Professor William Webb has been awarded an Honorary Doctor of Science degree by The University of Southampton in recognition of his outstanding international contributions in the field of engineering. The presentation was made this week at a ceremony held at the University’s Highfield Campus.
Prof Webb (FREng BEng MBA PhD CEng FIET) is Deputy Chairman at Cambridge Wireless, President of the IET (Institution of Engineering and Technology) and CEO of the Weightless SIG, the standards body developing a new global M2M technology. He is also a Director at independent consultancy Webb Search.
After achieving a first class honours in Electronic Engineering at the University of Southampton in 1989 Webb has maintained a strong connection with the institution. “The University will always be a special place for me both professionally and personally,” says Webb. “I have continued to work with former professors and alumni on several projects as well as taking on a visiting professor position within the University’s much lauded electronic engineering department. To be included among a list of such distinguished individuals at the top of their respective fields is a true honour.”
During a wireless communications module in the third year of his course, Webb was convinced to undertake a PhD at Southampton by Professor Raymond Steele. His PhD topic of ‘variable rate modulation’ now represents an integral aspect of the wireless industry and would spur him on to a career in the industry and an ever growing list of accomplishments.
This honour sees William Webb join a select group of past honorary graduates and doubtless there is more to come for Webb whose term as President of the IET – Europe’s largest Professional Engineering body – comes to an end this October. “At the IET we have put in place a number of initiatives projecting the importance of engineering in the media and to key policy makers,” says Webb. “The ‘Engineer a Better World’ campaign which launched in March this year showcases engineering as an exciting career path for young people and makes a significant step in combatting the lack of women within the engineering industry. A key part of the campaign was identifying strong role models to fly the flag, such as Baroness Martha Lane Fox, co-founder of Lastminute.com, who joined me on the list of University of Southampton honorary graduates this year.”
Last month Webb notched up another great achievement by successfully completing the Cent Cols Challenge, described a as one of the world’s toughest cycling tests. The statistics speak for themselves – over the course of 10 days he travelled 1,204 miles and ascended 147,705 feet.
To find out more visit William Webb’s IET blog http://mycommunity.theiet.org/blogs/711#.VY0bHflViko
