Women’s & Maternity safety workwear
Designed by female engineers
to be fit for purpose & safe
Apto PPE was born from working women solving a problem
Apto was born from a group of women working in engineering and construction and their passion to solve the long-standing issue of women in their industry (and other male dominated industries such as construction, infrastructure and mining) wearing ill-fitting personal protective equipment (PPE) workwear.
In 2010, Michelle Shi-Verdaasdonk and Gaye Francis – Chair and Deputy Chair, respectively, of Engineers Australia’s National Committee on Women in Engineering (NCWIE) decided to form a working group to address the issue around fit for purpose women’s protective workwear.
In collaboration with two designers at Challenger Institute of Technology (now South Metropolitan TAFE), four prototype garments were designed. These were showcased to an overwhelming response at the 15th International Conference of Women Engineers and Scientists (ICWES15) in 2011.
Following this initial success, NCWIE partnered with John Holland for a pilot to test the prototype designs under real site conditions using volunteer participants.
Engineers Australia’s involvement in the project finished after the pilot.
Founders Laurice Temple (left), Gaye Francis (centre) & Michelle Shi-Verdaasdonk (right) in 2011. Gaye remains as Managing Director.
Original photoshoot for Women in Engineering in 2011
In 2012, with permission and the good wishes of NCWIE, Apto PPE was founded. With Laurice Temple joining the team, Apto officially launched on International Women’s Day with the vision to take the women’s fit for purpose initiative to its full potential and fill the gap in the marketplace.
Apto worked in partnership with Australian designer Linh Thai, Designer’s Assistant, in Melbourne to design more women’s shirts and pants that would make up Apto’s Signature and Maternity ranges.
These new designs were tested onsite and refined accordingly to ensure optimum safety, comfort and style.
In 2015, following Michelle and Laurice’s decisions to leave as Directors, Apto was bought by Gaye’s other business, R2A Due Diligence Engineers.
While Apto took a back seat while Gaye started her family, she has watched keenly to see if the gap in women’s workwear would be filled and if women would embrace wearing PPE that stood out from their male counterparts.
While other entrants have joined the women’s PPE marketplace, not much has changed for women in industry.
In 2019, Apto re-launched with a re-energised commitment to support women in engineering, construction, infrastructure, mining and other industries to be safe, comfortable, stylish and feminine.
We believe, that’s the least women deserve.
“The fact women working in male dominated industries would prefer to wear men’s workwear that’s unsafe and uncomfortable demonstrates women still feel the need to ‘fit in’ rather than ‘stand out’ and be themselves as women.”
— Gaye Francis, Apto PPE Founder & Managing Director