The Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) is a British professional body for those working in engineering and technology in the United Kingdom and worldwide. It was formed from two separate institutions: the Institution of Electrical Engineers, dating back to 1871,[1] and the Institution of Incorporated Engineers dating back to 1884. Worldwide membership is in excess of 153,000. As of October 2009, the president was Professor Christopher Snowden and the chief executive and secretary was Nigel Fine. The Institution's main offices are in Savoy Place, London, and Michael Faraday House, Stevenage. It also has premises in Birmingham, Glasgow, Edison, Beijing, Hong Kong and Bangalore.
The IET is the second largest engineering institution in the world (the Institution of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) of the USA is the largest). The IET has the authority to establish professional registration of engineers through the Engineering Council. The IEEE does not have the authority to replicate the registration process in its complementary environment.
The IET is registered as a charity in England & Wales and in Scotland.
Formation
Discussions started in 2004 between the IEE and the IIE about the formation of the new institution. In September 2005, both institutions put the merger to the vote, and members voted in favour (73.5% IEE, 95.7% IIE). A petition was then made to the Privy Council for a Supplemental Charter, to allow the creation of the new institution. This was approved by the Privy Council on 14 December 2005 and the new institution came into being on 31 March 2006.
The new Charter and Bye-laws were approved by Special General Meetings in September 2005; approximately 250 IEE members signed a petition calling for them to be reviewed by a working party. Therefore a further SGM on 22 March 2006 was called by the IEE and this approved the establishment of a working party which reported in December 2006. The working party proposed amendments to the Charter and Bye-laws, which were approved at an SGM on 17 May 2007 and ratified by the Privy Council in November 2007.
History of the IEE
The Institution of Electrical Engineers (IEE) was founded in 1871, Incorporated by Royal Charter in 1921, and eventually had a worldwide membership of around 120,000. The IEE represented the engineering profession, operated Professional Networks (worldwide groups of engineers sharing common technical and professional interests), had an educational role including the accreditation of degree courses, and operated schemes to provide awards scholarships, grants and prizes. It was well known for publication of the "IEE Wiring Regulations" which now continue to be written by the IET and published by the British Standards Institution.
History of the IIE
The modern Institution of Incorporated Engineers (IIE) traced its heritage to The Vulcanic Society that was founded in 1884 and became the Junior Institution of Engineers in 1902, which became the Institution of General Technican Engineers in 1970. It changed its name in 1976 to the Institution of Mechanical and General Technician Engineers. At this point it merged with the Institution of Technician Engineers in Mechanical Engineering and formed the Institution of Mechanical Incorporated Engineers in 1988. The Institution of Engineers in Charge, which was founded in 1895, amalgamated into the Institution of Mechanical Incorporated Engineers (IMechIE) in 1990.
The Institution of Electrical and Electronic Technician Engineers, the Society of Electronic and Radio Technicians, and the Institute of Practitioners in Radio and Electronics merged in 1990 to form the Institution of Electronics and Electrical Incorporated Engineers (IEEIE).
The modern IIE was formed in April 1998 by the merger of The Institution of Electronic and Electrical Incorporated Engineers (IEEIE), The Institution of Mechanical Incorporated Engineers (IMechIE), and The Institute of Engineers and Technicians (IET). In 1999 there was a further merger with The Institution of Incorporated Executive Engineers (IIExE). The IIE had a worldwide membership of approximately 40,000.
Purpose and function
The IET represents the engineering profession in matters of public concern and assists governments to make the public aware of technological issues. It also provides advice on all areas of engineering, regularly advising Parliament and other agencies.
The IET also grants Chartered Engineer and Incorporated Engineer professional designations on behalf of the Engineering Council UK. IEng is roughly equivalent to North American Professional Engineer designations, and CEng is set at a higher level. Both designations have far greater geographical recognition.
This is made possible through a number of networks for engineers established by the IET including the Professional Networks, worldwide groups of engineers sharing common technical and professional interests. Through the IET website, these networks provide up-to-date sector-specific news, stock a library of technical articles and give members the opportunity to exchange knowledge and ideas with peer groups through dedicated discussion forums. Particular areas of focus include education, IT, energy and the environment.
The IET has an educational role, seeking to support its members through their careers, producing advice and guidance at all levels to secure the future of engineering.
For example, the IET accredits degree courses worldwide in subjects relevant to electrical, electronic, manufacturing and information engineering. In addition, it secures funding for professional development schemes for engineering graduates including awards scholarships, grants and prizes.
For the public, the IET website provides factsheets on topics such as solar power, nuclear power, fuel cells, micro-generation, and the possible effects on health of mobile phones and power lines.
The IET runs the bibliographic information service Inspec, which is a major indexing database of scientific and technical literature, and publishes books, journals such as Electronics Letters, magazines such as Engineering & Technology, and conference proceedings. Over 80,000 technical articles are available via the IET Digital Library.
Categories of membership
The IET has several categories of membership, some with designatory postnominals:
- Honorary Fellow (HonFIET)
- The highest membership category, awarded to persons of particular distinction.
- Fellow (FIET)
- This category is open to persons who have demonstrated significant individual responsibility, sustained achievement and professionalism in areas relevant to the interests of the Institution.
- Member (MIET or TMIET)
- This category is open to professional engineers (MIET) and technicians (TMIET) with suitable qualifications and involvement in areas relevant to the interests of the Institution.
MIET is a regulated professional title recognised in Europe by the Directive 2005/36. www.europeopen.org.uk/index.asp?page=13
MIET is listed on the part 2 professions regulated by professional bodies incorporated by Royal Charter-Statutory Instruments 2007 No. 2781 Professional Qualifications-The European Communities (Recognition of Professional Qualifications) Regulations 2007. http://www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si2007/uksi_20072781_en_1
- Associate
- Open to persons with an interest in areas relevant to the interests of the Institution who do not qualify for the Member category.
- Student
- Open to persons studying to become professional engineers and technicians.
The IET outside the United Kingdom
Australia
The IET Australia is the Australian branch of the IET (Institution of Engineering and Technology). The Australian branch of the IET has representation in all the States and territories of Australia. They include the state branches, their associated Younger Members' Sections and University sections in Aust.
The Younger Members Section are divided in categories based on each state. eg. IET YMS New South Wales (IET YMS NSW). There is however, a national Young Members Board (YMB), that coordinates all of each sub-section.
Hong Kong
The IET HK is the Hong Kong branch of the IET (Institution of Engineering and Technology, Hong Kong). The Hong Kong branch of the IET has representations in the Asian region and provides a critical link into mainland China. It includes six sections, i.e. Electronics & Communications Section (ECS); Informatics and Control Technologies Section (ICTS); Management Section(MS); Power and Energy Section (PES); Manufacturing & Industrial Engineering (MIES); Railway Section(RS), as well as the Younger Members Section.
It has over 5,000 members and activities are coordinated locally. It is one of the professional otganisations for chartered engineers in Hong Kong. Link: http://www.iee.org.hk/iee/eng/main/home.jsp
See also
Notes
- ↑ Referenzfehler: Ungültiges
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