Let’s travel back in time. The 20th century begins: political and social advances are palpable on the streets, technological innovation shines more brightly than ever and connects us through the telephone, the radio, the road and even the air! The world is changing and industry is largely responsible for this.
From textile production to chemistry to food production: all of them had great women behind them, and their names do not always appear in the history books. As a matter of fact, the origin of International Women’s Day can be traced back to one of these factories. On 25 March 1911, the Triangle Shirtwaist factory in New York burns to the ground, killing more than 140 workers. A catastrophe that marked history by igniting the spark of change and which, it is said, dyed the sky purple, turning this colour into a symbol.
At Hinojosa, we embody the essence of industry, it is in our DNA, and we value the fundamental role that women play in companies like ours. That is why we want to pay tribute to those pioneering women who, with their talent and determination, transformed the industry and improved our lives. To make their legacy visible, we have selected six profiles of women who marked a before and after in the sector.
Would you like to join us?
Mary Elizabeth Walton, a pioneer in environmental activism
Mary Walton was an American engineer who was considered one of the first environmental activists in history. In 1879, she designed a system to trap polluting gases emitted by factories and steam engines. This invention helped to significantly reduce pollution in industrial cities, through it she showed her concern for the environment long before it became a global challenge.
In addition, in 1881 she developed a mechanism to reduce the noise pollution emitted by railways. By wrapping wood with cotton wool and sand, she managed to reduce noise in urban areas, improving all her neighbours’ rest times and, in general, their quality of life.
Beatrice Warde and the typography revolution
Beatrice Warde (1900-1969) was a typographer, writer and editorial designer renowned throughout the world for her work in the dissemination of visual communication.
In particular, Warde, under the pseudonym “Paul Beajuon”, championed typography as a tool to connect with the public, improve readability and refine the visual identity of products. Her typographic innovations broke the standards of the time and left behind a key legacy in modern graphic design.
Lecturing at universities and publishing houses, she became one of the first women to educate people about typography at an international level, and to gain a leading position in the printing industry.
Margaret E. Knight, the inventor of modern packaging
Margaret E. Knight (1838-1914) was an American engineer and inventor, considered one of the most influential and prolific women of her time. Because of her talent and creativity, she was nicknamed “the Edison of women”.
Among her best projects, we can highlight the machine for making paper bags with a flat bottom. This breakthrough not only revolutionised the packaging industry, but also changed the way products were transported and stored, laying the foundations for more sustainable, efficient and accessible packaging.
In addition, Knight also designed, for example, a shoe-cutting machine, mechanisms to improve steam engines, systems to improve safety in factories and innovations in the textile industry. In total, Margaret registered more than 90 inventions and 26 patents during her lifetime.
Nina Goodrich, a benchmark in sustainable packaging
Nina Goodrich is a sustainability and circular economy expert, and it recognised worldwide for her work in developing solutions for more sustainable packaging. Her career has been focused on material innovation and reducing the environmental impact of packaging in industry.
Until 2022, she was Executive Director of Green Blue and, until 2021, Director of the Sustainable Packaging Coalition (SPC), an organisation that promotes responsible and sustainable practices in the packaging industry. She also worked on the development of biodegradable and recyclable materials, which helped large companies reduce their ecological footprint.
Irma Boom, the architect of books
Irma Boom, born in 1960, is a Dutch graphic designer and typographer, globally recognised for her work in innovative book design. She specialises in the creation of artists’ books, using unusual formats and layouts, challenging traditional editorial design. In 1991, she founded her own studio Irma Boom Office, specialising in creating experimental books. Her best known work is the Rijksmuseum book (2016), a book with no ink in which the images are in relief. Throughout her career she has worked for major institutions and brands such as Rijksmuseum, Chanel, Vitra and MoMA.
In 2013, in collaboration with the Rijksmuseum, she designed a collection of packaging for food products, which turned packaging into an art form. Boom has also been a teacher, lecturer and winner of several world-renowned awards such as the Gutenberg Prize and the Johannes Vermeer Award, the most prestigious cultural award in the Netherlands.
Neri Oxman, for the eco-design of materials
Neri Oxman, who was born in 1976 in Israel, is an architect, designer, scientist and professor known for her work in the field of Material Ecology, a discipline that links design with biology and engineering.
Her revolutionary approach, combining nature and technology, investigates how materials can be designed in a more sustainable and environmentally integrated way. Neri studied architecture in Israel before gaining her PhD at the MIT Media Lab where she founded and led the Mediated Matter Group, and she has developed different materials whose inspiration is derived from biological processes. She advocates the concept of Material Ecology where design is inspired by biology to create more sustainable structures.
She has worked with institutions and brands such as NASA, MoMA and Chanel, bringing her ideas to a wide range of industries, and her projects have been exhibited in museums such as MoMA, the Pompidou and the Smithsonian. Today, she continues to explore new ways of integrating biology and technology to revolutionise manufacturing and design.
History is full of female figures who inspire us to continue our commitment to innovation and, above all, to continue working for a more diverse, equitable and sustainable planet.
