Information about the Technician Awards. Nominations for 2024 are now closed! All staff are encouraged to nominate deserving technical staff who have excelled in one of the award categories during the last academic year (2023/2024). Deadline to nominate: 17:00 on 28 June 2024 Winners will be announced during Technician Week 2024 (2-6 September). The UoE Technician Awards aim to recognise the exceptional contributions of technical staff to the University. In particular, they aim to reward those who excel in what they do, who “go the extra-mile” in their work, in their contribution to the life of the University, in their contribution to public engagement and in the provision of support to their colleagues, School etc. It is anticipated for awards to be awarded once a year as part of the University’s Technician Week. We encourage all University staff and students to think of technical staff who have performed exceptionally well over the last year and to nominate them NOW. School of Engineering Technician Award winners 2023 Award Categories Contribution to Research & Innovation This award recognises technical staff who have made significant contributions to research and innovation activities within their area of work. Contributions to method development Supporting progress of research through creative approaches, problem solving Minimising equipment downtime through maintenance, fault-finding and repair Effective lab or core facility management Contributions to impact, for example: development of new applications and products, consultancy Contributions to national, international, or field-specific societies, committees, and boards Contribution to Community, Culture & Environment This category recognises technical staff who have been involved in citizenship and community-centred activities within the University. Contributions to a positive work culture and environment, for example: championing of equality, diversity and inclusion, organising networking/social events Involvement in committee work at School, College or University level Involvement in event organisation, for example: TechNet events, conferences and training courses Contribution to Learning & Teaching This award recognises technical staff who are involved in the supervision, training and mentoring of students and staff, as well as in the delivery of teaching. Contributions to delivery of taught laboratory classes Mentoring or supervision of Modern Apprentices and/or trainee technicians Support of student project work Contributions to mentoring programmes, career events, workshops or summer schools, including but not limited to student recruitment, inspiring young people, engagement with schools, foundation apprenticeships and widening participation activities Dissemination of technical content to non-specialist audiences, for example public talks, festivals, events, social media, blogs and vlogs Contribution to Infrastructure & Facilities This award recognises technical staff who are involved in supporting building facilities or delivering key services to support laboratory and/or workshop activities. Effective facilitation of estates work Contribution to minimising the impact of unexpected events Effective facilities management Apprentice/Trainee Technician This award recognises early career technical staff who are currently undergoing training, having started their technical career within the last 4 years and who have demonstrated significant potential through that time. Who can be nominated · Each nomination must be for an individual technician (the University currently has a very broad definition of “technician”, including staff who are in the technical job family, which includes those with the term “technical” or “technician” in their job title; staff who support infrastructure, buildings and facilities; nurses; IT staff; library staff and staff who hold hybrid (academic/professional services) roles). · The technicians nominated should still be employed at the University in September 2024. · Technicians who won one of the Technician Awards in the previous year cannot be nominated in the same category the following year. Who can nominate: · Individuals who work with technical staff. This may include academic staff, research staff and students, heads of department, other technical or professional services staff and other colleagues. · Technicians can self-nominate. · Judges will focus on the content of the nominations, not the number received, so please do not have separate individuals submit the same copied/pasted nomination. What to include in the nomination · The nomination should summarise your main reasons for nominating the technician in 250 words. · The activities which qualify must have been carried out within the academic year 2023/24. · The achievements supporting the nomination should include specific facts and examples, describing what the contribution of the individual to the initiative was, as well as the impact it had. This may be an impact on the progress of research; on their team or another group of colleagues; on their field of expertise; on the development of another individual; etc. You should highlight excellence in the nominee's role and/or champion things beyond the nominee's role. · Ensure the achievements you provide are relevant to the category you have chosen. The categories’ descriptions above indicate the type of eligible achievements. Note that not all the elements listed are required and that the list is not exhaustive. Please do not include facts that would clearly align with another category as they won’t be considered by the panel. · If relevant, you can highlight at the end of your nomination some specific or extenuating circumstances that you feel the panel should be aware of. Outcome · All nominees will be notified that they have been nominated. · Each nomination will be evaluated by a panel. · If a large number of nominations is received within one category, the panel may decide to also award a reasonable number of ‘highly commended’ mentions in addition to selecting a winner. The winner of each category will receive £500. · Winners will be announced during Technician Week (2-6 September 2024). · The results will be displayed on this website and shared via other communication channels across the colleges and wider University. Technicians from Edinburgh College of Art shortlisted in the 2023 Technician Awards 2023 Technician Awards 2023 Winners Contributions to Learning & Teaching: Linda Clark and Michael Mullin Contribution to Infrastructure and Facilities: John Blackhurst Contribution to the University's Culture, Community and Environment: Charli Corcoran Contribution to Research and Innovation: Edith Paxton Apprentice/Trainee Technician: Matthew Proudfoot 2023 Shortlisted Nominees Contributions to Learning & Teaching Juliet Dearden Michael Mullin Andrew Brown Steven Gourlay Emma Aitken Sally Buxton Linda Clark The shortlisted nominees and winner of the Award for Contributions to Learning and Teaching Contribution to Infrastructure and Facilities Lynne Wylie Katalin Kis John Blackhurst Anna Raper Gary Grobler The shortlisted nominees and winner of the award for Contributions to Infrastructure and Facilities Contribution to the University's Culture, Community and Environment Eilidh Guild Sarah Little Neil Johnston Charli Corcoran The shortlisted nominees and winner of the Award for Contributions to the University's Culture, Community and Environment Contribution to Research and Innovation Marianne Keith Ebba Orjefelt Nela Fialova Lynn McTeir Edith Paxton Lorna Taylor The shortlisted nominees and winner of the Award for Contributions to Research and Innovation Apprentice/Trainee Technician Matthew Proudfoot Andy Fisher Holly Morton Rosey McGarry The shortlisted nominees and winner of the2023 Technician Award for Apprentice/Trainee Technician This article was published on 2023-11-14
