QUEEN’S BIRTHDAY HONOURS FOR IMarEST MEMBERS

Four members of the Institute of Marine Engineering, Science and Technology (IMarEST) were honoured in this year’s Queen’s Birthday Honours List.

Rear Admiral Neil D Latham MSc CEng FIMarEST MIMechE and Professor Peter S Liss, FRS, CMarSci FIMarEST, Professor, School of Environmental Sciences, University of East Anglia, both Fellows of the IMarEST, were awarded CBE.

A third Fellow, and long term supporter of the Institute, Lawrence (Laurie) Prandolini OAM CEng CMarEng FIMarEST, was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia; and Captain John Jeremy Taylor CEng CMarEng FIMarEST, Royal Navy was awarded MBE.

The IMarEST is the global professional membership organisation for marine science, engineering and technology professionals. It promotes the scientific development of engineering, science & technology in the marine environment, and supports the learning, development, advancement and professional recognition of its 15,000 members worldwide and 50 branches globally.
 
“We send congratulations to all four,” says Keith Read CBE, Chief Executive of IMarEST. “Their awards are most richly deserved.”

About Neil Latham
Rear Admiral Neil Latham was Vice-President of the IMarEST Council, representing the Royal Navy from 2004/2007 and from 2007/2008. Having retired from the Royal Navy he is now a Vice Chancellor at Kingston University.

Neil Latham joined the Royal Navy as an engineer officer in 1973.  He was appointed to the Defence Academy as Commandant of the newly formed Defence College of Management and Technology in February 2005.  His work there is currently focussed on developing the College to become a key source of knowledge and expertise for all those involved in acquisition and the wider business of defence, and supporting implementation of the Defence Industrial Strategy and other initiatives such as Professional Skills for Government.

His career has included appointments in the Equipment Capability area of the Ministry of Defence as an Assistant Director and as the Team Leader developing customer processes for the Smart Acquisition project.  As an Agency Director in the Defence Logistics Organisation, he played a key role in the Warship Support Modernisation initiative, including the development of innovative partnering arrangements between industry and the Naval Bases.  His final role in the Royal Navy was as Commanding Officer HMS SULTAN, where he was also in charge of directing electro-mechanical engineering training for all three Armed Forces.

His earlier career involved various sea appointments, with service in the West Indies, Gulf, and Far East as well as considerable periods of time in the North Atlantic during the Cold War. He also worked ashore in the (then) Procurement Executive in Bath, at the Canadian National Defence Headquarters in Ottawa, at the Ministry of Defence in London on the staff of the Chief of Fleet Support, and as a faculty member at the George C Marshall Center for Security Studies in Germany.

His academic interests include defence economics and defence industry, on which he has published several articles and papers.  He attended the Joint Services Defence College at Greenwich, and more recently has been a visiting fellow at St Antony's College, Oxford. 

About Peter Liss
Professor Peter Liss, who was awarded CBE for services to science, is a past representative of IMarEST on the Science Council; he is a Member of the Science Advisory Group, and was instrumental in getting the MOU signed between and IMarEST and the Challenger Society (of which he is President)

Professor Liss has been based in UEA’s School of Environmental Sciences for the past 37 years, researching and teaching many aspects of environmental chemistry. His research has focused particularly on the biogeochemical interactions between the ocean and the atmosphere, specialising in the processes of air-sea gas exchange, the mechanisms of trace gas formation in the oceans, and their reactivity and role in the atmosphere. His research group forms part of the university’s Laboratory for Global Marine and Atmospheric Chemistry (LGMAC).

He has received the Challenger Society Medal, the Plymouth Marine Sciences Medal, and the John Jeyes Medal of the Royal Society of Chemistry. He served for five years on the Natural Environment Research Council, was chair of the scientific committee of the International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme, and is currently chair of the Royal Society’s global environment research committee. Until recently he also chaired the scientific steering committee for the international SOLAS Project.

About Laurie Prandolini
“Laurie, who is Honorary Secretary of our Sydney branch has worked tirelessly for IMarEST for a great many years,” explains Graham Hockley, Director Policy and Professional Affairs at IMarEST.  “He is the key mover behind IMarEST’s  involvement with the Pacific series of conferences held in Sydney every other year and has headed up the speakers committee each year attracting in internationally acclaimed speakers.”

Len Michaels, President of IMarEST’s Australia, New Zealand & South Pacific Division adds his congratulations: “This award to Laurie is greatly deserved and long overdue. Laurie has shown himself to be tireless in his efforts to progress the marine engineering profession in the Asia Pacific region. He is highly regarded by both members and the industry.” 

Laurie Prandolini began a long and distinguished career as an apprentice servicing sugar mills at Babinda, Northern Queensland; he went away to sea in December 1945 with the Adelaide Steamship Company on steam reciprocating ships, then on the Orient Line for turbine experience and the Union Castle Line for diesel experience.  He got his Extra first class certificate in London and became surveyor and Examiner of Engineers with Department of Shipping and Transport, gaining a degree in Naval Architecture whilst with the Department. He then went to work for Y-ARD (Yarrow Admiralty Research Dept) where he was Commercial Manager - whilst there he worked on design for the DDL light destroyer. Following this he joined Vickers at Cockatoo Island where he was Commercial Manager.

 He retired in December 1988 but since then has worked tirelessly to promote marine engineering and has played an extremely active and valuable role in IMarEST’s Sydney branch.

Further information about IMarEST and its work on behalf of members is available at www.imarest.org.

Further press information from:
Judith Patten @ JPPR
34 Ellerker Gardens, Richmond, Surrey, TW10 6AA, UK
Tel: +44 (0) 20 8241 1912; Fax: +44 (0) 20 8940 6211
Email: judithpatten@wwmail.co.uk

or

Suki Kalsi @ IMarEST
80 Coleman Street, London EC2R 5BJ, UK
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7382 2600:  Fax: +44 (0) 20 7382 2670
Email: suki.kalsi@imarest.org