Obituary - Bruce Arnold

Members of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers only learnt in recent months of the passing of the past divisional Chair and fellow of the Institution, Bruce Arnold who following a short Covid illness, died 28 March, 2020.

Bruce held the position of chair of the Construction and Building Services Divisional Board from 2012-2016 and was subsequently awarded the CBSD prize in October 2018. His speech as ever was amusing and informative. As a past submariner Bruce was rarely ruffled, being clear in his direction.

Many of the Board remember Bruce with true affection, tributes received include:

• Bruce was a true gentleman. He was so welcoming when I joined CBSD, he was always so very approachable, and respectful, in all dealings I had with him. This will be a big loss to his profession.
• Bruce was a pleasure to spend time with, he made everyone feel welcome and respected the opinion and input of us all.
• Bruce never failed to bring boundless joy to the office, an immense character and much-loved family man who will leave a long and lasting memory for all who met and knew him.

Bruce served in the Royal Navy for almost 35 years and trained as a Marine Engineer Office serving on nuclear Submarines HMS Resolution, HMS Turbulent and HMS Trafalgar as well as many shore side jobs including a NATO posting to the USA.

After leaving the Navy in 2008, Bruce re-trained in the building and surveying industry initially as a Home Inspector, setting up his own company Inspexions to conduct inspections, home surveys and consultancy work within the industry. This led him to working with and for various colleges and examining Boards, principally ABBE (Association Body of the Built Environment). With them he acted as an External and Internal verifier of exams, and helped develop many level 2, 3 and 4 courses in subjects such as heating, lighting and ventilation and thermography. The latter quickly became his passion as he worked with iRed not only doing surveys but training others to use thermal imaging to help detect causes of heat loss in buildings. Since joining iRed in 2014, Bruce was fundamental in helping them achieve the highest standards possible in the industry. Bruce’s strong principles and values echoed those of and remain the foundation of iRed today.

Bruce showed great passion; not only for the business, but for the thermography industry as a whole, and was a member and former chair of the UKTA building subcommittee.

Alongside his working life Bruce was a gifted pianist/organist and singer and he played or sang throughout his life. Bruce left a beloved wife Irene, two grown up sons and a daughter, who he shared and passed on his love of music to and was immensely proud of.