Berkshire resident Geoff French has been officially elected as the next President of the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE), an influential body representing the 80,000 civil engineers across the world who design, build and maintain our infrastructure. French will succeed current ICE President Barry Clarke on 5 November 2013.
French, who is from Newbury, graduated from Southampton University in 1968 with a First Class BSc (Eng) degree.
He has more than 40 years’ experience advising politicians and decision makers on major transport and development planning projects including the public inquiry into Heathrow Terminal 5, the Warminster Bypass and numerous transport studies in Baghdad, Saudi Arabia, Johannesburg, Mauritius, Nottingham and Lesotho.
French has worked throughout the UK and has also spent time abroad working in Botswana, China, Hong Kong, India, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lesotho, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and Vietnam.
Geoff was Chairman of Scott Wilson, a design and engineering consultancy, for eight years until its acquisition by URS in 2010.
Geoff French, incoming President of the Institution of Civil Engineers, said: “The Institution of Civil Engineers combines the invaluable wisdom and experience that is naturally embodied in an historic organisation with the vision and energy of a proactive and solution-finding membership that embraces the challenges of the 21st century. I am delighted to have been elected President and look forward with relish to challenges it will bring”
Driven by the pursuit of engineering excellence and the exchange and sharing of ideas and learning, ICE is charged with working with Government –to ensure that even in times of severe financial restraint, infrastructure gets the investment it needs and can deliver long term economic prosperity in the UK.
The body also has a critical role of encouraging public appreciation and understanding of engineering, and its impact on our daily lives.
As a key ‘public face’ of the engineering body, French will actively promote civil engineering around the world, a crucial task, if the reputation of British engineering expertise is to be maintained.
The profile of civil engineering and its contribution to our daily lives is particularly significant at the moment.
Debate is ongoing about the HS2 project and aviation capacity, the question of how to defend our towns, cities, and countryside from increasing increasingly inclement climate (last year was the wettest summer on record), and high-profile engineering triumphs at the Olympic Park and in the centre of London, with the completion of the Shard tower, all highlight the invaluable role of engineering.
ICE South East England has more than 11,000 members living and working in the region. More information can be found at www.ice.org.uk/see. You can follow ICE South East England on Twitter: @ICE_SEEngland