Reflecting its growing international reach and influence, the Engineering Council has now dropped the 'UK' from its name.  One of the key deciding factors is that the professional qualifications awarded by the Engineering Council - Chartered Engineer, Incorporated Engineer and Engineering Technician - are fast becoming internationally recognised standards of competence.  In an increasingly globalised economy this recognition is vitally important to employers.

Andrew Ramsay, Chief Executive Officer of the Engineering Council says, "A major benefit for engineers on our register and holders of Engineering Council accredited academic qualifications is that the rigour of the Engineering Council's UK-SPEC assessment of competence is widely recognised by the rest of the world.  In fact, the title Chartered Engineer is now one of the most recognisable international engineering qualifications."

A significant 25% of engineers on the Engineering Council's register now work outside the UK, and a further 10-15% of registrants are non-UK citizens.  Individuals holding Engineering Council titles are currently present in 45 countries.  This includes over 10,500 in Hong Kong, another 7,000 plus living in North America and a similar number in Australia/New Zealand.

This makes international issues vitally important to the Engineering Council.  It is a leading member of engineering bodies across the globe, through which it works to continually increase global recognition of those who satisfy its standards.  Activities include providing the Chair of the International Engineering Alliance (IEA), as well as membership of the European Federation of National Engineering Associations' (FEANI) governing board.  In addition, it has regular contact with appropriate UK government departments and EU Commission directorates.

The Engineering Council has also been granted a licence to award EUR-ACE labels to UK accredited degrees by the European Network for Accreditation of Engineering Education (ENAEE).  

To help incorporate understanding of global issues such as sustainability, climate change and poverty into the teaching of engineering, the Engineering Council has joined forces with UK based Higher Education institutions and other relevant bodies, in a project being implemented by independent NGO Engineers Against Poverty (EAP) and funded by a grant from the Department for International Development.

Andrew Ramsay adds, "With so much importance being placed on our international activities and the growing interest in our titles from engineers outside the UK, it seemed appropriate to drop the UK part of our name, and to simply become known as the Engineering Council in future."