SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

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Executive Council. Mr. A. S. D. Barrett was

Secretary General of the IOVST and IUVSTA

Councillor. Professor L. Holland served as

President of the Union during the period 1977-

1980. Professor D. P. Woodruff was Scientific

Director from 1992-1995 and President from

1998-2001. Professor J. S. Colligon was

Recording Secretary from 1986-1989 and

Secretary General from 1989-1998. Prof H. Leck

served as Recording Secretary 1989-1998; Dr

R. J. Reid was Recording Secretary 1998-2004

and then Secretary General during the period

2004-2013. David Sykes served as Recording

Secretary 2004-2016 being succeeded by

Deborah O’Connell in 2016.

Councillors have included Professors C. J. Todd,

D. A. King, D. P.Woodruff, J. H. Leck, R.W. Joyner,

M. McCoustra, and T Gans, Drs G. J. Davies,

R. J. Reid, D. E. Sykes and A. Shard. The BVC is

normally represented on all the Scientific Divisions

of the IUVSTA and plays a full and active part in

its work, including organising Conferences and

Workshops.

In 1970 the Council introduced into its calendar

a special lecture, the BVC Annual Address, to

be given annually by an outstanding worker in

vacuum science or an allied subject. The first

lecture was given by Professor L. Holland. In the

early 1970’s this annual lecture was presented at

a special meeting held in London and hosted by

one of the constituent bodies. Later, the format

was changed so that the lecture was presented at

several venues within the United Kingdom. More

recently, it has been given at a suitable major

national or international conference held in the UK.

In 1971 the Council, at the invitation of the

Directors of Pergamon Press, took over editorial

responsibility for the journal “Vacuum”. The

duties handed down included the appointment

of the Editor and his editorial advisors. The

council has been fortunate in its selection of

editors. The first was Professor J. Yarwood from

1971 to 1980, who was followed on retirement

by Professor J. S. Colligon (1981-1989) and,

subsequently, Dr R. K. Fitch. All were extremely

energetic in carrying out the general policy

established by the council and in developing

the International standing of the Journal. In

1995 Elsevier, who had taken over the publi-

cation of “Vacuum” from Pergamon, terminated

this agreement and its associated royalties.

During the period where royalties were received,

the income had allowed the BVC to give financial

support to postgraduate students in the UK to

enable them to attend scientific meetings both at

home and abroad.

To encourage the awareness of young scientists

and engineers of the subject, the Council instituted

in 1977 a prize to be presented each year to

a young scientist or engineer working in a UK

laboratory, adjudged to have presented the best

scientific paper in that year. In 1981 the Council

was pleased when Dr. C. R. Burch agreed to

allow his name to be attached to the prize in

recognition of his pioneering work in vacuum

science particularly in developing Apiezon oils

some 50 years earlier.

The years 1988-89 saw the institution of two

Prize Medals to be awarded by the BVC. In 1988

the BVC Medal and Prize was first awarded for

distinguished contributions to British scientific

research in the fields of vacuum science, surface

science, thin films or any related topic in which

vacuum science and engineering play an important

role. It was presented to Prof R H Williams at the

European Vacuum Conference held at Salford

in April 1988, immediately before the Annual

Address. It was also felt that the presenter of

the Annual Address should also receive a medal.

Consequently, the John Yarwood Medal was

instituted for this purpose and was first presented

in 1989 to Prof C T Campbell.

The Prizes were reordered in 2006 into a Junior

Prize and a Senior Prize. The recipient of the Junior

Prize receives the BVC Medal and C R Burch

Award (a cash award). The recipient of the Senior

Prize receives the Yarwood Medal and BVC Prize

(a cash award). Each Prize is normally awarded at

a suitable Conference in the UK pertinent to the

work for which the Prize winner has won it. Where

possible the winner of the Senior Prize delivers a

plenary lecture designated as the BVC Address.

The BVC has sponsored short courses on

vacuum and related topics over the years,

including very successful training courses on

Vacuum Technology, run by Drs Chambers, Fitch

and Halliday, which was first held in Glasgow

in March 1986 and has since been repeated

at various venues many times; more recently

Dr Reid has taken on this role. It also sponsors

conferences and workshops in the UK and

Ireland relevant to the fields of interest of BVC/

IUVSTA and will consider sponsoring IUVSTA

workshops abroad where a main organiser is

based in the UK.

Whilst the Officers of the Council are appointed on

a biennial basis, with the Chair and Vice Chair ser

ving a maximum of two consecutive terms, no

such restrictions apply to the Treasurer and

special note must be made of the service that

Dr R.J.Reid has given to the BVC in his role as

Treasurer from 1995 to date.

SUMMARY