Deputy Director General

BSc(Eng) DipTE CEng FICE MIHT

Hugh Ferguson was educated at Haileybury and University College London where he was awarded a First Class Honours Degree in Civil Engineering, the 'Cementation Scholarship' under ICE's Civil Engineering Scholarship Trust, and the ICE's Institution Medal & Premium for a paper on 'Modern Soft Ground Tunnelling Techniques'.

After employment with Cementation Construction, Taylor Woodrow, Taylor Woodrow (Canada), Robert McAlpine & Son (Canada) and Parsons Brinckerhoff Quade & Douglas on various projects in England, Wales, Canada and the USA, he joined consulting engineer R Travers Morgan & Partners, working on highway projects and transport management studies in the UK and Eire.

In 1975 he joined Thomas Telford Ltd (the trading company of the Institution of Civil Engineers) as a staff writer on New Civil Engineer (NCE) magazine. The following year he was appointed Editor - later Editor in Chief - of the magazine, a post he occupied until 1990.

In 1988 he founded the British Construction Industry Awards, which are now the UK's leading construction awards scheme. The BCIA - now a joint venture between TTL and Emap Construct - remain his responsibility. In 1990 he became Publishing Director of NCE and several of its sister magazines.

In 1991 ICE established the separate company Thomas Telford Services Ltd to manage all of the Institution's non-magazine commercial interests - book and journal publishing, function room letting and catering, conferences and later recruitment, training, e-business and NEC contracts. Hugh established the company and was appointed as its first Managing Director. One of the company's first achievements was to launch the newly refurbished Institution headquarters into the London venue market as the One Great George Street Conference Centre, which has since won many awards.

In 1995 ICE sold all of its magazine interests, including New Civil Engineer, to Emap. TTSL subsequently adopted the name of the former magazine company, Thomas Telford Ltd.

In 2001, TTL achieved for the first time a profit of more than £1 million, and £2 million profit was exceeded for the first time in 2006. All profits are covenanted directly to the Institution, thereby providing additional funding.

In 2005 he was also appointed Deputy Director General of the Institution, with additional responsibility for professional conduct and ethics and (until the end of 2007) contracts and disputes.

Hugh lives in North London with his wife Rosemary and two sons.