In the early summer, I was invited by IHEEM president Phil Nedin to attend a presentation day at Cardiff University, writes Tammy Simmons, the Institute’s membership manager.
The undergraduates had been drawn from civil engineering, architectural engineering, mechanical engineering, integrated engineering and medical engineering courses, and the multidisciplinary approach to the project was bound to be impressive.
The young engineers had been given first class support and encouragement, not only by their lecturers, but also from Arup, which provided most of the engineering support. Nightingale Architects ensured the architectural support was ever present.
Having spent weeks on this project, eight groups of five students presented their designs to the class, lecturers, and assessors. The quality was excellent, the designs were innovative and the enthusiasm was very much evident. The students put a great deal of effort, time and thought into this project, but only one team could win the prize. Phil Nedin said: “This type of activity represents a way of getting new graduates interested in healthcare design,” adding it created a useful link with academia.
The students were given information on membership of IHEEM and were encouraged to consider applying. The Institute’s Membership Committee has supported an initiative to award free membership to fourth year students in an attempt to encourage graduates and other young people to join the Institute. IHEEM will also make available information for healthcare orientated exercises.
