There is a certain closeness that she understands, in the sound of the machines, in the hustle and bustle of any working day, in the tensest productive moments, or in those commitments that are reluctant to be achieved. Victoria carries the mark of the Acinox Las Tunas Stainless Steel Company diluted in her DNA, it is rather a choice that reached her when she was still very young and dreamed of multiplying projects, a handle from which she still drinks.
The dialogue reaches her in the concrete walls she saw growing up, with the challenge instilled in her that "women don't have much sense for innovation that science is almost denied to them," a nonsense she continues to unlearn, every day.
Victoria Serrano Pérez is an environmental specialist in the industry, but also a veteran and innovator, a fairy godmother, and a maga when circumstances are tight and the sense of belonging banishes the "no se puede" (it can't be done).
"I am proud to be the founder of Acinox. It is a very long story, a life-long story. Since I graduated as an industrial engineer, I was one of those who had the opportunity to be here for the assembly of the plant when it seemed possible for the province to achieve such strength."
"We evaluated each proposal and I remember that the collective got involved in such a way that from earthmoving we joined the contingent in charge of the work and worked with them together, sharing the sweat."
"We were direct investors in the assembly of the plant. I grew up here. The first years were spent in training, then I worked in organizations, got involved in the management system, looked after health and safety at work, and finally found my passion, environmental protection, which is the activity I have been involved in for many years."
"I could use other adjectives, but it is very nice what I do and the exercise of duty here has always been tinged with excellent relations between workers and technical staff. I would go so far as to say that we gradually formed as a company and ended up becoming a family."
With her experience under her belt, Victoria explains the rhythm of work within the steel company, routines marked by a fairly high level of complexity and which in many ways steal time to be at home, with the family and traffic on weekends, conspiring against public holidays. They are, by force, like another home.
"Of course, it is not easy. From the first years, we were nourished by the knowledge of the workers, of the workers, and we contributed the little we had learned at the university, I say the little knowledge because the practice is much richer and demands more than formulas or concepts."
She tells us that as he perfected his skills, always ready to learn, the first innovations directly related to safety, health, and environmental issues arrived.
"Innovation is part of our work and it comes from teamwork and also from commitment because we have learned that you can't just sit back and do nothing until someone from the outside comes in and solves your problems."
"It has been rewarding as well. The set of solutions that I have been contributing have been very practical and we have seen the result of each one of them with the impact they have had in different areas."
"The first time I dared to innovate, I was attending to workers' health and safety. I made an incursion into the first studies of occupational illnesses that could manifest themselves here in the plant and presented a series of solutions to prevent injuries, work accidents, or occupational illnesses in the industry."
"I also immersed myself in the prevention of environmental pollution and the implementation of a series of actions that could be perfected to improve the working environment and the environment in which the industry operates, bearing in mind that this is a very, very complex industry and has dangerous and harmful factors, to which not only the workers are exposed daily, but also the surrounding community."
"It then became imperative to achieve a planned environmental management that is also coherent and with a high level of seriousness in these matters because our lives are at stake, but also the safety of the locality and the prestige of the country that has always been inclined towards an ecological and sustainable agenda."
THE ENGINEERING BUG
She recalls, with nostalgia on her face, her approach to the profession, the impetus with which she knew as a child that mathematics, numbers, and large projects were her thing.
"I graduated in 1990 from the Higher Technical Institute of Holguín, at that time, which today is the University of Holguín. Later, I obtained a Master's degree in Industrial Engineering Sciences here, at the University of Las Tunas."
"It sounds simple, but no way, I recognize the wealth of knowledge that those professors contributed to my generation. I have to make it clear that today, managers, technicians, and workers are a strength at Acinox and it is thanks to them that many times an idea of ours can materialize. We have always had the unconditional support of the collective."
IN A MAN'S WORLD?
With a smile on her face, she clears up our doubts: "The metallurgical industry is a man's world. There are only 189 women out of almost a thousand workers. In the first few years, there is always something that happens to women when we arrive in a place like this, and that is that you have to show that you can do your job, you have to be an example and win people's trust..."
"You have to make a name for yourself by dint of responsibility and discipline in an industry like this where men are the majority. I can say that, from the beginning, there were about 200 active founders, we managed to gain respect for women's work, and we have always been highly regarded."
"Of course, we, women, carry extra weight, a double effort because it is not only the work here in the industry but also at home, looking after the family, making sure that your loved ones don't feel your absence because you don't want them to feel it. It's difficult, but when you manage to do it, it's very nice."
"We went through different stages. In the first ones, there was that violent shock when they saw a tiny, thin person with the desire to change the world in a very strong industry and it made us a double obligation. I don't think that happens to men. The obligation to show what you are worth and what you do and you had to prepare yourself a lot."
"I had to educate myself both in the aggressiveness of the environment in which I was working and also in the technical conditions in which each of the processes were developed and therefore I had to manage each of them."
"It has been very gratifying, I am grateful that the collective has forced me to reach my maximum potential and it is beautiful to see that the ideas that you propose when they are materialized have an impact both from an economic, social, and environmental point of view, involving many people not only from our industry but also others to whom we have been able to collaborate with the modest knowledge we have."
...
Victoria smeared with modesty, speaks in the third person when she talks about her achievements and in the first person singular when she mentions the commitment and sacrifice that goes beyond the state commissioning of the company and its impact on Las Tunas reality.
Anchored to her talent are several national awards and important recognitions linked to innovations in the factory. Her achievements in cleaner production in the steel industry and his contributions to environmental protection stand out.
She tells us that she had the privilege of representing Cuba and women from Las Tunas in the event of Women Creators, from which she returned with awards. Her trajectory within Acinox encourages her to continue dreaming of immense projects and to continue caring for everyone's air.
