The award was in recognition of “huge impact Lord Bamford has made to UK manufacturing and innovationâ€�, IMechE president Richard Folkson said. “It is thanks to his leadership and vision that ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ is the success it now is and he is one of the strongest and most inspiring ambassadors for British engineering.â€�
Lord Bamford’s career began with a two year engineering apprenticeship at Massey Ferguson in France before he started at the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ World Headquarters in Rocester, Staffordshire, in 1964. He has been chairman of ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ since 1975 – more than 40 years.
Lord Bamford said: “I’m delighted by this honour which is a tribute to all the work of ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½â€™s engineering team. I encourage all our engineers to pursue professional accreditation with the IMechE. Engineering is a very exciting profession and it offers real opportunities to make a difference to the world in which we live.â€�
ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ has more than 7,000 employees, of whom 50 are IMechE members and a further 62 are on its professional development schemes, including 26 graduates and higher apprentices.
Lord Bamford was presented with the honorary fellowship along with Ratan N Tata, who was the chairman of Tata Sons, the holding company of the Tata group, for almost 20 years.