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Neville Beach - IPENZ President's Award winner
Friday, 26 March 2004

Neville Beach, a Fellow of the Institution of Professional Engineers (IPENZ), received one of the highest accolades the Institution can bestow on a member – the IPENZ Presidents Award - for long and distinguished service to civil engineering in the service of others, and to the engineering profession.

A gold medal was presented to Neville by Gerry Coates, President of the Institution, at the Awards Dinner during the IPENZ Convention at the Hotel Grand Chancellor in Christchurch on Thursday March 25.

When awarding the medal Gerry acknowledged Neville’s contributions to the advancement of the engineering profession.

“One of Neville’s major projects was the Porirua Basin Wastewater Treatment Plant, completed in 1989, for which he was project leader. He was in charge of engineering design for what was then the largest overseas project undertaken by New Zealand engineers, a 16,000-person city at Lambak Kanan, Brunei. Neville also chaired the Board of the Engineering Export Association of New Zealand in the mid-70s,” he said.

“Neville’s contribution to the community is vast including his election as a member of the Makara/Ohariu Community Board for 20 years, and currently its chair. Neville is also vice president of the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs, and has chaired the Wellington Civic Trust,” said Gerry Coates.

Notes from Neville’s citation:

Neville graduated as a Civil Engineer from the University of Canterbury in 1954 and his initial position was with a consulting engineer in Wellington. He then spent a year in Holland with Shell before moving to the UK. With Freeman Fox & Partners, consulting engineers, he worked on power stations and industrial projects for 10 years, culminating in a stint in Malaysia.

Returning to New Zealand he worked for two major contractors before returning to Freeman Fox, as deputy resident engineer on the Auckland Harbour Bridge project. Back in Wellington he joined Truebridge Callender Beach, becoming a partner and director.

Neville became a Fellow of IPENZ in 1978 and served the Institution in many roles, including Council member from 1979 –1982, Executive Vice President in 1983, and Honorary Secretary/Treasurer. He has also chaired the Examinations and Ethics Committees and was responsible for the ground-breaking Code of Ethics introduced in 1996. He currently chairs an IPENZ Investigating Committee.

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