News Archive
IHE Annual Conference 2023
- Monday December 18, 2023
By IHE Council Member Jobert Fermilan IEng FIHE
The Institute of Highway Engineers held its annual conference on 8 November at the KIA Oval, entitled Highways Sector Resilience and Response – Learning lessons from extreme events in preparation for future challenges.
Attended by delegates from across the UK it was led by John Lamb, chair of the UK Road Leadership Group’s (UKRLG) Adaptation, Biodiversity and Climate Board and Hugh Deeming, independent consultant.
With extreme weather events becoming more frequent and intense, the need for resilience in our highway infrastructure couldn’t be more apparent. The presentations and discussions at this conference carried out in partnership with the UKRLG, have shed light on strategies to tackle this challenge head-on.
I’d like to extend my gratitude to the IHE for organising this and special thanks to John Lamb, for his leadership, and to Hugh Deeming for his valuable insights.
The international perspective brought by speakers from the USA, including Chris Engelbrecht of CSP, has added a global dimension to our understanding of highway resilience.
We were honoured to have several distinguished speakers at the conference such as Amanda Richards who serves as the LGTAG president, is a member of the UK Roads Board, and chairs the Road Condition Management Group.
Additionally, Ann Carruthers, the ADEPT vice president and chair of its Transport and Connectivity Board, chair of Midlands Highway Alliance, and a member of the Highways Sector Council, shared her insights.
David Porter, vice president of the Institution of Civil Engineers, chief highways engineer and head of the civil engineering profession for the Northern Ireland Department for Infrastructure, also gave us the benefit of his experience.