Posted on November 20, 2024 / in Uncategorised

Pupils and Engineers from across the UK Honoured for Innovation at Primary Engineer MacRobert Medal Ceremony

Innovators of all ages gathered at the prestigious Primary Engineer MacRobert Medal Award Ceremony in Glasgow this week, celebrating the collaborative achievements of school pupils, university students, and engineers. Hosted at the stunning Barony Hall, the event showcased cutting-edge prototypes developed from young students’ imaginative engineering ideas.

The Primary Engineer MacRobert Medal is a collaboration between The MacRobert Trust and Primary Engineer, with support from The WEIR Group PLC, and the awards highlight the culmination of the Leaders Award competition. This program challenges pupils aged 3–19 to answer the question: “If you were an engineer, what would you do?” Selected ideas are brought to life by ProtoTeams—collaborations between students, engineers, and industry partners—turning school pupils ideas into working prototypes.

This year, 10 ProtoTeams were honoured with Bronze, Silver, and Gold Medals, recognizing their ingenuity and collaboration.

Dr Susan Scurlock MBE, Founder and Chief Executive of Primary Engineer, expressed her gratitude during the ceremony:

“We are so delighted to be able to honour everyone who has been involved in bringing these porotypes to life – the pupils, parents & carers, engineers, teachers, judges, and our dedicated supporters. We extend our deepest gratitude to The MacRobert Trust and WEIR Group for their essential support and spirit of innovation, The University of Strathclyde School of Engineering for providing us with the stunning Barony Hall, and of course a massive thank to Tunnocks for providing us with the Caramel Wafers!”

Distinguished speakers, including Andrew Everett (CEO, ERA Foundation), Paula Cousins (Chief Strategy & Sustainability Officer, Weir Group PLC), and Ivan McKee MSP (Scottish Government Minister for Finance), also addressed the audience, celebrating the creativity and dedication of the winners.

Jon Stanton, Chief Executive of The Weir Group and part of this year’s judging panel, praised the initiative:

“Creating mining technology for a more sustainable future lies at the heart of what we do at Weir. We must think differently and challenge the way things have always been done. That aligns well with Primary Engineer’s initiative to harnesses the imagination and creativity of school children to innovate and invent solutions to everyday challenges. It has been incredible to see first-hand how the ProtoTeams use their engineering skills to bring the best ideas to life. And then to recognise and celebrate the best innovations with the prestigious Primary Engineer MacRobert Medals. Weir has been working with Primary Engineer since 2018 to develop innovation and I’m personally delighted to be involved again. We can’t wait to see how the next generation of talent develops novel solutions for the world’s most pressing economic and sustainability challenges.”

The event also introduced the first Commendation Medal, awarded via a public vote. The winning prototype, the Solar Powered Heated Blanket, captured imaginations and showcased the real-world potential of young innovators’ ideas.

The Primary Engineer MacRobert Medal Ceremony continues to inspire the next generation of engineers, celebrating the power of collaboration, creativity, and innovation in solving global challenges.

You can find a full list of the Bronze, Silver and gold Medallists below: