Engineering Matters

Reby Media

Five times winner of the Publisher Podcast Awards, including Best Technology Podcast, Engineering Matters celebrates the work of engineers who use ingenuity, practicality, science, theory and determination to build a better world. In the UK alone 5.7million people work in engineering related enterprises from manufacturing and agriculture to construction and transportation. Their work ensures that the country has sustainable power supplies, better connectivity between cities, increasing efficiency in production processes; advanced manufacturing methods; and is embracing the digital transformations that include virtual modelling of our environment, and development of intelligent machines. Our episodes will examine the vital work of engineers using a mix of interviews, analysis and site visits.

  1. 4d ago

    #371 Revisited: Place is the Space for Growth

    How should local and regional leaders encourage investment in their communities? Around the world, cities struggle with a legacy of industrial decline. In England, devolution of planning policy to mayoral combined authorities has allowed for regions like Greater Manchester to outpace national growth. But within regions, local areas can themselves fall behind, and require a joined up approach to planning and investment. When this episode was first recorded in September 2024, the focus was on how places can unlock investment by understanding their own histories, strengths and opportunities. Today, as the debate around Britain’s infrastructure ambitions intensifies, and the former Mayor of Greater Manchester looks increasingly likely to become the next Prime Minister, the intentions of the government in this area are worthy of speculation. The infrastructure industry is not waiting, an open letter from leading infrastructure and construction organisations, including the Association for Consultancy has called on the next government to prioritise long-term infrastructure delivery and provide greater certainty for investment. Could the principles of Manchester transfer to the nation at large? Will infrastructure be a priority for the incoming government? Can the required investment be funded? The engineering sector waits to see. Guests Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester Susan Hinchliffe, Council Leader, Bradford City Council Tim Newns, MD, Levelling Up, Office for Investment, UK Department for International Trade Richard Robinson, CEO, UK and Europe, AtkinsRéalis John Rayson, MD for Northern Transformation, AtkinsRéalis Resources For the open letter from the ACE to Andy Burnham, click here The post #371 Revisited: Place is the Space for Growth first appeared on Engineering Matters.

  2. Jul 2

    #370 The Forgotten Arsenal of the Ocean: Clearing Dumped Munitions

    At the end of the Second World War, millions of tonnes of unwanted explosives and weapons were disposed of at sea. For decades, these dumped munitions lay hidden beneath the waves as time and tide passed over them. Now 80 years past that mass-dumping, corrosion has begun to expose the explosive chemicals inside these weapons casings. Lead, mercury and TNT breakdown products have begun to be detected in fish stocks throughout the affected waters. At the same time, the growth of offshore infrastructure such as wind farms is increasing the need to understand and manage hazards on the seabed. But dumped munitions are not the same problem as unexploded ordnance (UXO). Instead of finding isolated dangerous objects, engineers face vast areas containing thousands of items, requiring new approaches to detection, removal, containment and disposal. This is a question of new technologies, new approaches, and still yet, convincing people of the scale of the problem. Guests Torsten Frey, post-doctoral researcher, Geomar Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel Peter Nieuwveld, Solution Owner UXO Risk Mitigation, Fugro Jennifer Yun, New Business Manager, Fugro Resources Sign up for the CAMMera & MMinE-SwEEPER Newsletter: http://bit.ly/3PDUcPj  Visit JPI Oceans Knowledge Portal for Munitions in the Sea: http://munitionsinthesea.eu/  Check out Munitions in the Sea Projects booklet: Munitions_booklet_October_2025.pdf Check out UNOC 2025 Munitions in the Sea Factsheets: https://tinyurl.com/2x35pwwu For the Engineering Matters episode on UXO mitigation, click here Photo credit: Lukas Schröder Partner Fugro is the world’s leading geo-data specialist, collecting and analysing comprehensive information about the Earth and the structures built upon it. Through integrated data acquisition, analysis and advice, Fugro unlocks insights from geo-data to help clients design, build and operate their assets in a safe, sustainable and efficient manner. The post #370 The Forgotten Arsenal of the Ocean: Clearing Dumped Munitions first appeared on Engineering Matters.

  3. May 21

    #367 Nature Based Solutions: The End of Grey Engineering

    For decades, infrastructure design has relied on ‘grey’ engineering: concrete flood walls, steel structures and rigid systems designed to control the environment. But with climate pressures intensifying, engineers are increasingly looking to work with nature rather than against it. This episode looks at the growing role of nature-based solutions in building climate-resilient infrastructure that can help manage flood risk, restore ecosystems, improve biodiversity and create more resilient communities. Nature itself should be considered critical infrastructure and an entire generation educated to undertake work differently to that which has been done before. Guests Hannah Joyce, Senior Fluvial Geomorphologist, AtkinsRéalis Laura Liddaman, Associate Director of Nature Based Solutions, AtkinsRéalis Resources To access the paper discussed in this episode, a forward-looking vision for the role of nature-based solutions in future-resilient infrastructure, click here Partner AtkinsRéalis is a world-leading professional services and project management company dedicated to engineering a better future for our planet and its people. Employing over 37,000 people across Canada, the US and Latin America, the UK and Ireland, and Asia, the Middle East, and Australia, AtkinsRéalis creates sustainable solutions that connect people, data and technology to transform the world’s infrastructure and energy systems The post #367 Nature Based Solutions: The End of Grey Engineering first appeared on Engineering Matters.

  4. Apr 9

    #364b Environment Champion – Engineering Matters Awards gold winner

    In this episode, we tell the story of MERMAID from the Wildlife Conservation Society, this year’s Engineering Matters Awards Environment Gold Champion. Emily Darling, director for coral reef conservation at WCS, describes why scientists need better ways of sharing coral data, and how MERMAID helps them do so. Rita Bento, a researcher at NYU Abu Dhabi joins the episode, in an interview recorded in January 2026, to describe the work the university has been doing with regional partners to map coral reefs in the Persian-Arabian Gulf. And Angie Braithwaite, co-founder of Blue Alliance, describes how the nonprofit organization is using MERMAID to understand the effectiveness of marine protected areas. MERMAID allows the scientists to more easily map and understand the world’s coral reefs, helping identify those that are more resilient to climate change. Its latest update adds more, using AI to speed up the slow work of identifying species in reefs. Guests Emily Darling, director for coral reef conservation, WCS Rita Bento, researcher, NYU Abu Dhabi Angie Braithwaite, co-founder, Blue Alliance Category sponsorSupport for this episode and the Environment Champion Category comes from FuturePlus. FuturePlus helps businesses measure, manage and improve their environmental and social impact – with a live ESG platform and a named expert to guide you through it. Three hundred businesses are already Impact Certified, from hospitality to engineering. Find out more at future-plus.co.uk The post #364b Environment Champion – Engineering Matters Awards gold winner first appeared on Engineering Matters.

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About

Five times winner of the Publisher Podcast Awards, including Best Technology Podcast, Engineering Matters celebrates the work of engineers who use ingenuity, practicality, science, theory and determination to build a better world. In the UK alone 5.7million people work in engineering related enterprises from manufacturing and agriculture to construction and transportation. Their work ensures that the country has sustainable power supplies, better connectivity between cities, increasing efficiency in production processes; advanced manufacturing methods; and is embracing the digital transformations that include virtual modelling of our environment, and development of intelligent machines. Our episodes will examine the vital work of engineers using a mix of interviews, analysis and site visits.

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