18 Oct 2016

IMAGINEERING CHAIRMAN APPOINTED VISITING PROFESSOR

At Coventry University

Bob Shanks

L-R: Ashley Lees; Bob Shanks; Martin Lander, Senior Lecturer, School of MAAE Coventry University; Professor Carl Perrin, Director of Inst for Advanced Manufacturing & Engineering, Coventry University

The Imagineering Foundation is delighted to announce the appointment of its Chairman, Bob Shanks, as a new visiting professor at Coventry University to enhance student engagement in sustainable manufacture using practice-based supervision. This appointment, by the Royal Academy of Engineering, comes following the University’s successful long-term partnership with the Imagineering Foundation.

Bob Shanks, a Chartered Engineer and co-founder of the Imagineering Foundation, has 30 years of varied experience in engineering manufacturing with a proven record in managing change, implementing high quality standards and creating an organic team environment. Bob’s whole career has been spent practicing innovation and sustainability whilst managing a design and production unit in a commercial environment – much of that time spent at Sandvik Ltd, based at Halesowen in the Midlands. Since 2000 he has also put his skills and experience into practice in developing the Imagineering Foundation, a volunteer-based educational charity highly successful in enthusing young people to become engineers.

Bob Shanks said: ‘I am looking forward working closely with students and course tutors. I will be contributing to undergraduate courses, giving talks, helping to select and review student projects, mentoring and contributing to course formation . The focus will be on setting expectations and establishing understanding of the way design and manufacturing take place in a commercial industrial environment, complementing existing technical and academic teaching.’

Ashley Lees, Faculty of Engineering, Environment and Computing and Head of School of Mechanical, Aerospace and Automotive Engineering said: ‘I would like to offer a warm welcome to Bob to the University and to my School, it extends the cementing of our relationship with the Royal Academy of Engineering. Bob's work in Imagineering has inspired many into a career in Engineering and he will be working with us for the next 3 years.’

The Royal Academy of Engineering is the UK’s national academy for engineering, bringing together the most successful and talented engineers to advance and promote excellence in engineering. It takes a lead on engineering education and invests in the UK’s world-class research base to underpin innovation. It also works to improve public awareness and understanding of engineering.

Its Visiting Professors Scheme is an industry-to-academia initiative that aims to utilise the experience of the Visiting Professors to enhance student learning as well as the employability and skills of UK engineering graduates. Under the scheme senior industry practitioners deliver face to face teaching and mentoring at the host university, contributing to postgraduate teaching, curriculum development and strategy development.

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Comments

19 Oct 2016

Martin Peach said

Bob will be a thoughtful and insightful addition to the engineering faculty. He has a warmth and understanding of a broad range of subjects that will definitely engage positively with students and young people. Congratulations!