Wed, 14 October, 2026
We were delighted to welcome around 100 Professional Members of The Welding Institute to our Annual Members’ Day 2026 at our headquarters near Cambridge, UK on 13 October 2026.
The event took the theme of ‘Building Tomorrow's Capability: Supporting The Industrial Strategy,’ bringing together Professional and Industrial Members along with employers, educators, technology providers, policymakers and industry leaders to explore the future capabilities needed to support the UK's industrial ambitions.
Success depends upon not just technology and investment in evolving areas such as manufacturing, energy, defence and infrastructure, but also the development of a highly skilled, adaptable and resilient welding and joining workforce.
With this aim in mind, the morning programme examined the capabilities needed to maintain the UK’s competitiveness in an increasingly complex global environment.
Speakers from industry, government, education and technology shared their expertise to provide perspectives on workforce development, automation, technical education and the role of collaboration in strengthening national capability.
Among those presenting on the day were TWI Chief Technology Quality Assurance Officer, Paul Woollin who spoke on ‘Welding and UK Manufacturing Resilience,’ and industry speaker Martyn Fletcher who presented on ‘Future Welding Skills: Unlocking Our Potential.’
KUKA Systems UK’s Managing Director and Chief Technology Officer (CTO) Mike Russell offered insights into ‘Intelligent Automation Solutions’ before TWI’s Director of Technology, Malcolm Lee delivered a presentation titled,’ From Research to Industrial Impact: How Collaborative R&D Strengthens UK Capability.’
The morning presentations were rounded out by Jeff Baker from Enginuity, who spoke of ‘Building Stronger Pathways Into Industry,’ before Lee George of IACS presented a case study followed by a panel discussion and Q&A session.
The discussions were designed to consider how welding professionals, supervisors, inspectors, engineers, researchers and training providers all contribute to building the skills ecosystem required to support future growth. But rather than focusing solely on workforce shortages, the topics took a more proactive route by exploring practical opportunities to enhance capability across the profession.
The afternoon opened with an awards presentation, with The Welding Institute President, Katherine Bennett presenting the following awards:
- Continuous Learning and Development: Aaron Kirkbride
- Loyal Service Award: Peter Mudge and Brian Bell
- Richard Weck Award: Mark Sutcliffe and Calum Hoyle
- TWI Commendation: Jerry Gooden
- Richard Dolby Award: Jack Clipston
- Special Recognition Award: Gene Mathers
TWI Section Manager and Institute Technical Group Coordinator, Kate Franklin then provided an introduction to the three interactive workshops that had been designed to identify practical actions that can strengthen the sector's future workforce.
With a focus on broadening access to welding and engineering careers, improving education-to-employment pathways and supporting the development and retention of skilled professionals, each workshop was created to generate tangible recommendations and establish working groups that will continue to develop and implement ideas over the following 12 months.
The workshops were as follows:
- Broadening Participation in Welding, Fabrication, and Engineering (Mel Stewart, Admel Ltd)
- What Should CPD Look Like for Members? (Jason Gregory, TWI Ltd)
- Strategic Member Advisory Group (Invitation Only – Paul Woollin, TWI Ltd)
The day concluded with closing remarks from Paul Woollin, rounding off another successful event and providing a platform for shaping how industry, education and professional institutions can work collectively to build the workforce and capabilities needed for the future.
We would like to thank everyone who worked so hard to make the Members’ Day a success and, of course, also all of those who took the time to attend.