Celebrating incredible people who made an impact – past, present and future

Chloe Sales, welder at multi award-winning Staffordshire sheet metal business Alpha Manufacturing, has been chosen to feature in the Institution of Engineering and Technology’s (IET) Gallery of Engineers stairwell exhibition at IET London: Savoy Place, which aims to showcase how truly diverse, innovative and exciting the engineering and technology professions are.

The IET asked the public to nominate any engineer or technician who has made a positive impact to the industry or the world, and we received hundreds of brilliant and diverse nominations.

The top 95 nominations, as decided by a review panel, are now celebrated at the stairwell gallery exhibition at IET London: Savoy Place. The review panel comprised some of the best minds across the engineering sector, including those with experience championing EDI, and some representatives from the IET.

The list features people from the past, including some of the well-known greats, to some who had been overlooked, as well as incredible people from today and those working on amazing things for the future. A few of the outstanding people who have been included are LatchAid creator, Chen Mao Davies; engineer and LGBTQ+ right activist, Cel Welch; dedicated suffragette, Laura Annie Willson; and enigma codebreaker, Alan Turing – all individuals who have made a real difference for today and tomorrow.

Head of EDI at the IET, Dr Laura Norton, said: “I’m delighted to see the final collection of individuals nominated for recognition from our celebrating impact campaign. It showcases the true diversity of successful engineers and technologists throughout history and in the present day. These amazing individuals provide role models for the future generation and inspire us all.”

“At the IET we want to change outdated perceptions and showcase the diverse talent and creative careers in our sector, and this campaign helps us to do just that.”

Chloe Sales said: “I am honoured beyond words to have been nominated for this stairwell exhibition. During my career so far, I have worked to not only increase my skillset but also to inspire the next generation of welders to pursue welding and engineering through work-experience and apprenticeship routes.

“To have been recognised as having a positive impact on my industry makes everything that I do worthwhile and encourages me to keep working to empower and inspire.”

Neal Lafford, Operations Director at Alpha Manufacturing, said: “When Chloe came to Alpha to continue her welding apprenticeship years ago, we immediately recognised her potential, from her clear passion and dedication to learn and challenge herself.

“Having supported Chloe on her journey from apprentice welder to a leader in her field, inspiring the next generation of welders not only within our business, but throughout the world through the platform she has built, has been a proud moment for us, and we couldn’t be more pleased that she will be able to continue to inspire others through this exhibition.”

The exhibition is now available to view at IET London: Savoy Place or you can learn more about the inspiring 95 engineers and technologists on the IET website.