School of Engineering Annual Industry Lecture

Engineering – Impact through Innovation by Chris J B Barkey

The world faces numerous global challenges that urgently require innovative solutions. This keynote will explore several of these pressing issues and highlight the pivotal role engineering plays in addressing them. Engineering is woven into the fabric of our daily lives and has a profound social impact. For instance, advances in renewable energy technologies are playing a crucial role in combating climate change. Yet, creating effective solutions depends on certain approaches and processes, with innovation and imagination at their core. How are these sparks of innovation created? How can we nurture them and provide environments that facilitate both innovation and the delivery of real-world solutions? These questions will be explored, alongside examples of how specific stimuli can generate practical engineering breakthroughs.

About the Speaker

Chris has enjoyed a significant career in Engineering, with extensive executive and board experience. Following 30 years with Rolls-Royce plc, he reached the Company Executive as Group Director, Engineering & Technology. In this role he was responsible for engineering across the entire company, covering a portfolio of civil aerospace, defence aerospace, marine, nuclear and power systems businesses.

In July 2018, Chris was appointed Interim Chief Executive Officer of the Henry Royce Institute, the UK national institute for advanced material science.

In 2020 he joined Baker Hughes as Chief Technology Officer, where he was accountable for engineering, from technology to new product introduction and in-service support.

Chris has held a multitude of Board positions, and is currently Chairman of Capsol Technologies ASA, a carbon capture company in Norway. He is also a Non-Executive Director of ELE Advanced Technologies, a manufacturing company in the UK, and Senior Strategic Advisor to Net Power (clean power generation) in the US.

Chris has an Honours degree in Mechanical Engineering from Leicester University, and an MBA with Distinction from Loughborough University Business School. He is a Chartered Engineer and was elected to the Fellowship of the Royal Academy of Engineering in 2017, the Royal Aeronautical Society in 2016 and the Institute of Mechanical Engineers in 2000.

Chris is married with three children.