certification associated with the automotive industry.

Zapletalova graduated from North Carolina State University with a doctorate in Fiber and Polymer Science. Freudenberg sponsored her post-graduate work.

She also holds a master's degree in textile science from the University of Tennessee and a master's degree in Technology of Textiles and Clothing from Technical University, Liberec, Czech Republic.

Both McInerney and Zapletalova hope they are setting examples in their careers for other women to follow.

"I hope the positive impact I bring is to negate the perception that women can't be managers or have successful technical careers in this industry," McInerney said. "Freudenberg has given me so many opportunities. The organization has taken great interest in what my career goals are and how they can help me achieve them."

"Bringing a woman's perspective and insight to this industry might bring different dynamics into the process of finding customer solutions," Zapletalova said. "Solid technical knowledge along with proper communications are essential building blocks in order to establish a position in a predominantly male technical field. Being a mom of two small children, I always have to find a good balance between work and family."

One educational tool that helps both women navigate the industry is the Freudenberg Mentoring Program, which pairs young professionals with upper management from different business groups. "My mentor is Marcus Pillion, the president of FNALP company EagleBurgmann USA," said McInerney. "He's extremely interested in what I'm doing, where I want to be, and how I can get there. We've met many times to discuss the challenges I face in the day-to-day office and how I can achieve my career goals."

In addition to a robust mentoring program, Freudenberg is developing other programs to help women accelerate in their careers, said Leesa Smith, president, FNALP.

"We want to address the issue of diversity from every angle. That means reaching out to colleges and universities and working to ensure there are enough diversity candidates enrolling in technical programs.  We are also establishing training and development programs within our organization that are specifically targeted to help women and other diversity employees successfully navigate our business environment and corporate culture."

"I hope my success and the success of other women tears down any misconceptions that women can't handle management positions or technical roles," McInerney concluded. "I like that Freudenberg has shown such interest in getting more women involved in technical careers. I really think the organization sees the value of a diverse workplace."

About Freudenberg North America Limited Partnership

Freudenberg North America Limited Partnership, the North American holding company for Freudenberg & Co. of Weinheim, Germany, owns a family of companies that operate 15 unique businesses. Together, these companies provide innovative products and solutions to customers in industries ranging from automotive, aerospace and medical to chemical, oil and gas and construction. Freudenberg North America companies develop and manufacture custom-engineered seals, vibration control technology, filters, nonwovens, release agents, lubricants, expansion joints, household products, and IT software and services.

The Freudenberg Group specializes in seals and vibration control technology, nonwovens, filtration, lubricants and release agents and other specialty business areas. The Freudenberg Group generated sales of more than U.S. $7.13 billion and had 34,000 global employees in 2010. For additional information, please visit freudenberg.com

SOURCE Freudenberg North America Limited Partnership