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Willie Howson, ICME National President 2008-2009

Willie Howson has been a member of the Institute since 1990. During this period he has been a Member of the Scottish Branch Council, Branch President and at present he is the Branch Secretary. He has also been an active National Council Member since 1997, serving on several committees.

Willie is the Foundry Manager at George Taylor & Co (Hamilton) Ltd having been with the company for 20 years. His background is in patternmaking where he worked in a jobbing shop for over 20 years.

Here he outlines his hopes and priorities for his year in office:

Number one on his wish list as National President, is Branch Membership, as he is an ardent supporter of the ICME regional branches. Willie believes the Institute needs the Branches and, although the staff at Head Office can and do take advantage of new technology to keep Members updated on what is going on in both the Institute and the industry, he feels strongly that members need to communicate with each other at Branch level and on a personal level. He explains, “It is in this way that our members are able to get to know others in the industry throughout the UK, if not the world. We all, as Members, at sometime use this knowledge to help us for problem solving and in the running of successful businesses”.

Keen to attract new Members

Willie, like his predecessor Peter, is keen to attract new Members to join the Institute and realises that as the Industry is now attracting some young blood, we also need to attract them into membership of the Institute. Tom Paterson, Past National President, as most will know, has been visiting companies and universities since October last year promoting the benefits of the Institute and raising awareness. Tom, an experienced salesman, is the first to recognise that it was easer to sell furnaces than to get people to commit to joining an Institute. However he is being successful and is getting new Members into membership of ICME. Keep up the good work Tom!

Willie was elected as President at his Branch Weekend Conference at Peebles in May, where he was presented with the chain of office. As he thanked the members for their support at the Conference, he also thanked Peter Nix for the encouragement that he had given during the preceding 2 years. “Peter has been an excellent ambassador for the Institute and I hope that I can keep up the good work which has gone before. I am also looking forward to working alongside Senior Vice President Dr William Griffiths and Junior Vice President Patrick Helly in continuing to take ICME forward.”

Endeavoring to promote the Institute

As Willie attends Branch gatherings during his year in office he will be endeavouring to promote the Institute to the guests, as this in general is where most non-members come together.

Willie is aware that the Institute is facing challenges this year, particularly regarding the funding of the Institute due to the dramatic fall in world investments. As he explains, “I feel that it is therefore of utmost importance that we be seen to be a forward moving Institute, not stuck in the last Century. We must continue to move forward and promote the Institute and the industry to the world!”

Peter Nix - ICME National President 2007/8.

Peter Nix has successfully steered The Mottram Group to its strong position as a quality supplier of a range of metals and alloys to the foundry industry. Peter has been actively involved with the Institute for many years, initially as part of the Chesterfield and Sheffield Branch. He was instrumental in the organisation and success of last year’s World Foundry Congres, hosted by ICME.

As a major supplier to the cast metals industry Peter has a detailed understanding of the industry and its needs and he has worked tirelessly during his senior and junior vice years to ‘bridge the gap’ and develop membership to its full potential.

Peter Nix was elected ICME national president at the Institute’s AGM in May 2007. Receiving the ‘chain of office’ from immediate past president Barrie Williams, Peter said: ‘I have had a lot of sound advice from the past presidents over the past two years, since accepting the role of junior vice president, and I would like to thank them for their continued support.’
Peter is particularly pleased to have worked closely with Barrie Williams and is full of praise for the legacy Barrie has left him, ‘I would like to thank Barrie for his professionalism and his efforts’, he said.
During his own presidential year, Peter has a clear and focussed objective. He enthused: ‘I want to increase membership – that is what it is all about.’
He is particularly keen to attract younger people into membership, stating: ‘We need a more youthful attitude and we need the ideas that younger people generate; they will bring a different perspective and will help us develop an institute that is sustainable and successful in the future.’
With a successful business attitude, Peter is eager to act upon his words and is quick to realise that objectives need to be backed up with focussed plans. He said: ‘Initially I want to make sure that the ICME is seen as the first ‘port of call’ for any cast metals related enquiry. People should come to us first and we must have the ability to satisfy their needs and give them the appropriate information, or at the very least point them in the right direction’.

Peter is ‘looking forward’ to the challenge the role of ICME national president brings and said: ‘The industry has been good to me over the years, I have met a lot of genuine and talented people and I relish the opportunity to put something back into the industry.

‘I will give the best I can to encourage people to join the ICME and, alongside my fellow officers, I will work hard to address the issues of major concern to the organisation.’