Clive Hickman OBE has been elected 139th President of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.

Clive, who is Chair of the Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC) in Coventry in the Midlands, served as Deputy President before becoming President.

He has been a volunteer with IMechE for many years having joined at the start of his engineering career.

As he described it, Clive began his professional life as “an engineering apprentice with a curiosity for innovation”. This led him to enjoy an impressive career in industry with roles including Head of Engineering at Tata Motors and culminating in becoming CEO of the MTC in 2011.

Clive’s theme for his Presidential year is the importance of manufacturing and in his address titled “Innovation in Manufacturing and the Impact of Technology”, he will articulate a vision for how the engineering profession can and should embrace advanced technologies.

Said Clive: “We can and should influence government to create an environment to encourage the adoption of automation, robotics, and other advanced manufacturing technologies. While automation may displace some traditional roles, it will also transform the jobs market – creating opportunities that will leverage our natural human creativity, problem solving and technological expertise.

“The challenge for all of us is to make this Institution the voice not only of engineering, but also of manufacturing.”