In 2003 the British Group of IABSE launched an award for engineering excellence in structural design, named the Milne Medal, after Bob Milne (who was a long serving secretary to the group). The intention of the award is to identify leading structural designers in the profession at the peak of their career and to raise the profile of structural engineering design in general.
After 20 years, our original stock of medals has been exhausted. The British Group is launching a design competition to find a design for the medal for the next 20 years.
Who should apply
This competition is open to anyone who has a passion for engineering and design and wishes to enter. Participants may submit up to three designs.
Existing Medal
The existing medal is 50mm in diameter and 3mm thick, and shows a representation of the Forth Road Bridge on one side, with the IABSE Logo (somewhat badly represented) on the other.
Design criteria
The new medal should:
- Reflect the aims of the award in celebrating excellence in structural engineering design
- Have a design that will remain relevant for the next 20 years of awarding the Milne Medal
- Contain the inscriptions:
- IABSE British Group Milne Medal
- For Excellence in Structural Design
- IABSE British Group Milne Medal
- Contain space (approx. 30x10mm) for engraving the recipient’s name and date.
The current metal 50mm diameter disc sets a good precedent, but this is not a limitation on the submission. The judges will consider sensible and well-argued alternatives to form and material.
Reference files for the IABSE logo are available on the IABSE website.
Submission requirements
Each submission is to be made on one A3 page, with a visual representation (hand sketched or computer generated) of all sides of the medal. Any explanatory text or design notes are to be included on this page. All submissions are anonymous but an identifying title or number should be included to allow the judges to refer to the design.
The submission should be submitted as a pdf (less than 5Mb in size) by email to events@iabse.org.uk.
Judging criteria
The judging will assess how well the submission meets the design criteria, and will also take into account the likely cost, manufacturing and time implications of the proposed design. The intention of IABSE is to manufacture 20 medals from the winning design, but we reserve the right to not carry the design forward for any reason, and also reserve the right to not make an award if the panel feel this is appropriate.
Judging panel
The judging panel will be selected from members of the IABSE British Group Committee and previous winners of the Milne Medal.
Prize
It is intended that the winning entry will be manufactured for use by IABSE. The winning designer will receive an honorarium of £500, and be invited to the Milne Medal Dinner as a guest of IABSE in 2024 to observe the first medal being awarded.
Timeline
16th November 2023: Competition Launched
16th December 2023: Deadline for queries (submit questions to events@iabse.org.uk)
16th January 2024: Submission Deadline
30th January 2024: Result Announced
November 2024: First Medal presented at the Milne Medal Lecture.