CIBSE North East hosted the 2026 CIBSE YEN Global Gala and Conference in Newcastle last month, showing off the region’s engineering history and heritage, writes CIBSE YEN North East chair Mark Dixon.
The two-day event kicked off with a cultural tour, including an exploration of Victorian tunnels beneath the streets. These included the tunnel that carried coal from the Spital Tongues colliery to the River Tyne.
Grundfos hosted a tour of its pump factory followed by a trip to the open-air Beamish museum. The Gala took place at Newcastle United’s football stadium, St James’ Park.
The CIBSE YEN conference was held the next day at Alnwick Castle, an 11th-century estate widely recognised for its appearance in the Harry Potter films. Discussions focused on strengthening YEN’s global presence, achieving its goals and reaching more graduates and young engineering talent entering the industry.
Emma Hinch from CIBSE Ireland spoke about ‘meeting the person behind the engineer’, a theme consistent throughout the weekend.
The tour then moved to Cragside, the first house in the world to be lit by hydroelectricity, before the weekend concluded with a farewell dinner.
Being part of CIBSE YEN not only provides the chance to further your career and meet like-minded people, but to also make friends for life.
For more information on the CIBSE Young Engineers Awards visit: www.cibse.org/yen