The 2011 Winners - First steps on the journey to engineering achievement

On behalf of all the judges, I would like to congratulate all those whose engineering achievements are recognised in this brochure.

These are the winners that stood out from literally hundreds of entries that were of an extremely high standard. I look forward to hearing more about these innovations in the coming months and years. For me, this recognition is a key part of the journey but it’s not the end – the true value of these projects will be seen in how they are exploited and developed to support the economic growth

Last month, th0e launch of the Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering was very cheering for the entire engineering community. It’s a national commitment to raising the profile of engineering and a fantastic example of concerted action by government and industry. I applaud the aims of this programme and really hope that in time it gains the status of the Nobel Prizes. What I think is really exciting about the Queen Elizabeth Prize is that it encourages nominations from all areas of engineering from fashion to fusion, so the wider public can realise how engineering is really fundamental to almost every aspect of everyday lives. Engineering can help us tackle some of the biggest challenges in the world, from providing clean water and sustainable living to managing natural disasters.

So, conversely, against a background of economic difficulty I do believe that engineering may finally be getting the credit and awareness it deserves. With the continued and sustained focus on the importance of teaching science, technology, engineering and maths in schools, and government support for engineering apprenticeships, in time, I feel we can say that British engineering is back on the map where it belongs.

I hope that you enjoy finding out more about the award-winning technologies and innovations, and would like to extend my congratulations to all the winners once again.