It was engineering all the way when the president of one of the world's oldest and most respected mechanical engineering organisations, paid a fact-finding visit to the University of Huddersfield and met the president of the prestigious Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET), the University's Vice-Chancellor Professor Bob Cryan CBE.
Every year the president of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers visits regions across the UK to witness the achievements of firms and universities in the engineering field and this year West Yorkshire as chosen as the host location.
Accompanied by a group of the institute's regional representatives, the day began with a guided tour around two local companies, Paxman Coolers and AUS Ltd, both of which the University has longstanding relationships with, before completing at the University of Huddersfield.
Phil Peel is the 137th president of the IMechE and has over 35 years of experience in the global power generation business. His career has focused on the development and design of large steam turbines, being based initially in Rugby, UK with GEC Turbine Generators and subsequently Alstom Power. He relocated to Switzerland in 2001 and led the development of new steam turbine technologies, advancing to the position of Chief Engineer in 2012, which he now holds with the current company owner, General Electric.
Professor John Allport, Director of the University's Turbocharger Research Group (TRG) and a Fellow of the IMechE, led the tour which included a visit to the University's new Laura Annie Willson Building.
The building was officially opened last year following an £8million renovation and is now home to a flagship research space for the School of Computing and Engineering where scientists and engineers can research topics as diverse as digital manufacturing, virtual reality, internet of things (IoT), digital forensics, fluid sciences and electric vehicles.
The Institution of Mechanical Engineers was founded in 1847 and its first presidents were the legendary railway and locomotive builders George and Robert Stephenson and so it was fitting the President's first port of call was the University's world-class railway institute.
Here's a selection of photos captured on the day when the IMechE's President visited the University's Institute of Railway Research.
Leading the tour around the Institute of Railway Research (IRR) was its Director Professor Paul Allen who told the visitors how the Institute carries out specialist research for the UK's railway industry in the fields of railway engineering and railway safety.
Phil Peel was shown the 'HAROLD' and 'Pantograph' full-scale test rigs, the ThomOS motion simulator and also met with the students who are involved in the IMechE's Railway Challenge, of which the University won in 2021 and 2013. To go on a virtual tour of the IRR and the facilities mentioned above click here.
"It was a pleasure to show the IMechE's new President Phil Peel around the Institute of Railway Research," said Professor Allen.
"Phil was impressed by our state-of-the-art laboratory facilities, strong links with industry and the work we are doing to promote engineering to students via our involvement in the IMechE's Railway Challenge."
Here's a selection of photos captured on the day when the IMechE's President visited the University's Turbocharger Research Group & the Smart House test facility.
The Automotive Lab was next on the agenda where students taking part in the IMechE motorsport competition Formula Student spoke about their project and being part of the University's Team HARE.
Engineering students taking part in the IMechE's Drone Challenge, as part of the University's Team HAWK also met with the guests and spoke about this year's competition entry.
A tour of the full-size Smart House test facility led by Professor Rakesh Mishra was concluded by a visit to the Centre for Precision Technologies (CPT) where Professor Andrew Longstaff explained how the CPT is a Centre of Excellence for collaborative metrology research, solving real-world manufacturing problems through cutting edge metrology research in precision engineering.
The day concluded with the President presenting two plaques the University's Vice-Chancellor Professor Bob Cryan, Glenn Paxman, Chairman of Paxman Coolers Ltd and Nick Garner, Managing Director of AUS Ltd.
