Dr Sarah Williamson Elected A Fellow Of The Royal Academy Of Engineering

Dr Sarah Williamson has today been elected a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering, alongside a stellar list of new Fellows that includes some of the world’s leading innovators and business people.

Dr Sarah Williamson’s current role is construction technical director for BYLOR, the joint venture between Laing O’Rourke and Bouygues Travaux Publics, formed to deliver the main civil works for Hinkley Point C nuclear power station in Somerset.

The 50 new Fellows will be formally admitted to the Academy at its AGM in London today, in addition to two new International Fellows and one Honorary Fellow, who will add their expertise to the Fellowship of 1,500 world-leading engineers from both industry and academia.

Professor Dame Ann Dowling OM DBE FREng FRS, President of the Royal Academy of Engineering, said: “Since 130 engineers were first called together in 1976 to form the Fellowship of Engineering, our Fellows have come together to advance and promote excellence in engineering. I’m so proud to welcome our new Fellows, who represent the very best of UK engineering. From technology giants to our universities’ finest minds, our new Fellows demonstrate how engineering is tackling some of the biggest challenges facing the world. I look forward to working with them as we continue to make the UK a leading nation for engineering innovation and businesses.”

Commenting on her Fellowship, Dr Sarah Williamson said, “I am very proud and deeply honoured to have been elected a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering, alongside such a group of illustrious colleagues.

“Engineering offers fantastically satisfying careers and in my field, construction, we can see a future where diversity and inclusion are the norm, technology is used by all to support safety, quality and productivity. I am passionate about playing my part in driving this change; both attracting the talent to deliver it, and constantly seeking new and better ways to deliver for our clients. I am absolutely delighted to have fellowship of the RAE which both recognises and supports this ambition.

Ray O’Rourke, who is an Honorary Fellow of the RAE added: “The Academy bestows this honour to the UK’s most distinguished engineers and it is with pride that I add my congratulations to Sarah’s election. As a Fellow, Sarah joins a cadre of peers committed to advancing engineering. Sarah’s energy, professionalism and knowledge inspires our project teams, and I know she’ll continue to promote our profession to a diverse audience.”

The complete list of new Royal Academy of Engineering Fellows for 2017 can be found here

Dr Williamson has also been shortlisted as a finalist in Building Magazine’s ‘Woman of the Year’ award for 2017.