Institution news
The exclusive event, held on 20 November, provided members and guests with the perfect opportunity to meet old friends and former associates, network with peers, and relax with colleagues.
Dressed in black tie, guests enjoyed a drinks reception and were warmly welcomed by the evening’s host and President of the Institution Group Captain Mark Hunt.
Celebrating a year of engineering progress and continued growth for the Institution, Mark thanked guests for joining him to celebrate the successes and achievements of the engineering profession and the Institution.
Mark said: “This is an opportunity to celebrate our global community of engineers and to look back on some of the highlights of the year. It’s also an opportunity for us to encourage our engineers to be daring, to promote their industry and take responsibility for all that engineering contributes to society.
“Engineering has never been so exciting nor so rewarding – a reality we are harnessing to inspire the next generation. My challenge to every engineer here tonight is to ask themselves what they have done to improve society and then to tell someone about it.”
Silver Sponsors of the Annual Dinner were Jaguar Land Rover, Petrofac, Allianz Insurance and Parsons Brinckerhoff. Members of these companies enjoyed tables alongside those for Angel Trains, Ansys, AWE, E.ON, ERA Technology, GDF Suez, and HBC Vehicle Services.
Vision Award winners 2014
The evening also celebrated this year’s Vision Awards winners who were presented with their trophies at the event by Mark and the Institution’s Chief Executive Officer Stephen Tetlow. Mark and Stephen congratulated each of the award winners, all of whom are high achieving young engineers and have excelled in their studies and early careers. They all embody the spirit of the Institution.
The 2014 Visionaries are:
- Undergraduate Visionary – George Scholz, AMIMechE
- Whitworth Visionary – Dr Ben Hughes, CEng FIMechE
- EngTech Visionary – Stuart Scott, EngTech MIMechE
- Young Member Visionary – Siddartha Khastgir, AMIMechE
- Brian Hildrew Apprentice of the Year 2014 – Suzanne Birney
Guests enjoyed a sumptuous dinner including Glazed Tilapia and papaya salad for their starter; a main course of Cannon of Lamb, or Corn and Pepper Frittata, followed by a dessert of Cheesecake and mango sorbet.
The evening’s keynote speaker Terry Morgan CBE, FREng, Chairman of Crossrail captivated guests with his address. He shared the progress of Crossrail and spoke of how proud he was of Britain’s engineering expertise and skills.
He emphasised the importance of encouraging more young people to take up apprenticeships to fill skills shortages in engineering and applauded the amazing work of the Institution’s Railway Division especially all that they had done to inspire the next generation of engineers.
At around 10pm Hugh Dennis, comedian and actor, led the after-dinner entertainment. Hugh made his name as one half of comedic duo Punt & Dennis, and developed his talent for impressions on Spitting Image and the Jasper Carrott Show. He has also appeared on Would I Lie to You?, QI, and has guest-presented the long-running BBC1 show, Have I Got News For You.
Hugh Dennis entertained guests with some carefully crafted jokes tailored towards an engineering audience.
On the night guests also made generous donations to international humanitarian organisation RedR UK. RedR UK acts to ensure disaster-prone communities are given practical life-saving skills, advice and support, which help them prepare for, respond to and recover from natural and man-made disasters. The total raised for the organisation at the event was £2,225.20.
After a vibrant and entertaining evening – an occasion to share success stories across the industrial community and to celebrate the future of engineering – 'carriages' were called at 11pm.
The Institution thanks the event’s sponsors and looks forward to welcoming many members and guests to the Annual Dinner in 2015.
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