Terence Lui became an ICE fellow at age 32. In 2021 the average age for new fellows was 51 years old.
An ICE Hong Kong member has passed his ICE fellowship at 32 years old, one of the youngest members to do so in recent years.
Terence Lok Lun Lui is the current CEO of Varadise Ltd. , with a background in civil engineering and data science experience.
On receiving his fellowship Lui said becoming a fellow recognises his knowledge and contribution to the industry.
“[It] gives me the courage to continue this construction digitalisation journey,” he said.
Leading on digital transformation
Lui started off as a civil engineering designer, promoting the use of artificial intelligence and parametric building information modelling (BIM) design in construction back in 2013.
He was promoted to head of digital transformation of Gammon Construction.
He started and led the digital transformation at the company at the age of 27.
He continued to manage digital project implementation and provide consultation services for various organisations, including Hong Kong government departments and public transport operators.
He managed different innovation development projects since 2012, including:
- BIM analytic,
- AI analytic,
- Internet of Things (IoT),
- Virtual reality (VR),
- digital twin, and
- business intelligence (BI).
The engineer’s role
With his civil engineering background, Lui’s experienced in construction digitalisation, monitoring site activities and turning them into digital data.
Furthermore, Lui also makes use of this data to improve construction productivity, quality and safety with an integrated construction approach.
Lui said: “With a non-traditional career path, I hope this recognition will encourage others to think more about the engineer’s role, and how engineers can contribute to [society] in many different ways.”
“As an ICE fellow member, I hope this will enable me to go further in leading the digital transformation of the industry and create a better future for [society].”
Joining the under-40s cohort
Matthew Proctor, an ICE member from the West Midlands recently became a Fellow at age 34.
Yan Zhou, senior associate director at Jacobs, also became a fellow before turning 40 – he was 37 at the time. Zhou is an engaged member of the ICE, currently serving as an ICE Council member.
In 2019, just 1% of ICE fellows were less than 40 years old, and about 8% of ICE fellows at the time had received the grade when they were under 40.
'Age is just a number'
Lui, Procter and Zhou are part of a small cohort of young fellows.
The youngest member to become a fellow was Craig Douglas Malcolm who was 30 years old at the time, in 1969.
More recently, in 2016, Ben TC Chan became a fellow at the age of 31.
Furthermore, only 24 members have achieved fellowship between the ages of 32 and 34 in the last 60 years, including Lui.
Kai Hong Wan, regional director for Hong Kong congratulated Lui on becoming a fellow at such a young age.
“It sends a clear message to all our young members that age is just a number. You can achieve big things if you dream big and work hard,” he said.
