First Royal Engineer to receive Top Clerk of Works Award

The Institution made its first award for top student Clerk of Works (Mechanical) to SSgt James Watt for his outstanding performance on the course in 2022.

Dr Khosru Rahman, IMechE Kent Area Chair presented James with the award which included a certificate and a cheque for £150 at the graduation ceremony on 20 July.

James completed his Clerk of Works course in July, having spent 22 months in intense study at the Royal School of Military Engineering (RSME) in Chatham, Kent.

“The study included modules which form part of the University of Greenwich’s BEng Hons degree in Mechanical and Building Services Engineering, as well as facilities management, project management and defence writing,” James explained. He went on: “I am now continuing with part-time study and expect to graduate with BEng Hons in 2023.”

James is now deployed as a Clerk of Works, a demanding role where he is responsible for the planning, design and delivery of infrastructure projects to meet specific user requirements in the Middle East.  Working in a multi-disciplinary team ranging from surveyors to construction material technicians, James has a busy and challenging job and expects to be in post for a further 2 months.

“My role is allowing me to practically apply the theory I learned on the Clerk of Works course,” he added.

Asked how he managed to combine further study with the demands of his role, James explained: “there are fewer distractions in the evenings, which gives me a great opportunity to get on with some study.”

James continued: “It means a lot to have won the award. Everyone on the course puts in the effort and deserves recognition, which they do receive on graduation. But for the IMechE to recognise my achievement is outstanding. They are one of the most prestigious of the engineering institutions and have demonstrated their commitment to the armed forces by being the first to sign the Armed Forces Covenant. Thank you.”