Engineering powerhouse
Royal Mail has today revealed 10 new Special Stamps to mark Britain’s long and proud history of engineering excellence.
World-class inventions and innovations have had a huge impact on many aspects of modern life, from medicine and computing to travel and infrastructure. The last 50 years have produced many marvels of British engineering, from the smallest of computers, the Raspberry Pi, to the Falkirk Wheel, the world’s only rotating boat lift.
At just the size of a credit card, the Raspberry Pi might be tiny, but with sales of more than 20 million these microcomputers have revolutionised education in computer science and programming worldwide.
A collaboration of British engineers and architects produced the world’s first and only rotating boat lift, The Falkirk Wheel, joining two major Scottish canals for the first time in 70 years with a phenomenally beautiful structure.
Other engineering marvels celebrated in the stamp set, include the three-way catalytic converter, Crossrail, superconducting magnets for MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scanners, synthetic bone-graft substitutes, and the Harrier Jump Jet.
Some of the innovations celebrated have won the MacRobert Award, bestowed by the Royal Academy of Engineering – the UK’s most prestigious and longest running award for engineering excellence. The award marks its 50th birthday this year.
Dr Dame Sue Ion DBE FREng FRS, Chair of Judges for the Royal Academy of Engineering MacRobert Award, said: ‘The UK is a global engineering powerhouse with many world firsts developed here that have both benefitted our economy and helped to transform people’s lives for the better.
‘This wonderful new set of Royal Mail stamps perfectly encapsulates the technical and commercial achievements made by British engineers over the last 50 years, from the Harrier jump jet to Raspberry Pi. These great British engineering innovations – several of which have won the MacRobert Award, the UK’s biggest prize for engineering innovation – represent an amazing foundation from which to develop exciting technologies for the future.’
Stamp strategy manager, Philip Parker, said: ‘British innovation in engineering is world renowned. This stamp issue proudly celebrates the projects and inventions which showcase this, as well as demonstrating the extraordinary range of disciplines that British engineers excel in.’
The stamps and a range of collectible products are available from www.royalmail.com/britishengineering, by phone on 03457 641 641 and in 7,000 Post Offices throughout the UK.
