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Diageo
recruits Scotland's first female
apprentice into the coppersmith trade.
The traditional craft of a
coppersmith is hundreds of years old but up
until now in Scotland it has always been
a male dominated craft but I am
pleased to say that this most
traditional of crafts has achieved a new
first with a female apprentice taking up
the coppersmith’s hammer and torch.
Rebecca Weir, 18, from Alloa has been
recruited by Diageo Abercrombie as a
first year Modern Apprentice and is
believed to be the first female recruit
into the coppersmith trade in Scotland.
She is part of the latest apprentice
intake at Diageo Abercrombie alongside
16-year-old Calum McTaggart from the
famous whisky island of Islay, and
Steven Key, who at 34 is a mature
apprentice recruit.
For centuries coppersmiths have used the
same tried and tested methods to make
the famous stills which are at the heart
of Scotch whisky distillation.
Rebecca and her fellow apprentices will learn how to
hand-beat copper sheets and weld them
into whisky stills, as well as being
trained in state-of-the-art computer
aided design techniques, mastering a
blend of strength, skill and patience.
Rebecca, who hopes to have a bright
future in the traditionally
male-dominated field, gained the coveted
spot on the Abercrombie apprenticeship
programme following an impressive
interview.
"My guidance teacher told me about the
apprenticeship opportunities with
Diageo. I thought it sounded like a
really interesting route and I knew I
had to go for it. I wasn’t put off by
gender stereotypes – I don’t think that
should stop anyone from doing what they
want to do. It’s really exciting to be
part of something which is so important
to the whisky industry. I can’t wait to
get stuck in and learn more about the
essential skills needed to build and
preserve the stills which produce some
of the world’s most-loved Scotch
whisky."
Rebecca joins a vanguard of female
distillers, engineers, blenders and
brand ambassadors at Diageo, hoping to
inspire other women to join the
industry. At Diageo in Scotland, a
quarter of all its apprentices are
female; 17% of the malt distilling
workforce is female and 40% are in
management roles, reflecting the
company’s focus on diversity in its
workforce.
Abercrombie, which hand-crafts bespoke
stills for Diageo’s sites across Europe,
is experiencing one of the largest peaks
in demand for its specialist engineering
services in its history. While a
traditional product, Scotch is still
innovative and new ranges – which
require a diverse range of stills in
different shapes and sizes - are
constantly being launched.
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