|25 May 2016|
UK
Jaguar Land Rover are one of three pioneering companies shortlisted for a prestigious innovation award.
The Royal Academy of Engineering MacRobert Award is presented to the engineers behind the UK’s most exciting engineering innovation. This year’s finalists are: Blatchford for the development of the world’s most intelligent prosthetic limb; Jaguar Land Rover for the world-class innovation behind the company’s decision to design and manufacture its own engines for the first time; and Siemens Magnet Technology for making a step-change in MRI technology that could enable earlier diagnosis of a range of diseases such as Alzheimer’s and improve drug development.
The three finalists are competing for a gold medal and a £50,000 cash prize. The 2016 winner will be revealed at the Academy Awards Dinner at the Tower of London on 23 June, in front of an audience of top engineers and business leaders from some of the UK’s cutting-edge engineering companies.
Many previous MacRobert Award-winning technologies are now ubiquitous in modern technology, transport and healthcare. The very first award went to the Rolls-Royce Pegasus engine, used in the iconic Harrier jets, and in 1972 the judges recognised the extraordinary potential of the first CT scanner – seven years before its inventor Sir Godfrey Hounsfield received the Nobel Prize.
MacRobert Award winners are chosen by a panel of Fellows of the Academy, who deploy the most comprehensive award selection process in the UK engineering sector.
Dame Sue Ion DBE FREng, Chair of the MacRobert Award judging panel, said: “It’s often said that Britain doesn’t make anything anymore, but these three companies are proof that the opposite is true, and testament to the world-leading engineering innovation that happens here in the UK. Each of this year’s finalists has taken a different approach to innovation – from sustained incremental improvements to starting from scratch – each resulting in technologies that will have a positive impact on millions of people and bolster the UK economy.
“There is currently a big demand for all aspects of engineering talent, but the pipeline of young people pursuing engineering careers continues to fall short. To meet demand it is vital that we encourage more young people to pursue engineering as a career. Role models and high-profile prizes such as the MacRobert Award are hugely important in showing the opportunities the sector offers.”
