ACEI Honours John Purcell

The Association of Engineers of Ireland has awarded John Purcell of Varming Consulting Engineers honorary membership of ACEI to mark his recent retirement from practice and in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the profession of engineering in Ireland over his long career as a consulting engineer.

John Purcell became a registered member of ACEI in 1979 and served the Association in many different capacities including as Honorary Secretary, Chairman of ACEI’s M&E Sub-Committee and Chairman of the ACEI Fees Committee, representing ACEI in Fee negotiations with the Government’s National Prices Committee.

John was a prominent member of the ACEI Organising Committee for the FIDIC (International Federation of Consulting Engineers) General Assembly held in Dublin in 1988 which was attended by senior international engineering figures from all around the globe.

John was the ACEI delegate for many years to the meetings of CEDIC (European Committee of Consulting Engineers of the Common Market) and of EFCA (European Federation of Engineering Consultancy Associations).

John was installed as ACEI President in 1994. As ACEI President, John served as a member of the Construction Industry Council and led the ACEI delegation, which attended the FIDIC General Assembly in Sydney, Australia in September 1994.

In 2019, John was nominated by ACEI to participate in the Irish Life & Lore Oral History Project and contributed to an audio record of career memories, as recalled by prominent members of the Irish Academy of Engineering, Engineers Ireland and the Association of Consulting Engineers of Ireland.