Archie Newbold wins 2023 LEEA Robert Gordon University award
Archie Newbold, MEng Mechanical and Electrical Engineering, has won the 2023 Lifting Equipment Engineers Association Award.
The award recognises outstanding performance by a student at Robert Gordon University (RGU) in Aberdeen relating to Lifting Engineering. Archie’s final year project was on a Predictive Maintenance Model for Crane Components. In partnership with Alatas, which offers crane services across a variety of industries and where he undertook a placement, Archie developed a predictive maintenance model that would determine the remaining life of a crane’s slew bearing, based on its lift usage data.
Archie, who was presented with his award at Robert Gordon University by Robert Rorison, LEEA Member Engagement Manager, Scotland, Northern England & Ireland, spoke with LEEA about getting involved with engineering and his thoughts on the winning the award and encouraging other young recruits into the industry.
How and when did you got into engineering and then decide to study it at university?
I first took an interest in engineering when I was at school, I got the opportunity to join an after-school club called young engineers, which was run by one of the technical teachers. At the club I got to work on many different projects including the MATE ROV challenge, F24 electric racing cars and even show our work at the Showcase Nort East event held by industry leaders. As I progressed through school and started to look at university courses, engineering felt like the natural path to take as it encompassed a lot of the areas I was interested in. With further research I found both mechanical and electrical disciplines to be of intertest and this is eventually what I found myself studying at university.
What made you choose the lifting industry and how did you get a placement?
When it came to securing a work placement, I didn’t really have a specific area or industry I was set on getting into. My first thought was to just secure a placement and try a bit of everything and then narrow it down from there. I applied to around 30 places or so before I got passed the details for Brendan Forbes (Technical Director) at Alatas. I did some research on the company and found myself very interested. The lifting industry wasn’t my first thought but, as mentioned, I was up for giving anything a go. Hence, I applied for the summer placement position and before I knew it, I had an interview and then an offer for the position. I accepted and started a couple weeks later.
What did your work placement encompass?
My placement at Alatas exposed me to all aspects of the business from Design, Automation, project engineering and data science. I was placed in each department for a few weeks at a time and supported a variety of different projects over my time with each team. I was also given the opportunity to go to sites and view repair works being completed by the company and their vendors, along with manage certain project aspects myself with the support of senior engineers. The works I was a part of gave me a well-rounded idea of the type of work that happens within the lifting industry that I had never really thought of before, making me more interested to carry on and learn more.
How do you feel about winning the award?
Winning the award was a very satisfying and fulfilling feeling. After all the time and effort over the 7 months it took to develop and complete, knowing it was being recognised by LEEA and was deemed worth an award was amazing. It also felt amazing to win the award not just for myself but also for Brendan, my project supervisor, and all my Alatas colleagues who had supported and helped me with the project along the way. Without them the project wouldn’t have been possible, and in a way it was my way of being able to give back to them and thank them for all the help.
What do I think will encourage more people into the lifting industry?
I think when looking from the outside in as a student, the lifting industry just seems very basic with everyone thinking of cranes on offshore platforms and nothing else. But when you actually get into the industry and see all the projects, applications and assets there are it becomes a completely different story and very interesting. The biggest shortfall I’ve come to notice, not just in the lifting industry but the wider engineering industry as well, is the lack of engagement with students and universities. Throughout my time as a student there has only been a handful of times industry have engaged with the student body. I feel that if the lifting industry engaged and showed students of all levels the opportunities available and even had summer placement options, it would bring more people in and show them how much the industry has to offer.
Finally, looking forward, what’s next up?
Following the successful completion of my university studies I will be joining the Alatas team full time as a graduate continuing the work, I have started with them and building on it further. I have also set myself some goals over the next few years I want to achieve with my final aim to become a chartered engineer. And most importantly finally take some much needed holiday!
