Canterbury raises a toast to excellence

The sell-out ceremony was held at the magnificently refurbished Great Hall at The Arts Centre of Christchurch, where guests enjoyed a three-course dinner and live music from local musicians. The event was attended by over 120 people, including current and past Engineering New Zealand presidents and Engineering New Zealand Chief Executive, Susan Freeman-Greene. 

Reflecting on the successful awards, the organising committee of Mike Walker, Steven Healey, Katayoon Zareei, Andrew Lamb and Branch Chair, Sam Adshead noted, “recognition is one of the four pillars of Engineering New Zealand currently and feedback from our local members indicated there was little in the way for engineers.” 

The award categories were created by the organising committee to recognise local engineers setting the standard in key areas, including: communication, innovation, community service, humanitarian service, heritage engineering and emerging professional. A further two awards - The Canterbury Award and the Chair’s Award, were awarded to those who demonstrated an outstanding contribution to the region. 

The Canterbury Branch Committee would like to thank the judges - Andrew Read (convenor), Des Bull and Brendon Bradley – our sponsors and congratulate again the award recipients. They join many of us in looking forward to another successful event next year. 

Congratulations to the following winners: 

INNOVATION - TIM SHANNON & MARK THOMSON 

Tim has shown how diverse structural systems developed following the earthquakes can be combined together in novel ways to provide cost effective and robust solutions for modern buildings. A key example being the new Central Library building currently under construction adjacent to Cathedral Square. A great example of improving engineering practices. 

Mark is actively involved in the development of innovative structural systems. He is a great example of New Zealand engineers taking on the world with their new systems, a prime example being the zip-line which operates around corners. 

COMMUNICATION - ROBERT LANE 

Robert was recognised for what has been described by colleagues as his “superb” natural flair for “explaining complex information in ways that suits diverse team members." 

EMERGING ENGINEER - SAM HENDERSON 

Sam was recognised for his professionalism and positive approach to projects as he becomes set to become a potential leader in the engineering field. 

HERITAGE - FRAN COOKE-WILLIS 

Fran’s proactive involvement in the structural strengthening and rebuild of the Christchurch Club is a shining example of how engineers can complement the works of other heritage professionals to sensitively reconstruct our few remaining heritage buildings. 

SERVICE TO THE COMMUNITY – HELEN TRAPPITT 

Helen is recognised for her multifaceted approach that is built upon her chosen field as a structural engineer. Not content with the extreme workload that all structural engineers faced following the earthquakes, she took on many extra activities to help bring the city and its people a sense of place. In addition to working with Sculptor Neil Dawson on some of the city's great public works, she has donated time to SCAPE Public Art, the youth section of the Re:ACTIVATE programme, and GAP Filler projects. 

HUMANITARIAN SERVICE - JEN JOHNSTONE 

Jen devotes her time to developing partnerships and programmes across the South Pacific and New Zealand as the Working with Communities Manager for Engineers Without Borders, as well as volunteering and working with Oxfam and WaterAid. 

CANTERBURY AWARD - RICHARD HOLYOAKE 

Throughout his engineering career Richard has been involved with many significant projects that have helped shape the province, from works with the Otira Viaduct through to key involvement on the professional services group for SCIRT. He is a mentor of the Committee for Canterbury leadership programme, and advocate for Arts and Industry collaboration through the SCAPE Public Art Trust (as a trustee). He is also on the Board of the Canterbury Safety Charter, and a worthy recipient of the Canterbury Award. 

CHAIR’S AWARD - GARY BOOT 

The Chair’s Award is given to recognise an engineer whose practise either enhances the community of Canterbury, the profession of engineering in Canterbury or the public perception of engineers. This year’s recipient has done all three. Over the course of his career, and particularly since the Canterbury earthquake took a devastating toll on the area, Gary has enhanced Canterbury and the engineering profession, through his technical skill and leadership, mentoring, and the public perception of engineers through his exemplary public communication. 

View photos from the event here.