We fondly remember Sir S Y Chung, GBE Hon FIMechE FREng

The Hong Kong Branch, one of the largest overseas Branches, mourns the loss of Sir Chung Sze-yuen, who passed away on 14 November 2018 at the age of 101.

Sir S Y Chung was the first Corresponding Member of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers for Hong Kong. He represented our institution in both Learned Society and Qualification activities, and was instrumental in bringing the Institution to the forefront of the British engineering institutions to the engineering profession in Hong Kong.

He held this position up to the mid-1980s when he handed it over to Dr Samuel Wong, who then continued to expand the activities. It is testament to the good work done by both gentlemen, that the Hong Kong branch now has nearly 3,600 members, with over 120 activities every year.

Sir S Y was also prominent in the political arena in Hong Kong.  He led a team of Hong Kong politicians to Beijing in the mid-1980s to start the Sino-British discussions on the future of Hong Kong and successfully protected the interests of the Hong Kong citizens from their colonial status to the present one-country two system regime. He was then appointed the Convenor of the first session of the Executive Council, the most senior executive arm of the Hong Kong Government.

He was also extremely dedicated to furthering technical education in Hong Kong, and had founded the city’s three leading engineering universities; Hong Kong Polytechnic University, the City University of Hong Kong and the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.

Each of these universities has since developed into internationally recognised establishments, responsible for creating numerous patents on various engineering subjects, and producing hundreds of engineering graduates every year.

Sir S Y was awarded the institution’s Whitworth Prize in 1952 in recognition of his exemplary contribution to the Institution. He also, more recently, received the James Watt International Gold Medal in 2012. This was awarded to him in recognition of his outstanding contributions to engineering, education, economical, social and political development of Hong Kong.