Five Ipenz Distinguished Fellows Elected

22 March 2007

Embargoed until 7 pm

Five Ipenz Distinguished Fellows Elected

Five Fellows were promoted to the class of Distinguished Fellow of The Institution of Professional Engineers New Zealand (IPENZ) for their eminent contribution to the profession of engineering.

The Distinguished Fellows were honoured at an awards dinner held during the annual IPENZ convention, Vision 20/20 - Investing in the Future, at the Hyatt Regency Hotel, Auckland.

"Distinguished Fellowships are decided by our membership as recognition for their continuing contributions to the profession", says IPENZ Chief Executive, Dr Andrew Cleland.

2007 Distinguished Fellows

Full citations are attached

Roger Blakeley, Wellington.

Robin Dunlop, Wellington.

Ian Fraser, Wellington

Richard Sharpe, Wellington

Basil Wakelin, Wellington

About Vision 20/20 - Investing in the Future

Vision 20/20 is the national convention of the Institution of Professional Engineers New Zealand (IPENZ). It is an event which is open to IPENZ members and non-members who share an interest in the engineering sector.

The 2007 theme is Investing in the Future which is reflected in a programme which includes paper presentations from five young engineers discussing the direction of the engineering industry. Renewable energy features strongly in the technical papers. Barry Blackett, Technical Manager Fuels at BP Oil New Zealand Ltd discusses biofuel development; Chris Bathurst and David Beach of Neptune Power Ltd outline their intentions to generate electricity from tidal currents, namely the Cook Strait.

The Fellows' and Achievers' Dinner is a highlight of the programme. IPENZ inducts its newest Fellows, announces Distinguished Fellows and awards Supreme Technical Awards for Engineering Achievers, sponsored by Opus International Consultants and the Turner Award for Professional Commitment.

About Distinguished Fellowships

A Distinguished Fellow is a Member who is recognized for his or her eminent contribution to one or more of the following areas:

- advancement of engineering knowledge

- advancement of engineering practice

- application of engineering or technology for the community

- advancement of technological education

- innovation in creation of engineering works

- innovation in creation of technological products

- leadership in the profession of engineering

- development of the Institution

- other words that are appropriate that the Board specifically approves

Full Citations

Roger Blakeley is elected a Distinguished Fellow of IPENZ in recognition of his eminent contribution to leadership in the profession of engineering, specifically recognising his contribution to leadership in senior roles in the government sector over several decades. His career began with the Ministry of Works and Development, where he progressed through several positions to the role of District Civil Engineer firstly in Wanganui and then in Wellington. In 1984 he was appointed to the position of Deputy Secretary for Mines in the Ministry of Energy and General Manager in charge of State Coal Mines which was transformed subsequently to the Coal Corporation of NZ and then to Solid Energy. However, his most significant appointment - in 1986 - was to head the newly formed Ministry for the Environment as its first Chief Executive. He not only had the task of setting up the fledgling Ministry and its enabling legislation but also had responsibility for overseeing the drafting and implementation of the Resource Management Act. This Act was leading edge at the time and continues to be the key legislative platform for the oversight of engineering and other works in New Zealand. He then moved on to become Secretary of Internal Affairs and over a period of five years had oversight of significant management transformation in that organisation. After these very successful and ground breaking assignments in the core government sector, he successfully moved his focus to local government becoming the Chief Executive of the Porirua City Council, a position he still holds. He is an outstanding example of an engineering leader, demonstrating the highest qualities in diverse roles in both central and local government.

