Five young engineers have been awarded the accolade of Young Engineer of the Year by the Royal Academy of Engineering (RAEng), supported by the Worshipful Company of Engineers. The award winners have been recognised for their remarkable contributions to their respective fields of the profession and received their prizes at the RAEng Awards Dinner in London on 9 July.

The 2024 Young Engineers of the Year are:

• Dr Alalea Kia, Associate Research Fellow, UKRI Future Leaders Fellow, and Royal Academy of Engineering Associate Research Fellow at Imperial College London. She developed 'Kiacrete,' a patented permeable pavement that absorbs stormwater and cuts CO2 emissions by 23 tonnes per kilometre of road. Her system has proven effective and durable at Imperial College.
• Dr Ruben Doyle, CEO of Additive Instruments Ltd. Ruben has created a patented surgical impactor for hip replacements. This device reduces fracture risk and repetitive strain injury for surgeons by delivering precise impacts. He has developed a functional prototype that enhances patient outcomes and surgeon safety.
• Dr Ishara Dharmasena, Senior Lecturer (Associate Professor) at Loughborough University. Ishara has revolutionised triboelectric nanogenerators with his 'distance-dependent electric field' theory and is now developing ‘super-smart textiles’ that use this technology for remote rehabilitation. His work is being scaled and expanded with industry and national rehabilitation partners.
• Jamie Serjeant, Senior Design Engineer at Occuity. Jamie has developed Occuity's AX1, a key device for managing myopia through non-invasive eye measurements. His expertise has also contributed to the PM1 pachymeter for glaucoma and Dyson Zone headphones.
• Nikhila Ravi, Research Engineering Manager at Meta. Nikhila leads Meta's AI Research Engineering team and co-led the Segment Anything project, which includes the Segment Anything Model (SAM) for universal image segmentation and the SA-1B dataset. SAM's commercial success has enhanced Meta's products and advanced segmentation applications in various fields.

The overall winner, Imperial College researcher Dr Alalea Kia, is also the recipient of the RAEng’s Sir George Macfarlane Medal, which recognises the potential of engineers working in the UK, who have demonstrated excellence in the early stage of their career.

The RAEng’s Awards Committee Chair, Luke Logan BEng CEng FIMechE FRAeS FREng, said, "From developing a permeable concrete that mitigates flooding risk through to a surgical device that enables safer hip replacements, these engineers are pushing the boundaries of what's possible. Their groundbreaking innovations demonstrate the vital role engineers play in addressing some of society's most pressing challenges.”

For further information on the award winners, please visit the Royal Academy of Engineering website.