14. November 2018
On Tuesday 23 October, Knut Aaneland was voted “Årets ildsjel”, a prize the Norwegian Association of Consulting Engineers (RIF) gives to an engineer who has shown exceptional commitment. This was barely a week after Morten Engen received the Norwegian Concrete Association’s R&D prize. Earlier in the month, Cathrine Mørch was one of three nominees for the Young Consulting Engineer of the Year prize, also awarded by RIF. Last year’s winner, Multiconsult employee Stanislas Merlet, was named the European Young Consulting Engineer of the Year in September.
We can also mention Nora Horland, who in October received a prize from the Norwegian Society of HVAC Engineers for her Master’s thesis, that Multiconsult and Betonmasthære won Bygg21’s “Best practice” prize and that the consulting engineering firms working on the Tønsberg project for the Vestfold Hospital Trust won a prize for their use of technology. Last, but not least, the E6 highway between Frya and Sjoa was awarded the 2018 beautiful roads award right at the end of October. That is a project that the Multiconsult Group has been heavily involved in.
A virtuous circle
“As a relative newcomer to the organisation, I’m impressed with the commitment and expert knowledge shown by staff at Multiconsult,” says acting Chief Human Resources Officer Ingela Moene.
She adds that highly skilled people attract other highly skilled people. That’s why Multiconsult believes in giving individuals the opportunity to develop, including by focusing strongly on innovation and interdisciplinary collaboration.
“I also get the clear impression that Multiconsult puts more resources into internal training than is normal in the industry”, adds Moene.
A model for digitalisation
Cathrine Mørch, a technology manager and expert on digitalisation, was one of three talented young engineers nominated for the RIF award Young Consulting Engineer of the Year 2018. Her commitment to digitalisation and applying technology is not restricted to Multiconsult, and it means that people in the construction and property industries really listen to her.
“Cathrine has been involved in projects within all of Multiconsult’s business areas, and she is capable of spotting opportunities across disciplines and markets. She sees the big picture, including what adds value and ensures sustainable development for customers, business partners, Multiconsult and society. Thanks to her enthusiasm and good interpersonal skills, she is a sought after resource in the fields of digitalisation and the application of technology both within and outside her company. Cathrine’s expertise and personality make her an outstanding consultant and the kind of technical expert that the consulting engineering industry needs more of,” according to the nomination committee.
A solar star
In September, last year’s winner of the Norwegian prize for young engineers, solar energy consultant Stanislas Merlet, was voted Young Professional of the Year 2018 at the prestigious EFCA awards. It was the first time ever that a consultant at a Norwegian company had won the prize.
The jury described him as an industry trailblazer in an important and rapidly developing discipline. Thanks to his breadth and depth of knowledge, Stanislas is helping to build up the expertise of the solar energy community, through lectures, courses and articles both in Norway and internationally.
“It was awesome to win, both for me and the solar energy market. The prize is a reflection of the doors that Multiconsult has opened for me. Being able to draw on expertise from the whole company has made it easier for me to work on what I find most exciting, which is using traditional technology in new ways in a variety of markets. In just a few years we have become the market leader in Scandinavia for solar power. My colleagues and I spend a lot of time on research and development, so I hope this acknowledgement will also result in more projects in Norway and the rest of the world”, says Merlet.
Exceptional commitment
Knut Aaneland, a senior consulting engineer at Multiconsult, is the head of RIF’s expert group on health, safety and the working environment. This is one of the most active and productive expert groups within RIF, and on 23 October the association awarded Aaneland the title of “Årets ildsjel” – a recognition that goes to someone who has shown exceptional commitment.
“Under his leadership, the group has amongst other things developed an innovative guide to incorporating health and safety considerations into the design phase. The guide has been widely welcomed by the construction industry, and is now used as the foundation for major public procurement processes. Knut has extensive experience of health and safety and liaison activities in the petroleum industry, and he has carried that experience with him into the construction and property industry, including through his key role representing RIF in the industry’s safety initiative”, according to the jury.
The concrete expert Engen
On 18 October, Morten Engen at Multiconsult’s section for Industry and Infrastructure was awarded the Norwegian Concrete Association’s R&D prize for 2018. He received the prize for his PhD thesis, which according to the jury perfectly demonstrated how research can be incorporated into and be exploited by a company’s day-to-day operations. The results have also been incorporated into teaching at NTNU, where Engen has a part-time position.
“Amongst other things, Morten has developed a nonlinear materials model for concrete that has already been successfully used in several designs. On account of his analytical skills and strong interest in the discipline, he is heavily engaged in most of the technical discussions within the field”, says Kjetil Slåttedalen, who is the Section Manager for concrete structures, which is part of the Industry and Infrastructure section in Oslo.
Innovative Holand
The day before Engen was honoured, Nora Holand received the Norwegian Society of HVAC Engineers’ prize for her Master’s thesis “The smell of puberty: Should the air volume per person be differentiated by user group?” The prize aims to promote research and development within HVAC engineering, and to support research projects and young, talented researchers who want to attend conferences.
“The winner of the HVAC prize submitted an exceptionally good Master’s thesis, worth a strong A grade. She has also found time to become a prominent media personality, particularly focusing on recruiting girls into science and technology subjects, and she has great communication skills”, said professor Mads Mysen at the awards ceremony held at OsloMet.