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  • The Space Balloon That Launched a Communications Revolution

    On 12 August 1960, a giant reflective balloon orbiting hundreds of kilometres above Earth helped demonstrate something that would change global communications forever. The satellite was Echo 1, and on that day engineers successfully transmitted radio signals across the United States by bouncing them off its surface. The achievement marked the first practical demonstration of satellite communications and opened the door to the connected world we now take for granted. Today, billions of people rely on satellite technology for television, telecommunications, navigation, weather forecasting and internet access. Yet the origins of this capability can be traced back to a remarkably simple concept: placing a large reflective object in orbit and using it as a giant mirror for radio waves. For engineers…

  • Simply, thank you

    We all know, one of the great strengths of the IET has always been the people who give their time to make it better. Across our communities, volunteers bring experience and, in many cases, a sense of unsurpassable enthusiasm that creates opportunities for others and helps keep the IET relevant, welcoming and connected. Over the past few months, I’ve learnt about a group of volunteers who have been helping us think about the future of our Communities and Networks. What has been the most impressive, isn't just the quality of the ideas that emerged from the group, but the openness with which everyone approached the conversations. Individuals with different experiences and perspectives came together, challenged each other's thinking when needed, and remained focused on what will create the greatest…

  • We all have our cheese moved

    Change is something we all experience, yet few of us truly welcome it. Whether it's a new role, new technology, organisational change, or an unexpected challenge in life, our first instinct is often to resist. We become comfortable with what we know. We build routines, develop expertise, and find confidence in familiar surroundings. Then one day, something changes. For many years, one of the books that has stayed with me is Who Moved My Cheese? by Dr Spencer Johnson. It tells a simple story, but one with a powerful message: change is inevitable, and our success is often determined by how we respond to it. Like many people, there have been times in my career when I wanted to fight back against change. I wanted things to stay the same because the familiar felt safe. Looking back, I realise…

  • BEYOND A SINGLE CDE: Why ISO 19650 governance automation must be designed for platform diversity

    When we talk about a Common Data Environment (CDE), it can sound as though everyone is working inside the same type of system. My recent survey experience suggested something very different: the standard may be common, but the digital workspaces behind it are not. Why I looked at the platforms behind the process I have been exploring how automation could support information governance aligned with ISO 19650. During that work, one practical question kept returning: before we automate a review, approval or information-sharing process, what platform are people actually using to carry it out? ISO 19650 describes the information-management workflow that a CDE should support. In practice, information containers move through controlled states such as work in progress, shared, published and archived…

  • William Morris Mordey

    Guest blog by Alex Mordey Look at almost any electrical device in your home. The phone charger, the kettle, the television, printed or moulded beside the voltage figures, you will find a small wavy line: ∿. The alternating current sinusoidal wave (or Sine wave). It is one of the most reproduced symbols on earth, stamped onto every mains appliance ever manufactured, and almost nobody knows its origin. It was proposed in a single sentence, one evening, in a lecture theatre at the Institution of Electrical Engineers in 1889, by a self-taught telegraph clerk named William Morris Mordey. Ninety six years later the same Institution sat on the British committee that wrote his symbol into law. The AC Sine wave is only the most visible of his legacies. Behind it sits a body of work that helped build…

  • Curiosity, Courage and a Life at Sea: Exploring the World while building an Engineering career

    When I spoke with Leroy Osbourne FIET, CEng, MSc , for our 'My Engineering Career' blog series, I expected to hear about warships, sonar systems and a successful engineering career spanning the Royal Navy and industry. What I didn't expect was a story full of curiosity, adventure, resilience and lifelong learning. From a young boy fascinated by electricity and aeroplanes to a Chartered Engineer, IET Fellow and engineering leader, Leroy's journey demonstrates that there is no single route into engineering. In fact, some of the most rewarding careers begin with simply asking questions and refusing to stop learning. "I just wanted to know how things worked" For Leroy, engineering wasn't a carefully planned career choice. It was the natural outcome of a childhood spent being curious. Growing…

