Squadron Leader Hazel Reed BSc(Hons) IEng AMRAeS RAF was yesterday announced as the recipient of the Baroness Platt of Writtle Award 2014, presented by the Worshipful Company of Engineers.  This is a prestigious annual national award that recognises the achievements of a newly registered Incorporated Engineer (IEng). Hazel was presented with a prize of £1000, a medal and certificate at the Annual Awards Dinner of the Worshipful Company of Engineers which took place last night.

Nominated by the Royal Aeronautical Society (RAeS), Hazel was judged against 18 other candidates from six Professional Engineering Institutions, who had nominated some outstanding engineers from the 1,356 individuals who achieved IEng in 2013.

Hazel started her career in the Army but was commissioned as an engineer in the RAF. She has 15 years’ experience, mostly in the maintenance of aircraft, progressing from work as a technician on Gazelle and Lynx helicopters to responsibility for up to 110 technicians. She has taken responsibility for ground based aviation facilities, including management and resolution of incidents and assessments of airworthiness. She devised innovative solutions for the interim repair of aircraft. For Merlin helicopters, she prepared and recovered numerous aircraft for operational tasking in Afghanistan. For a Sentry aircraft with an antenna problem, she devised a method to replace a safety critical component and top up the electrolyte when the specified equipment was not available. She produced the financial documents for investment appraisal of the £200M Hawk Future Support Project and has demonstrated the ability to lead organisational change in difficult circumstances. She has the ability to operate at all levels, from hands-on engineering to strategic asset management. She is now in a senior staff post.

The judges were impressed by Hazel’s strong commitment to the engineering profession, both as an active member of the Royal Aeronautical Society and her encouragement of engineering as a profession for women through her work as a Guide Leader.  At interview, she showed practical ability to solve engineering problems together with examples of her attention to quality, logistics, development of people and health and safety of her team, and the ability to operate effectively with personnel at all ranks in the RAF. 

Hazel said, “I am delighted to have received this award.  My career in the Royal Air Force has been both exciting and challenging, and it is an honour to have it recognised by the Royal Aeronautical Society, Engineering Council and Worshipful Company of Engineers.

Jon Prichard, CEO of the Engineering Council says: “On behalf of the Engineering Council I would like to congratulate Squadron Leader Hazel Reed, who is clearly an outstanding IEng registrant.  We were pleased to hear from the judges that the quality of all the nominated candidates was extremely high.  Incorporated Engineers make an essential contribution to all sectors of the engineering profession, and once again we would like to thank Baroness Platt and the Worshipful Company of Engineers for recognising newly registered individuals through this award.”

Peter Blair-Fish, Award Coordinator of the Worshipful Company of Engineers says: “This award is for Incorporated Engineers of all disciplines. This year saw a balanced spread of male and female nominees, working in both civilian and military environments. Their nomination papers demonstrated a very high standard of engineering and professionalism. It is a fitting coincidence that Baroness Platt’s early career was also in the engineering of military aircraft.” 

Nominations for the Baroness Platt of Writtle Award 2015 will be invited early in the New Year.  Professional Engineering Institutions can nominate up to five candidates who have achieved IEng status during 2014. Nominees should, in the view of the institution, have displayed outstanding commitment to the engineering profession, have excellent communication skills and have demonstrated management qualities.  Please click here for further details.

History of the award
This year is the second time that the Baroness Platt Award has recognised an outstanding newly registered Incorporated Engineer. The Award was originally established by the Worshipful Company of Engineers to recognise engineering excellence amongst those pursuing final year studies leading to the academic qualifications needed for Incorporated Engineer status.  It was awarded in this form from 2002 to 2012, with the assistance of the Institution of Incorporated Engineers and later the Institution of Engineering and Technology in selecting the Award winner. The award is limited to British citizens or those who have resided in the UK for at least five years and whose principal residence is in the UK

Candidates Interviewed
Squadron Leader Hazel Reed is an associate member of the Royal Aeronautical Society. Those interviewed also included engineers nominated by the Institution of Civil Engineers, the Institution of Gas Engineers and Managers, the Institution of Mechanical Engineers and the Institution of Engineering and Technology.

About Baroness Platt of Writtle CBE
Baroness Platt studied engineering at Cambridge University, and worked on the testing and production of fighter aircraft during the Second World War. After the war, she worked on air safety in the research department of British European Airways. Later, she chaired the educational committee of Essex County Council and the Equal Opportunities Commission, was chancellor of Middlesex University and a non-executive director of British Gas. She was instrumental in setting up WISE – Women In Science and Engineering, and a champion of the role of Incorporated Engineers. Baroness Platt is a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering, an Honorary Fellow of both the Royal Aeronautical Society and the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, and an Assistant Emeritus of the Worshipful Company of Engineers. 

About the Worshipful Company of Engineers
The Worshipful Company of Engineers (www.engineerscompany.org.uk) is one of the ‘modern’ livery companies of the City of London. Established in 1983, its Liverymen are all Chartered Engineers and Fellows of an appropriate professional engineering body, or Fellows of the Royal Academy of Engineering. This award is funded by the Charitable Trust Fund of the Worshipful Company of Engineers (www.engineerstrust.org.uk), with a contribution from the Dulverton Trust.