---

---

Add Brightsurf Science News to your Web Site

---

Science Resources

Earth Science

Space Science

Life Science

Fields of Scientific Study

Medical Topics and Fields

Cancer Research News

Nanotechnology Articles

---

Science RSS News Feeds

---

Science Field Definitions

Science News Archive

---

Email a Friend Printer Friendly

Who's your winner for UK's top engineering prize of £50,000?

May 07, 2003

The Royal Academy of Engineering has chosen four companies as finalists for this year's MacRobert Award for innovation in engineering. For the first time, the public will have the opportunity to 'choose' their favourite of the four finalists. The short listed entries cover a wide range of areas, from fighter aircraft technology to a novel process in medical diagnostics. The innovations from the four companies are as diverse as at any time in the award's 33-year history.

On 7 May, the Science Museum will be launching an interactive web page on the finalists with a competition open to under -18 year olds to choose their MacRobert winner. The competition is based on a question about why they believe their choice is the winner. The winning entry will be selected on the day of the Awards Dinner. The Academy sponsored prize of £50 can be used at the Science Museum store. The website is at www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/exhibitions/macrobert and will be on-line until 5 June 2003. A touch screen panel will be also be available next to last year's MacRobert Award winner in the Wellcome Wing at the Museum. An exhibit of the 2003 MacRobert Award winner will be on display at the Science Museum this autumn.

"This is a great opportunity for members of the public, and particularly our youth, to get to know about great engineering innovation that is happening in the UK today', says Dr Robin Paul FREng, Chairman of the MacRobert Award Evaluation Committee. "A panel of Fellows of the Academy selects the winner and the criteria used are based on innovation, engineering excellence, commercial success and a number of very technical details. Nevertheless, we feel that if this interactive website can make people aware of just some of the fantastic work going on in engineering and give younger members of the public a sense of the amazing talent and achievement found in the engineering industry, then the effort has succeeded."

The winner of the £50,000 prize and the MacRobert gold medal will be announced at the Academy Awards Dinner on 5 June.

The four finalists include:
Randox Laboratories from Northern Ireland for its automated diagnostic analyser and biochip array technology; Rolls-Royce in Bristol for its short take-off, vertical landing propulsion system; FT Technologies Ltd from Middlesex, for an acoustic resonant anemometer; and, Oxford Instruments Superconductivity in Abingdon, for their 900MHz NMR superconducting magnet.

Royal Academy of Engineering