  • Engineering the Adaptive Workspace: From Asset Maintenance to System Strategy

    Managing change in modern engineering requires a radical shift in how we look at infrastructure . For generations, the focus has been on maintaining physical buildings. Today, the true challenge lies at the intersection of workplace strategy, data-driven insights, and human centric design. As the former Head of Research and Insight at the Institute of Workplace and Facilities Management (IWFM) and now working at the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) within our Local Networks, I have spent my career tracking how disruption shapes industry. The biggest disruption we face today is not a specific technology, but a fundamental change in the purpose of our workspaces. The Evolution of the Workplace The traditional office environment is no longer just a physical structure where…

  • Exploration vs Exploitation

    Reinforcement Learning (RL) is the branch of machine learning where an 'agent' (the actor, in an environment) learns by trying an action, observing the result, and adjusting its behaviour accordingly to achieve its goal. It is not unlike teaching a dog a new trick: the dog hears a command, tries something, and a treat either arrives or it does not, and over enough repetitions the dog works out which action gets the reward. This creates a hard engineering problem, because the agent has to decide how much to stick with actions that are already working versus how much to keep testing other options. This is a concept known as the 'exploration-exploitation trade-off'. Understandably, when you don't know what you don't know, it's tricky knowing how well you're doing and if you should change tactics…

  • Digital Detox: Is It Time to Rethink Our Relationship with Technology?

    For many of us, digital technology is woven into almost every aspect of daily life. We use it to stay in touch with colleagues, keep up with friends and family, access news, learn new skills, and manage our work. Smartphones, tablets, laptops, and wearable devices have made information more accessible than ever before. Yet while technology has undoubtedly brought enormous benefits, growing numbers of people are asking an important question: are we spending too much time connected? The idea of a "digital detox" has gained increasing attention in recent years as people look for ways to create a healthier balance between the online and offline worlds. Rather than rejecting technology altogether, a digital detox is about becoming more conscious of how, when, and why we use digital devices.…

  • Making Photons Count with Lean Manufacturing

    Introduction What manufacturing strategies can help improve yield and consistency in the production of advanced photonic devices? One approach is the application of lean manufacturing principles to the critical photocathode deposition stage at ET Enterprises, a designer and manufacturer of photomultipliers - highly sensitive detectors capable of measuring extremely low levels of light. These devices are used in medical imaging, radiation detection, scientific research and industrial measurements. Because the signals involved are so small, even minor variations during the manufacturing process can significantly impact performance. To meet demanding customer requirements and improve manufacturing yield, we applied Lean manufacturing principles to one of the most critical stages…

    Magdalena Wywijas
    Magdalena Wywijas

  • ASA asap? Digital radio is not about entertainment, but a critical part of a nation's information infrastructure

    With the theme “Shaping Media Revolution & Production Beyond Boundaries”, BroadcastAsia 2026 reaffirmed its place as a significant fixture in the Asian broadcast and media calendar. Held from May 20 to 22 at the Singapore EXPO — where the IEEE Broadcast Technology Society, a not-for-profit professional membership organisation of broadcast engineers, was once again a supporting organisation — the event marked 36 years since BroadcastAsia made its debut on 29 May 1990 at the World Trade Centre Singapore. Over four decades, it has been a privilege to monitor the evolution of the broadcasting industry, both regionally and globally. With an estimated 20,000 attendees from over 110 countries, BroadcastAsia 2026 cemented Singapore’s role as one of the region’s key hubs for broadcast and media…

  • Navigating the hidden costs of disability

    Engineering thrives on different perspectives and ways of thinking. Yet disabled people are still underrepresented in the profession. According to Engineering UK , 14% of people working in engineering and technology identify as disabled, compared with 19% across other sectors. For many people, the biggest barrier isn’t their condition itself. It’s the extra costs and logistics that come with it. This is sometimes called the ‘disability tax’ – the extra financial burden that disabled people can face simply to access the same opportunities as everyone else. The disability tax The disability tax can take many forms. It might mean buying specialist equipment, adapting your home, paying for care, arranging accessible transport, or funding assessments needed to access support. For some people…

