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Tuesday 25 Mar 2003

SIGNALLING SUCCESS

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A Manchester based Network Rail employee has been awarded the Thorrowgood scholarship by the Institution of Railway Signal Engineers (IRSE) in recognition of his outstanding achievement in the 2002 signalling examination. Signalling Development Engineer, Matthew Lupton from Bolton will be presented with the prestigious award on 25 April at the annual general meeting of the Institution, held in London. This will be followed by Institution’s annual dinner at the Savoy Hotel where Network Rail Chief Executive John Armitt will be a guest speaker. The scholarship is awarded annually to a student member excelling in the Institution’s professional examination and consists of the Institution’s Thorrowgood scholarship medallion as well as cheque in the region of £700. The terms of the donation are that the funds are utilised to assist the development of an engineer working in the railway signalling and telecommunications field. A requirement of the award is that it is used to finance a study tour of railway and/or signalling installations or manufacturing facilities, usually in a foreign administration and that the award holder presents a report about the study tour to the younger members section. Funded by Network Rail, Matthew sat and excelled in four modules in October 2002, achieving a pass, a credit and two distinctions, (the only two distinctions awarded by the Institution in 2002). The IRSE examinations are designed to demonstrate that the student has reached the necessary educational standard to become a corporate member of the Institution. - more - Signal  - 2 With the money provided by the IRSE and with an added contribution by Network Rail, Matthew is planning take a week out in June allowing him to visit Switzerland to witness examples of the European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS), which is implemented there and then on to the design office in Sweden. Matthew Lupton said: “I am delighted to receive the scholarship and would like to acknowledge the support I received from Network Rail and in particular the West Coast Route Modernisation project while I was preparing for the exams. I was aware of the award but never thought for a moment I would be presented with it. It was a great surprise.”