Thomas Hawksley Prestige Lecture 2024: Humans and Automation – Safety by Design

11 December 2024, One Birdcage Walk: free to attend technical lecture, Q&A and networking.

The Institution of Mechanical Engineers warmly invites you to our final prestige event of 2024, the annual Thomas Hawksley Lecture; free and open to all to join.

This year the Thomas Hawksley is arranged by IMechE Past-President Carolyn Griffiths and will be presented by Professor Sarah Sharples of the Department for Transport and University of Nottingham.

The lecture will explore how we can improve and assure the safety and operational performance of human-engineering controlled systems, with particular focus on the increase in automation of such systems. It will consider how we can design autonomous or semi-autonomous systems to replicate and exceed competent humans, mitigating the risks posed by humans’ unpredictable nature and the complexity of their environments.

The lecture will be followed by an expert panel discussion responding to Sarah’s presentation and exploring both industry-specific and cross-sectoral implications. This will include time for audience Q&A to allow attendees to interact with the panel.

The lecture is free to attend and open to all, reserve your place via the event website and we look forward to welcoming you to One Birdcage Walk.