  • An institution with (rail) connections

    A blog looking at the UK’s early electric railways and links with our Institution and its members by guest blogger David Knights FIET . Railway history is often dominated by the names of civil and mechanical engineers. As the “new” technology of electricity developed, railways were often “early adopters”. The IET has a long-standing relationship with the railway. Our past Presidents and members have played a significant role in the development of the railways, including their electrification. This article highlights some of the notable electrical engineers who contributed to these pioneering developments. A short history of the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) The IET can trace its history back to 1871 when the Society of Telegraph Engineers (STE) was founded. In 1880 it…

  • Bo Yang: A Story of Mentorship and Growth

    Mentorship is often discussed as a tool for early career development yet its value does not diminish as engineers become more senior. Bo Yang’s experience through the IET mentoring programme shows how guidance from an experienced volunteer can help established leaders sharpen their impact refine their narrative and step confidently into wider influence. “I didn’t seek a mentor to learn how to do engineering, but to refine how I position leadership and articulate impact at a systems level.” When Bo first connected with her mentor Colin, she was already operating at Director level. She was leading large teams and delivering complex engineering programmes, but her challenge was no longer technical depth. Instead, her focus had shifted to scaling impact across organisations, strategy, and…

  • Volunteer Spotlight: Alan Rossney

    Alan’s path into engineering began with a spark of childhood wonder. One of his earliest memories is watching Star Wars: A New Hope and seeing Luke Skywalker repair R2‑D2. The idea of being skilled enough to fix a robot without even checking a manual stayed with him from that moment on. This curiosity only grew during the summers he spent working in his father’s auto‑electrical garage, where he became familiar with the practical side of engineering through batteries, alternators and starters. At school, physics became his favourite subject and electronics captured his imagination, leading him naturally toward a B.Eng (Tech) in electronic engineering. “My favourite subject in school was physics, and my favourite topic was electronics, so applying for electronic engineering felt like a natural…

  • When the Green Check Proves the Wrong Thing

    The risk is not generated code. It is confidence without evidence. AI can help a software team produce a plausible first draft faster. Approval still depends on evidence. A pull request that reads well, passes continuous integration and arrives with tests can still fail to show that the risky behaviour is safe. Near the end of the day, a small pull request lands in the review queue. It changes retry behaviour around an external payment provider. The changed lines are easy to read. CI has passed. The summary says the change improves resilience when the provider is temporarily unavailable. A few unit tests simulate a failed call, then a successful one. The retry code runs. The code follows a familiar pattern. Nothing looks careless. There is plenty for a reviewer to accept. The code is…

    Kostakis Bouzoukas
    Kostakis Bouzoukas

  • Driving inclusion and innovation in manufacturing

    The future of manufacturing is being shaped by rapid technological change, from AI and automation to emerging concepts like soft robotics and even manufacturing in space. But alongside these advances sits another equally important challenge: ensuring that the people driving this innovation reflect the diversity of the society they serve. That is why the collaboration between the IET Manufacturing Technical Network and the IEEE UK & Ireland Women in Engineering (WIE) event, Disruptive Technologies for Manufacturing and Automation, is so significant. Taking place on 16 June, this hybrid event at IET London: Savoy Place, with online access available, brings together engineers, researchers and industry professionals to explore the technologies reshaping manufacturing. It also creates a platform…

  • Dead on Arrival: Why Fresh Produce Needs a Digital Brain, Not Just a GPS

    Over a third of all fresh produce never reaches a consumer. Cold chain intelligence, digital twins, and predictive AI are the engineering solution, and the industry is only just waking up to it. Key Takeaways ✓ According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (UN), FAO, around one-third of all food produced globally is lost or wasted — for fresh produce, farm-to-fork losses range from 25% to 50% depending on commodity and region. ✓ Current supply chain systems track movement (location, ETA, temperature) but not condition (remaining shelf life, spoilage probability, commercial value). ✓ Perishability intelligence platforms use digital twins, IoT cold chain sensors, and ML-based shelf life prediction to close that gap in real time. ✓ The architecture scales from a single airport node…

