My Experiences Outside Of Work Make Me A Better Engineer

From climbing Everest to advising engineers on Chartership, IET Fellow Dr Lok Kee Siu has taken on challenges which use and develop his professional skills. On weekdays, Lok Kee is a senior executive of an independent rail consulting firm based in Hong Kong. He and his team provide consultations on different types of railways from light rail transits to mainline railways and freights in the Asia Pacific Region.  Out of the office Lok Kee’s weekends are quite different. As an “avid alpinist” he has explored various regions, amongst them the Himalayas, the European Alps, and most recently the summit of Everest from the Nepal south-east side.  He admits his strengths have come to the fore during his mountaineering trips.  “Climbing a big mountain like Everest demands a whole host of activities…

IET Cambridge Network 2018 To 2019 Events

The IET Cambridge events for the 2018 to 2019 season are now posted on this website.  We have tried to organise a wide range of talks so there is something to interest most people.  Many of the talks are technology based but to start the season there is an introduction to electromagnetics by the IET's network on electromagnetics.  The subject is relevant to many aspects of engineering but often not explained well in the academic world.  If you want a refresher or learn about electromagnetics, then book a place to attend the talk on 25 October 2018. David Blake The IET Cambridge events for the 2018 to 2019 season are now posted on this website.  We have tried to organise a wide range of talks so there is something to interest most people.  Many of the talks are technology based but to start…

It’s Prize-Giving Time

The last few weeks has seen university graduation ceremonies across the country, often accompanied by departmental prize-giving. The Sussex Network has presented IET awards at the University of Chichester, the University of Sussex and, most recently, the University of Brighton. I was privileged to present awards at the School of Computing, Engineering and Mathematics at Brighton. There were two IET awards to graduates and two Sussex Network awards, one to a first-year student and one to a second-year student. It was wonderful to speak with the graduates and their families and to recognise their hard work and achievements. At the end of my presenting stint I had the opportunity to say a few words to the assembled students and their supporters and I think that the message I tried to give is one…

Bitcoin, Blockchain and the Crypto Revolution

The recent IET Berkshire event, Bitcoin, Blockchain and the Crypto Revolution, is now available to view on IET.tv . So if you were unable to make it on the night, please watch it now!

Smart Meters – A Washout?

A recent report has indicated that the rollout of smart meters in the UK has proved to be a big disappointment with limited impact and rising costs.In the UK the energy companies themselves are in charge of installing the so-called smart meters, leading to meters being installed needlessly and at cost to the consumer. The energy minister who put the scheme in place has even admitted to getting rid of his , because like many other families in the UK, he just didn’t use it. Compounding issues, is the fact that some struggle to get a decent mobile signal and therefore can only display the energy in the kwh, not a monetary number which would be more useful to most consumers; a so- called dumb-mode   So what can be done to save the scheme, which is far behind its target of getting smart meters in…

Norwich Engineering Society Events

We are a forum where we exchange ideas and experiences for anyone,  be they engineers or not , having an interest in engineering. We aim to promote widespread discussion and debate through a programme of talks and visits related to advances and achievements in engineering in the world today.  If you are at all interested in Engineering, then the Norwich Engineering Society is for you!  5 August 2018 Visit "Flying day" From 10.00am at the Little Snoring Airfield   by McAulley Personnell, McAulley Flying Club  Summary: Another opportunity to Fly in a Light Aircraft over North Norfolk Coast Sunday 5th August 2018 The McAully Flying Group have again agreed to us to having a Flying Day at Little Snoring this year. Arrangements will be as last year with flights normally lasting half an hour. Depending…

IET-PBOC MEMBERSHIP DRIVE 2018 - 26TH JULY 2018

Thursday, 26th July 2018, Lumut. A membership drive organized by the IET Politeknik Brunei On Campus (IET-PBOC) at School of Science and Engineering (SSE), Politeknik Brunei.The event is organised for the new batch of students who recently enrolled into Politeknik Brunei. The talk was given by the Vice-Chairman of IET-PBOC, Mohammad Hazim Bin Haji Zamri, and the advisor, Nadzuan Bin Narawi. The Lecture Theater was packed with more than 120 students listening attentively to how the IET can help students in their future Engineering path. Other than that, the speakers also encouraged the new generation of students to contribute to the Nation as well as working together to engineer a better world. This event aimed to give aspiring young engineers the opportunity to broadly develop their knowledge…

IET Strategy Statement

New Event Alert!

