AWE Defence Industry Early Careers Engineering Prize 2025
in association with AWE
Catherine Smith, Reliance Precision Ltd
receiving the Award from Dr Shini Somara with Giles Hartill, AWE and Master Engineer Eur Ing Penny Taylor, JP and Clerk Cdr Peter Gracey VR RN [photo courtesy of Mark Witter Photography]
Catherine Smith is an apprentice-trained project engineer at Reliance Precision Ltd, Huddersfield. Throughout her career, she has helped to ensure that quality product is delivered to many defence customers such as MBDA, Goodrich and Raytheon.
Currently, Catherine’s focus is managing the NeoSAT stepper motor gearbox project for Airbus Defence and Space. She has helped to develop a number of key processes within this project to aid in improving lead times and reduce risk to the product.
Catherine’s work on Hirth Couplings, used for her dissertation at the AMRC Training Centre Sheffield, was for a key defence customer to allow fins to be attached to the body of a missile on the front line. This work expanded her employer’s knowledge of key processes involved in manufacturing these components to create a more robust product. This work will help to reduce risk to the missiles during transport.
A new award for 2024 in collaboration with AWE, this award recognises defence engineering innovations and achievements within the last two years by those in the early stages of their engineering career:
- positive impact to the efficacy or safety of the frontline members of the armed forces;
- or financial savings to the Ministry of Defence,
- benefit to the engineering community and/or defence industry
The Worshipful Company of Engineers Charitable Trust (the Engineers Trust) acknowledges excellence in engineering, supports engineering education and research, gives grants and assists in the relief of hardship and poverty.
