Institution news
Dr Mashford was Chairman of the Institution’s Manufacturing Industries Division 2004-2006 and in this capacity also served as a Member of the Institution’s Council. She was elected as a Member of Council in 2006, serving for three terms until May 2015.
The Women Leaders MK Awards recognise women who have contributed to the growth of their own particular sector and the ongoing success of Milton Keynes. The award was given in recognition of Kerry Mashford’s leadership of the Foundation’s work improving the use of energy in buildings.
Kerry will now go through to the national 2016 First Women Awards. The First Women programme was created in 2005 and brings together outstanding women from across all sectors. Among last year’s winners was Amanda White CEng MIMechE, who is a member of the Institution’s Railway Division Board.
Kerry said: “Winning the Environment category in the Women Leaders MK Awards is a great honour and I am delighted to receive it in recognition of the work of the National Energy Foundation and on behalf of all my colleagues and Trustees.
“The Women Leaders MK Awards provides inspiration and role models for anyone (male or female) considering a career in the environment and engineering sectors, as well as offering excellent networking opportunities to enable the Foundation to work even more closely with local communities and businesses.”
Kerry began her professional life as a mechanical engineer in power engineering before moving into utilities and then product and manufacturing innovation. During the 1990s, whilst with Unilever, she pioneered agile manufacturing and mass customisation before accepting a secondment to direct the UK’s Manufacturing 2020 Foresight programme.
Much of her work has been national and international, combining visiting academic roles with work in industrial ecology, circular economy and sustainable urban development, including being Chairman of the Institution's Manufacturing Industries Division and strategic adviser on sustainable cities in the Far East.
Working as a consultant for Innovate UK, Kerry led the inception and delivery of an £8 million UK programme to investigate what is now known as the ‘performance gap’ between predicted and actual energy performance of UK buildings, a role which prepared her well for her current role at the National Energy Foundation (NEF). The NEF is an independent, national charity which has been at the forefront of improving the use of energy in buildings for more than 25 years.
Kerry was appointed its Chief Executive in December 2012. Since then, she has led the Foundation in its mission to improve the use of energy in buildings through research, development and delivery of projects for clients who share its values and through its nationally-recognised initiatives - SuperHomes, YouGen, VolDECs, Energiesprong UK and the recently launched Energy Envoys in partnership with The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award.