Robin Dunlop is elected a Distinguished Fellow of IPENZ in recognition of his eminent contribution to leadership in the profession of engineering and his contribution to advancement of engineering practice, specifically recognising his leadership role in advancing both technical and managerial aspects of transportation in New Zealand. After completing a doctorate in civil engineering at the University of Canterbury in 1972, he spent the first half of his career in the Ministry of Works and Development rising quickly through the ranks. In 1989 he became Chief Executive of Transit New Zealand, a position he held for 15 years with a leading role in both funding and management of the state highway system. For the final two years of his career he was permanent head of the Ministry of Transport responsible for policy development in the transport sector in New Zealand. He has also made a major contribution to road and transport policy internationally. He was President of the Road Engineering Association of Asia and Australasia for 3 years and a Council member of Austroads for 9 years including over two years as its Chairman. He was also Director of the Washington Program of the International Road Federation. He has published many papers and been an invited keynote speaker at conferences throughout the world on road management and road agency reform and has won a number of awards, including International Road Federation Man of the Year 2002. He has been chairman of the NZ Institute of Management central branch, is currently chairman of the NZIM National Board, and is a Past President of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport in NZ.

Ian Fraser is elected a Distinguished Fellow of IPENZ in recognition of his eminent contribution to leadership in the profession of engineering, specifically recognising his role in consulting engineering and governance of engineering-based organisations. He has enjoyed a prominent career as a structural engineer and has been responsible for the growth and development of the buildings group at Beca Cater Hollings and Ferner. He was appointed General Manger of the Southern Division of Beca in 1990 and then Regional Manager, Wellington, in 1999. At the same time he was appointed Managing Director of Beca Buildings. Since 2004 he has been Managing Director of Beca Carter Hollings and Ferner Ltd. In parallel to a challenging career in consulting engineering he has served on a number of industry boards. He was a Management Committee member of the New Zealand Society for Earthquake Engineering in 1987 and 1988. He has served as a Board Member of the Association of Consulting Engineers of New Zealand from 1996 to 2000 and was President from 2000 to 2002. He has been a Director of Mighty River Power from 1999 to 2006 and Deputy Chairman from 2006 to the present. He has also served in a number of community positions, including Wellington College Board of Trustees from 1989 to 1995, a Committee Member of the Wellington Club since 2004 and served as a Lieutenant in the New Zealand Army Territorial Force from 1966 to 1970.

Richard Sharpe is elected a Distinguished Fellow of IPENZ in recognition of his eminent contribution to the advancement of engineering practice, specifically recognising his contribution to earthquake engineering at both national and international levels. He is a Past President and Fellow of the NZ Society for Earthquake Engineering and he has an outstanding record of achievement both in New Zealand and overseas. He led the New Zealand reconnaissance team to Turkey following the 1999 Marmara Earthquake. Since then he has been involved with the retrofitting of Istanbul setting up a team for Beca Carter Hollings & Ferner Ltd with a local consultant to undertake a feasibility study and design for retrofitting 369 apartment buildings. His experience with large international projects, includes the team leader for the Nepal Building Code Project undertaken for United Nations Development Programme. He was one of two international specialists for the Asian Development Bank's project strengthening disaster mitigation and management for the State of Uttar Pradesh in India. His portfolio of international project experience is extensive and impressive. His domestic experience includes Te Papa's earthquake risk assessment, Maui Off-Shore Platforms emergency response, Auckland Harbour Bridge seismic assessment, Sky Tower's structural analysis and a raft of risk analysis projects for New Zealand's key infrastructural assets. His contribution to earthquake engineering in New Zealand and overseas is outstanding and he is truly eminent in his field.

Basil Wakelin is elected a Distinguished Fellow of IPENZ in recognition of his eminent contribution to the advancement of technological education, particularly recognising his contribution to the development of international best-practice engineering accreditation systems in New Zealand. In parallel to a busy consulting career in mechanical engineering, over more than three decades he has been the thought leader on accreditation systems, starting with involvement on the IPENZ Examination Committee in 1976. He was involved in the early days of degree accreditation in New Zealand, and was made the foundation Chair of the Standards and Accreditation Board in 2001. He entered the international engineering education arena in 2003. Since then he has been a member of three international panels reviewing accreditation systems in Japan, Australia and Germany, a mentor for Singapore and Chinese Taipei, and was one of the group of three people who developed the international exemplar graduate profile and competence standards accepted by six international engineering mobility agreements in 2005. He has served on the board of the Academic Audit Committee of the New Zealand Vice Chancellor's Committee for a decade, and has been sought out by other professions to assist in the development of their accreditation processes.

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