Registration and the Call for Contributions for the next Colloquium on Millimetre-wave and Terahertz Engineering & Technology event has launched!   http://www.theiet.org/events/2019/248017.cfm Next year the event will be held in Savoy Place, London on 15 March. The Call for Contributions is now open and we are looking for your research so if you are working in any of the below areas, please get in touch with your research:   applications in science engineering and technology that exploit the microwave millimetre-wave terahertz and optical regions of the electromagnetic spectrum electronics photonic To be considered, please send a summary of 500 words along with your proposed title to ietconferences@theiet.org The deadline in 7 December 2018 Register and find out more

A 'View' Of Sussex Technology

Throughout the ages people have valued a good view. Whether it is to obtain some strategic advantage over enemies or just to enjoy the scenery, people have stood on hilltops, built watch towers or added viewing areas to high-rise buildings so as to provide a good view. Sussex, like many other parts of the country, has hills that provide good scenic views. The South Downs, once denuded of forest, provided uninterrupted views of the coastal plain and out to see in one direction and across the Weald to the North Downs in the other. As well as a ‘safe’ route for travelling along the top of the Downs, early settlers also found the top of the steep chalk escarpment a good place to build fortifications. In more recent times, entrepreneurs have used technology to offer the public an enhanced viewing…

Bradford Science Festival - 'Engineering' Weekend - 21st And 22nd July 2018

The 'Bradford Science Festival' which started in 2017 at the National Science & Media Musem, attracts up to 34,000 visitors over a 4 day period. The weekend this year (21st & 22nd July) focussed on Engineering and the opportunity for IET to exhibit was suggested and agreed during our April visit to the NS&MM to discuss the possibilities of holding a West Yorkshire LN "Engineering Extravaganza" event there during November this year. Robin Dark their 'Partnerships and Learning Projects Manager' was our contact and it was agreed that the IET WYLN have a stand alongside the ICE & IOM3 stands in a marquee dedlcated to engineering PEI's and some of the Manufacturers also exhibiting at this widespread event. The event is all about engaging families and young people. Its prime objective is to promote…

New Event Alert! Mmwave And Thz 2019

Registration and the Call for Contributions for the next Colloquium on Millimetre-wave and Terahertz Engineering & Technology event has launched! http://www.theiet.org/events/2019/248017.cfm   Next year the event will be held in Savoy Place, London on 15 March 2019. The Call for Contributions is now OPEN and we are looking for your research so if you are working in any of the below areas, please get in touch with your research :   applications in science engineering and technology that exploit the microwave millimetre-wave terahertz and optical regions of the electromagnetic spectrum electronics photonic To be considered, please send a summary of 500 words along with your proposed title to ietconferences@theiet.org The deadline is 7 December 2018 Register and find out more

Just What Has CCAP Been Doing Lately?

Some of you may be wondering what CCAP has been up to recently - or what do we do at all?  Well, let me tell you, we have not been sitting around doing nothing!  Earlier this month we held a 2-day meeting in Hong Kong - and while we were at it, we attended Hong Kong's 30th anniversary celebratory dinner.  I must say, Hong Kong LN know how to put an event on!  They had a large number of sponsors, which allowed them to do an event in  style, while still meeting the IET's requirements in regards to spending of charitable funds.  I was especially impressed with the Young Professionals band - who knew the IET had its own band?  Or do other LNs also have them, and we're behind the times here in NZ?  It was also great to meet some of the Hong Kong volunteers - as with most LNs, there are some very…

Dream Big : Innovating In Our World - Conference Summary

I spoke at the Society of Concurrent Product Development Annual Conference : Dream Big, Innovating in Our World.   The conference was 1.5 days of presentations and talks, followed by an afternoon spent at the 3M Innovation Centre.   About 100 people attended the main conference, there was a diverse audience from large companies, 3M, Kuhne and Nagel, Microsoft, Target (US Department Store) through to small start-up companies and academics.   My talk was on concept Concurrent Product Development and what we have done to improve in Future Programmes at Rolls-Royce plc.   There were Interesting presentations, ranging from the CEO of Harry’s razors explaining he start-up company story (5 years old with 5 million customers) to a talk by marketing company Brandgarten – We all make irrational decisions…

IET Ottawa 2018/19 Committee

Graeme Allan Chair     David Farmer                          Secretary   KO Lee                                     Treasurer   Bhagvat Joshi                        IEEE Liaison, CC-A   Edwin Morton                          Co-Chair   Gajan Ganeshavadivel            Young Professional Representative Lead, Present Around The World Lead   Colin Billowes                          Newsletter Editor   Hudson Egbert                         Council Member   John Vines                              Membership, PEO Liaison (Kingston), Events, Adestra   Pat Doherty                              Events   Stan Xavier                             Web Master   Robert Tolley                          PEO (Kingston)   Kyle Manel Young Professional Representative Geoges Ankenmann Young Professionals Representative

The Far-reaching Capabilities Of Particle Accelerators

Particle accelerators first caught the imagination of the public thanks to headlines around CERN’s Large Hadron Collider and scientists’ search for the so-called ‘god particle’. However, those that work in the sector understand that the capabilities of particle accelerators are much wider and far-reaching.    Today, there are almost 40,000 particle accelerators around the world being used for industrial applications in sectors such as medicine, security, energy and environment. Engineers and technicians play a critical role in every aspect of these programmes, from the accelerator design engineering through to integration and installation, commissioning of new systems, operational organisation and control and also the overall project management.   “The importance of accelerator utilisation…

A Self-teaching Aid For The Arduino Microprocessor Board

The attached animated powerpoint slide set has been produced by Dr Peter MInns of Northumbria Network and would be useful for schools and colleges looking for an  easy-to-follow introduction to the Arduino microprocessor board. It is aimed to be deliberately fast paced to fit in with the attention span of young people and could be used in a rolling slide show presentation. It will also be of use to established engineers and technicians who are not specialists in interfacing microprocessors to the real world, but need to be able to harness the Arduino's processing power in their projects.

