In celebration of its 70th year in the UK, Bechtel has donated an additional £50,000 to the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) for its Launch Scholarship programme. The Launch Scholarship supports engineering students, degree apprentices and apprentices who have faced financial challenges or personal obstacles. Bechtel’s donation will support at least eleven students every year for the duration of their education.
The donation adds to the £680,000 that Bechtel has gifted to the IET for its Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) for educational outreach over the past decade.
Sir Julian Young, IET President said: “Bechtel has been a valued partner of the IET for almost a decade, including our founding sponsor for the FIRST LEGO League. This year’s additional donation will enable us to support even more young people on their academic or apprenticeship path into engineering.
“We thank Bechtel for its continued support of the next generation as they each pursue their dreams.”
John Williams Bechtel UK and Ireland managing director said: “Engineering is a fulfilling career that helps to tackle some of the world’s biggest challenges, including diversifying our energy supply and achieving net zero and we need people from varied backgrounds to help us find the best solutions.
“We hope that this support will remove some of the obstacles that talented people can face in earning the qualifications needed to join our industry.”
Bechtel has supported the IET since 2013, including as its founding supporter of the FIRST LEGO League competition that enables young people between the ages of 4-16 years old to develop STEM skills through hands-on learning.
100,000 children have participated in the UK programme with over 15,500 children participating in 2020-21 competition. Bechtel also supports FIRST programmes in Australia, Chile, and the US.
Bechtel’s 70th year in the UK coincides with Her Majesty the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee and earlier this year it celebrated the opening of a new railway named in her honour – the Elizabeth Line, through central London.
The company’s global infrastructure business is headquartered in the UK, from which it has directly supported projects across the UK, Ireland, Europe, Africa, and the Middle East, on projects that accelerate progress, create access and opportunity, build a path to net zero and protect people and our planet so that future generations thrive.