  • Decarbonising in Energy Intensive Industries: Engineering Pathways Under Real-World Constraints

    Why energy intensive industries present a unique challenge The drive towards net zero has accelerated investment in renewable energy, electrification, and low-carbon technologies across many sectors of the economy. While significant progress has been made in areas such as power generation and transport, energy intensive industries (EIIs) continue to present some of the most complex decarbonisation challenges. Industries including steel, cement, chemicals, oil and gas, glass, and automotive manufacturing play a critical role in modern economies. They provide the materials, products, and infrastructure that underpin society, but they also account for a substantial proportion of global greenhouse gas emissions. Steel and cement production alone are responsible for approximately 14–16% of global…

    Dr Paul Johnson
    Dr Paul Johnson

  • North Devon Robotics Challenge 2026

    The fourth North Devon Robotics Challenge took place on Wednesday 18 th March 2026 at North Devon College in Barnstaple, Devon. Teams of Year 7 students from schools in Devon had been given a set of challenges at the start of February to work on in their schools, before presenting their work in a spirit of friendly competition at North Devon College. The teams worked in pairs on four challenges; three involving programming Edison robots to meet engineering specifications, and a fourth challenge to design a conceptual robot. Since North Devon College are working with Maritime South-West this year on maritime projects based in Devon, the conceptual robot was required to perform some task related to the maritime industry in Devon. The aim of the competition, sponsored by the Institution…

  • Supporting women into leadership in STEM starts with changing the system

    Throughout my career, one pattern has stood out. I’ve seen talented women step back from leadership opportunities, not because they lack the ability, ambition or potential, but because the environments around them weren’t built with them in mind. And for women facing additional barriers, including disabled women in STEM, these challenges can be even more pronounced. We’ve made real progress in encouraging more women into science, engineering and technology. But progression into leadership still tells a different story. Progress isn’t just about entry, it’s about what comes next Across the sector, there’s growing recognition that representation at entry level is only part of the solution. Too often, the focus is on opening doors, without asking what happens once women step through…

  • WISE (Women into Science and Engineering) Young Professionals Committee Spotlight

    For more than a decade, the WISE Young Professionals Committee (WYPC) have been driving practical change for women in Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM). In 2024 the committee celebrated ten years since its original formation, marking a decade of work that has challenged workplace culture and addressed the barriers women continue to face across the sector. One of the committee’s proudest achievements is the Unfiltered STEM podcast, launched in July 2023. The podcast creates a space for honest conversations about life in STEM and explores topics that resonate with early career professionals. With more than 1,700 plays and over 1,000 streams, it has reached an audience closely aligned with the committee’s mission. Most listeners are women aged between 23 and 34, reflecting the…

  • Circular Economy: Designing Aerospace Parts for Reuse, Repair, and Recycling

    Our earlier blog post outlined how Value Engineering (VE) optimizes aerospace products and systems, striking a careful balance between performance, safety, and cost over the full lifecycle. At its core lies the simple but powerful equation, Value = Function ÷ Cost. While VE focuses on delivering essential capabilities at the lowest possible expense, the industry now faces a pressing additional requirement, greater sustainability and resource efficiency. This brings us directly to the Circular Economy, an approach that builds on established VE principles. It involves designing components and systems so they can be reused, repaired, refurbished, remanufactured, or recycled. The goal is to keep materials and their inherent value in active use for as long as possible, while significantly cutting…

  • Digital Twins in Motion: Why a Multi-Disciplinary Debate Matters Now

    Digital twins have rapidly moved from a conceptual innovation to a practical engineering tool that is reshaping how we design, operate and optimise complex systems. From aerospace and manufacturing to infrastructure and media, the ability to create a dynamic, data-driven virtual representation of real-world assets is opening up new possibilities for insight, efficiency and resilience. On 24 June 2026 , the IET will bring this conversation to the forefront with the webinar Digital Twin Dynamics: A Multi-Disciplinary Debate . This online event gathers voices from across several Technical Networks to explore not just what digital twins are, but how they are evolving and where they may lead next. This blog offers a preview of that discussion, highlighting both the technical foundations of digital…

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