IET SA & NT Energy Dinner - Future Of Energy In SA (June 2018)

The IET SA & NT Local Network Executive committee organized  "IET Energy Dinner - Future of energy in SA", and were pleased to welcome an audience in excess of 50 of Adelaide's best Engineers from diverse companies including our sponsor GHD, SIMEC Zen Energy, Promanage, Lucid Consulting, Rowland Metalworks, SA Power Networks, Scope Global, Raytheon, BAE Systems, Flinders University, Adelaide University, University of SA, and many others. Attending the event we had around 8 Engineering students who benefited from networking with their colleagues already working in many of the companies that could employ them. The keynote presentation was from Zen Energy's Richard Turner - "The economic opportunities for South Australia as it transitions to renewable energy".  Richard's presentation on behalf…

A Piece Of Cake. (IET London Savoy Place).

"It's all about layers" said IET's Chef Pavel Taras at the Pastry and Cake Decorating Techniques event held by the IET Savoy Place.He talked and showed how cake moulds can be glazed to create sophisticated desserts. Covered in velvet sprinkles, drizzling with goulash, smooth hot chocolate and passion glaze, Chef Pavel walked and talked the audience on the arts of cake and pastry making. His spider glaze technique demonstrated the technicalities involved - get the wrong temperature and the web will not appear. He explained that extremes in different temperatures and viscosity are how the spiders glaze effect is created. Similarly, he demonstrated the art of food spray-painting and showed how fine granules of chocolate-coco-butter droplets can be sprayed onto a cake to create an amazing layered…

Project X At NZ International Science Festival Dunedin 2018

The Bi-Annual NZ International Science Festival is held in Dunedin during the school winter holidays and this year it is spread over 11 days with around 20 events on per day at various venues over the city. Within hours of the booking website opening, Project X was fully subscribed with young people from across the city and visitors booked in. As two firsts for Project X, this was an event outside schools and secondly organised solely by the IET with three IET member supervisors and three others from local businesses Delta and Downer. The parents dropping off children at the Dunedin Central Library venue were really excited about the event – real hand-on engineering and the enjoyment of completing a fantastic sound and lights model Christmas tree were the expectations together with a little…

Technical Social Visit to Stoke Bruern and Blisworth Tunnel.

Several committee Members and guests arrived early at the Boat Inn at Stoke Bruern. Early so as to avoid traffic delays at and perhaps try some local some bru-ha-ha. At noon we boarded the Indian Queen to enjoy a trip through the Blisworth Tunnel with the ship’s captain and our narrator. The Grand Union Canal was built in the late 1700’s but stopped either side of Blisworth hill so loads had to be taken by horse drawn cart over the hill. It was decided to build the tunnel which was started in 1793 and, after many mishaps, the tunnel opened in 1805. However there was no tow-path so men had to walk the barges through, laying on their backs and “walking” on the roof of the tunnel. Excellent wages - 7½d for an empty barge, 12d for a full one (that is in real money, £sd, and a family could live…

Share Your Story...inspire Another Engineer

Wherever you are in the world and whatever stage you’re at in your career, we’d like to hear your stories - which could inspire other engineers and technologists. Your story could be powerful – alerting others to opportunities within the IET and inviting them to play a bigger role in the engineering and technology community. What makes a good story? We’d particularly like to hear from you if: you’ve achieved professional success or awards, with help from the IET you’ve overcome obstacles in your career,making use of IET resources your IET volunteering experience has benefited you and/or your community you’ve used an IET product or service, or attended an IET event which has made a difference to your career.   One of our stories featured Rob McLaughlan who won an award from his employer for…

New Insights Into Particle Accelerators

If you specialise in particle accelerators, you’ll know there is more to their capabilities than you see in the news. The Large Hadron Collider has made headlines for enabling ground-breaking scientific discoveries. But there are many more particle accelerators – approximately 35,000 around the world – that are contributing to our scientific knowledge, as well as working behind the scenes in our everyday lives.  To bring you up to date on accelerator science and its applications, we’ve pulled together a series of videos below. The future of particle accelerators Scientists and engineers at STFC Daresbury Laboratory discuss the areas that they are focusing on for accelerator research and development. How are particle accelerators currently being used? Healthcare Hear from healthcare professionals…

Bradford Science Festival 19th To 22nd July 2018

This year's Bradford Science Festival that is being held at the Science and Media museum looks to celebrate the wonders of engineering. There will be a range of fantastic activities, demos and games for all the family at the museum, across City Park and at The Broadway. The IET west Yorkshire local network will be attending the festival and will be located within the Engineering marquee on 21st and 22nd of July. Please do come along to this and bring anyone who may be interested. Please contact Simon Dobson (IET WY School's Liaison) via email if you can help in any way. For more information on the Bradford Science Festival please visit their website .