On November 20, 2002, the first group of University College Northampton (UCN) students were awarded the Master of Science Lift Engineering degree (MScLE) in a formal ceremony held at the Guild Hall in Northampton, England. Graduates at the ceremony were David Daniell, Bryan Hart, Gordon Lucas, Philip Mantey, Nicholas Mellor and Michael Watts. The MScLE degree was also awarded in absentia to Robert S. Caporale, John Gerk and Kenneth Chan Man Wong who were not able to attend the formal ceremony.
It was a damp and somewhat dreary day, not uncommon for this time of the year in the central part of England. However, in spite of the weather, the group's spirits were bright as they gathered to celebrate the culmination of three years of intensive study to achieve the highest formal academic degree awarded specifically in the field of elevator engineering. Additionally, the MScLE program faculty were also present. Course leader Phillip Andrew, Brian Watts, Ian Bell, Jonathan Adams and Dr. Toni Waine were on hand to participate in the ceremony, along with Dr. Nick Boutle, head of the UCN Engineering Department, and British lift industry member Roger Bedford.
Following the award of the MScLE degrees, Bedford was presented with an honorary MSc in recognition of his close work with the UCN faculty in bringing the MScLE program and other UCN Lift technology educational programs to fruition. The UCN award ceremony was a landmark event for the industry. The degrees were the first ever to be presented in this discipline, and it also was the first time anybody within the industry was conferred with an Honorary Master of Science.
After the formal degree-awarding ceremony, the group of lift engineers gathered for lunch with their families and guests. Although during the MSc course it was quite a difficult task to balance family responsibilities, career objectives and dedicate the necessary time to studies, it was unanimously agreed that the effort was well worth the reward and sense of accomplishment that was felt by all. A great deal of gratitude was also expressed by the graduates for the assistance and support that the UCN MScLE faculty has given to the students. Special thanks was offered to Andrew who was instrumental in putting the course together and getting it approved by UCN and the necessary British higher education entities for the graduate-level degree. Andrew also wrote a good deal of the lift engineering technical material. Watts, Adams, Bell and Waine were also thanked for the support and encouragement they gave to the students.
The graduates were able to meet up with ELEVATOR WORLD correspondents Pat and Bill Gale who were delayed from attending the ceremony due to appalling traffic conditions. Faced with the throng of unfamiliar faces afterwards, Pat distinguished herself by spotting Daniell and Mellor as lift men without having met them before. There was another opportunity to take photographs of the graduates and faculty on the Guild Hall steps.
During the afternoon the group was joined by Pete Sumner and Mike Bukata who are also nearing completion of the course and together with Andrew were able
to discuss proposals for promoting a group to carry on mutual contact with UCN. Mantey stated, "It was strongly felt that cooperation and mutual support which we had enjoyed over the last four years should be continued and various ways of doing this were discussed. The first tangible result was the setting up of an 'MSc Alumni' conference on the UCN web-board."
The final part of the celebration was an evening meal which included Bedford, David Fazakerley, Terry Potter of Lift and Escalator Industry Association (LEIA), the course team of Andrew, Adams, Watts, Boutle, graduates, students and their partners. This was much enjoyed by all.
Following the meal, Mantey, on behalf of the first graduates, made presentations to Andrew, Adams and Watts in recognition of their commitment and support. The presentation was a crystal globe mounted upon a crystal stand etched with the UCN "castle" logo and all of the graduates' names engraved around the base plate. Mantey said, "This was to signify that during the course we did a lot of crystal ball gazing on an international scale!" He then said a few words of acknowledgement on behalf of the graduates to the lecturers. He expressed that, in particular, it was felt that we should offer our thanks to Andrew who had found the time not only to establish the course, develop the elective modules on topics the undergraduates particularly wanted to cover, but also to assist each of the students individually during the course. Mantey emphasized, "There was probably not one of us that at some low point at one o'clock in the morning working on assignments had not thought of lapsing, however a few words from Phil A. to give us some direction and we were up and going again." Following the presentation it was one occasion that Andrew was found to be speechless! Following this, Mellor said a few words to acknowledge the support received from the graduates, partners and families, many of who were present, and without whom the course could not have been completed. Wong, Gerk and Caporale were unable to attend so there was a toast to these absent friends and colleagues.
The MScLE degree program is a three-to-five year course of study that is primarily completed as a distance-learning program. In addition to the course material and supplementary reading, it utilizes an Internet-based conference board to replicate classroom participation that would normally occur in a more traditional course of study. An extensive amount of e-mail and telephone contact between students and faculty is used. It is a self-learning program that requires the study of three compulsory modules on Lift Application Engineering, Codes and Standards, and Contract Management. Two elective modules selected from Component Applications, Hydraulic Systems, Control Systems, Microprocessor Applications and Utilization of Materials are also required along with a compulsory completion of a dissertation on a topic of the student's choice with approval from the UCN faculty. There is also the option to earn a MScLE diploma by completing the course material without the completion of the dissertation.
At present, in addition to the nine engineers that have completed the program, there are 47 students enrolled in the program and at various stages of completion. Since the program's inception, there have been between 12 to 25 students entering the program each year and currently an additional dozen are waiting to begin the course in the fall of this year. Prerequisites for enrollment in the program are the completion of a bachelor's level engineering degree or a combination of an equivalent amount of engineering studies and lift industry experience. Those who may be interested in participating in the program can contact the UCN MScLE faculty at phone: (44) 01604-735500 or e-mail at phillip.andrew@northampton.ac.uk.
Of the nine successful students, four have been involved at various levels with LEIA distance-learning course. Introduced in 1983, it has been successful in attracting an approximate average of 400 students per year. It was this course, and the manner in which it is studied, that created the catalyst for more in-depth study of the equipment with which the industry is involved. The course covers lifts, escalators, stairlifts, health and safety and commercial interest, all with Building Trades Employers' Association (BTEC) accreditation. Even with the success of the BTEC program, LEIA and UCN have not sat on their laurels.
For those students starting this academic year, the newly introduced Unit 1 "Introduction to Lift Technology" was launched. This covers the basics of the lift installation for both traction and hydraulic equipment. Updating the course should carry on for a few more years to create a more structured approach to learning lift technology. The industry is now able to offer a route of personal development right through the academic spectrum starting with the distance-learning course and finalizing with the MScLE. Work is taking place on the development of a bridging program to link the two courses making the route to learning more accessible.
MSc LIFT ENGINEERING GRADUATE STUDIES Following are the dissertations that were published by the MSc Lift Engineering graduates along with their contact information.
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