Keith Howells, Mott MacDonald’s chairman, has been elected a Fellow of the UK’s Royal Academy of Engineering – the highest national accolade in the profession.
Each year Fellows of the Academy nominate and elect their peers for this prestigious Fellowship in recognition of their contributions towards the engineering profession. This is the highest national honour that an engineer can receive and is awarded to the UK’s most preeminent engineers, representing the nation’s best researchers, innovators, entrepreneurs, and business and industry leaders.
Keith has had a long and varied career since he joined one of the founder members of the Mott MacDonald Group, Sir M MacDonald & Partners, after graduating from university. He initially built experience in the water sector, leading major projects in over 20 countries including Nigeria, Iraq, Pakistan, Nepal, Hong Kong, China and India, as well as the UK. Keith ran Mott MacDonald’s water and environment business from 1997 to 2002, before becoming Group managing director in 2004, where he directed the firm’s expansion in North America, Africa, Australasia and South America. He was appointed chairman of Mott MacDonald in 2011.
In addition to his role at Mott MacDonald, Keith was elected Chairman of the UK’s Association for Consultancy and Engineering for its centenary year in 2013, is a member of the Confederation of British Industry’s Construction Council and sits on the advisory board of the Cranfield School of Management. He has also served on the UK Government’s National Infrastructure Plan Strategic Engagement Forum and in the Construction Industrial Strategy Advisory Council.
Mike Haigh, Mott MacDonald’s Group managing director, commented: “On behalf of all of us at Mott MacDonald, I would like to congratulate Keith on this excellent and well-deserved achievement. From his earlier roles leading water projects around the world, to his more recent activities as a leading member of the international business community, Keith’s dedication and contribution to the world of engineering has been exemplary.”