Western Aerospace Centre

The Centre is part of the Aerospace Industries Division of the IMechE.

The Honorary Secretary, Pauli Markkanen MEng CEng MIMechE can be reached by emailing wacsec@imeche.org

WACCommittee2010.pdf[ PDF 74 KB]
WAC Objectives [ PDF 80 KB]

Western Aerospace Centre Prize

A Recognition of Continuing Professional Development

The purpose of the prize is to encourage the further professional development of young engineers living and working in the West of England and South Wales, following graduation with a first degree.

Prize Presentation Evening - Monday 19th April 2010

The format of the competition is intended to test the technical, business and communication skills required of an engineer when preparing and delivering a presentation to senior management within an organisation or to a conference or symposium. 750 word abstracts, summarising the author’s work on an aerospace related research or development project, have been submitted by companies and universities. The Western Aerospace Centre are selecting finalists, who will be invited to give a 20 minute presentation at the Presentation Evening.  This will take place at 6.30pm on Monday 19th April 2010 at the Hawthorns, University of Bristol, in front of a panel including engineering directors from the region’s leading Aerospace organisations.

A theme of Sustainability and the Environment in Aviation is encouraged, as this accords with a number of the IMechE central themes (Energy, Environment, Transport and Education), see http://www.imeche.org.uk for more details. Entries on any aviation topic will be considered.
The four finalists will have a full day with the Red Arrows, and the overall winner will receive a £500 first prize.  Runner up cash prizes will also be awarded.

The finalists will represent their company or organisation and will gain exposure to senior aerospace representatives from industry and academia.  Employers have encouraged professional development amongst their engineers and will have the opportunity to view other work being ocnducted in industry and academia.

The details and the rules are available on the downloadable flyer:

WesternAerospaceCentrePrize2010.pdf [ PDF 82 KB]

Prize Presentation Evening – 2009

The 2009 prize evening was held on April 20th at University of Bristol. The four finalists presented to a fascinated audience before the assessment committee selected John Cusack as the winner.  The finalists were:

Dan Bray, Cambridge University, Robust Design Selection of A Composite Panel.

Gillian Clare, University of Bristol, Optimization of Airport Taxi Operation.

John Cusack, AgustaWestland, Development of an Analytical Method for the Evaluation of Rotorcraft Heatloads.

Natalie Hibberd, Rolls-Royce, Methods of Testing Jet Engine Control Systems.

As part of the prize, the four finalists spent a day with the Red Arrows, and John Cusack received a £500 first prize. Runner up cash prizes were also awarded.

Annual Prestige Lecture

2010 Prestige Lecture – October 2010

The Prestige Lecture 2010 will be held in October 2010.  More details will appear here closer to the event, and we hope to see you for this special event.

2009 Prestige Lecture – Monday 12th October 2009

The Western Aerospace Centre was lucky enough to present Professor Brian White, Professor Emeritus of Cranfield University.  He talked about Autonomous Military Aerial Vehicles - Today's Technology and Tomorrow's Prospects, including details of the Ministry of Defence's Grand Challenge and where that is taking Autonomous Aerial Vehicle Technology. 

WACFlyerAutonomousAerialVehicles.doc