Uni’s 3M prof heads to final of Women in Business Awards
Wed, 19 Oct 2016 16:00:00 BST
Professor Liz Towns-Andrews, the 3M Professor of Innovation, won the regional heat in the STEM Business of the Year category
PROFESSOR Liz Towns-Andrews has been announced as a finalist in the 2016 Women in Business Awards for her role as CEO of the 3M Buckley Innovation Centre.
The awards, organised by business networking group Forward Ladies, are open to business women throughout the country and cover categories from start up to not for profit to inspiring leaders.
Professor Towns-Andrews is the winner of the Yorkshire, North East and Scotland Regional Heat in the category of STEM Business of the Year, awarded on 14 October in Newcastle.
She will now be invited to take part in a live judging day on 16 November where the finalists from 11 categories will deliver a presentation in front of the judges. The grand-final takes place on the 2 December, when the overall winner will be announced.
Liz-Towns Andrews has had an illustrious and varied career. After training as a chemist and gaining a PhD in X-ray crystallography, she worked at major UK research facilities before moving into the field of innovation and enterprise and relocating to the University of Huddersfield as Director of Research and Enterprise in 2009.
She was the inspiration behind the University’s £12 million 3M Buckley Innovation Centre. This offers office, research and conference facilities to businesses that range from large corporations to ambitious start-up companies.
Professor Towns-Andrews was recently awarded the Queen’s Award for Enterprise Promotion and is the current 3M Professor of Innovation – the only 3M-branded professorial chair outside of Harvard University.
Professor Towns-Andrews is honoured to have been recognised for her achievements but still believes more women need to be encouraged into the STEM sector. “Not many women are at the helm of science and engineering companies, and I’d like to see that change,” she said.
