Edinburgh Leonardo’s engineer wins Institute of Physics’ national ‘Apprentice Award’

A young engineer working at Leonardo - the Capital’s leading aerospace engineering firm - has scooped a top prize at a prestigious event.

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Lewis Liston bagged the Apprentice Award at the Institute of Physics awards, which celebrate physicists at every stage of their career, from those just starting out to those at the peak of their professions.

This latest award follows the 22-year-old’s success at the Edinburgh Evening News Apprentice Awards, where he clinched the ‘Edinburgh Apprentice of the Year’ prize.

Lewis Liston

Speaking to the paper, Mr Liston said: “I got a national 5 qualification in Physics and although I didn’t study it at a higher level, it gave me a great foundation for my engineering role.

“I feel physics supports me in my job, as it allows me to make improvements to our technology.

“If school students knew how much they could use physics in the real world, it might make them want to learn more about the subject.

“Having knowledge of physics is a great asset to take into your working life, as it is relevant to most day-to-day engineering challenges.”

The IoP awarding panel stated that Mr Liston had been recognised for his outstanding contribution and achievements during his apprenticeship journey, as well as his continued career development within industrial engineering. This has included supporting Leonardo through complex simulations and data analysis of production systems.

Mr Liston has already applied his knowledge of physics in his daily work at Leonardo, including a project focused on lasers.

He worked closely with suppliers and Leonardo’s technicians to create a suite of videos training customers on related processes that are now a permanent feature of the business due to their success.

Mr Liston said: “Taking an innovative approach meant we could share knowledge with our customers remotely, so I want to keep developing those skills by creating new solutions.”

The talented engineer has now been promoted to a role as a Project Leader and in addition to his professional achievements, he has worked as a STEM (science, technology, engineering, maths) Ambassador to encourage budding engineers across Edinburgh.

Head of apprentice management UK at Leonardo Deborah Soley said: “We are extremely proud of Lewis and to receive such recognition from the IoP is well deserved, reflecting his achievements and the outstanding contribution he has made to Leonardo.”

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