Joy for Students and Parents at Annual Gold Medal Ceremony

This week we had the UCD BE Conferrings in O'Reilly Hall. Prior to the Conferrings, the EGA and our sister organisation, the Architecture Graduates Association (AGA) hosted the Annual Gold Medal Ceremony for those who obtained 1st place in each of the branches of Engineering and Architecture.

The 7 Engineering Gold Medals were awarded to Claire Dunne, Ian Kenny, Eoghan Power, Conor O'Malley, Raymond Carley, Robert O'Donoghue and Brian Kealy in Biosystems, Chemical, Civil, Electrical, Electronic, Mechanical and Structural Engineering with Architecture respectively. These Gold Medals were sponsored by GEA, Helsinn, RPS, Airtricity, S3, CRH and ARUP respectively. ARUP also sponsored the EGA Architecture Gold Medal awarded to Andras Dankhazi. All were present to accept the Medals except Brian Kealy who is currently working in the US and was represented by his parents at our event.



(L–R) UCD Dean of Engineering Prof. Gerry Byrne, Ian Kenny (Chem), Robert O'Donoghue (Mech), Andras Dankhazi (Arch), Claire Dunne (Biosystems), Raymond Carley (Electronic), Eoghan Power (Civil), Conor O'Malley (Electrical), EGA President PJ Rudden.



In addition, there were a number of additional Prizes awarded for Civil, Chemical & Bioprocess, Electrical, Electronic and Mechanical Engineering sponsored by Roughan O'Donovan, Pat McAdam, PM Group, Mark Carthy, Cylon and Institution of Mechanical Engineers (Rep of Ireland Branch). Prize winners here were Eoghan Power, Sharon Quigley, Aisling Brazel, Sheila Courtney, Donal Finegan, Killian McKenna, Adrian Walsh, Claire Lambe, Philip Flahavan, Fionnan McNamara and Robert O'Donoghue.

In my Welcome Speech, I emphasised the importance of engineering to everyday life in terms of energy, water, transport and communications. That 'engineering genius' is not celebrated in Ireland as much as literary genius as it is not as well known. That is not surprising given our national reputation for winning Nobel Prizes in Literature by Yeats, Beckett and Heaney.

On the day of the prize giving, the funeral of the late and great poet Seamus Heaney who died suddenly at age 74 from a short illness was taking place a few hundred metres further up the Stillorgan Road at Donnybrook Church. Later that day he was buried in his native Derry. His poetic talent was legendary across the English speaking world as he was a very sensitive yet very graphic communicator with his imagery. Engineers need to be graphic also in our use of the English language and other communications tools to show our relevance in society.

Seamus Heaney

As a profession we need to celebrate our engineering skills on a wider stage where it is not realised that it is engineers who are driving our national recovery in terms of the manufacture and export of biopharma, ICT, biomedical and other engineering products.

From the moment we waken each day to the moment when we fall asleep engineers have created the products and services we use from electricity to clean water to safe roads, rail and airports to buildings where we work and go to school, to the cars we drive, the Internet, iPods and iPhones we use to stay in touch.

In job creation announcements we are told that new jobs are being created in 'Life Sciences' when in fact they are jobs in engineering and that is where many of the future jobs in a growing Irish economy lie - career guidance teachers, parents and Leaving Cert students need to be aware that it is an Engineering Degree that will lead them into these exciting new careers that will nurture, support and save human lives. I visited the fabulous new UCD Science Centre last year and found that many of the researchers working there were engineers as well as scientists.




Edwina White, Airtricity presenting the EGA Gold Medal in Electrical Engineering to Conor O'Malley

 


Arthur Rogers, GEA Tuchenhagen presenting the EGA Gold Medal in Biosystems Engineering to Claire Dunne





Eimear O'Flynn, CRH presenting the EGA Gold Medal in Mechanical Engineering to Robert O'Donoghue



Eileen Lee, Project Management Group presenting the PM Group Design Award to Shelia Courtney



Padraig Somers of Helsinn Birex Pharmaceuticals presenting the EGA Gold Medal in Chemical Engineering to Ian Kenny

Mike Murray of S3 presenting the EGA Gold Medal in Electronic Engineering to Raymond Carley

Larry O'Toole, RPS presenting the EGA Gold Medal in Civil Engineering to Eoghan Power

Rory Mc Gowan, ARUP presenting the EGA Gold Medal in Structural Engineering with Architecture to father of Brian Kealy



Tony Dempsey, Roughan O'Donovan presenting their prize to Sharon Quigley



Professor Don Mac Elroy presenting the Pat Mc Adam Scholarship in Chemical Engineering to Aisling Brazel