Professor Karen Holford CBE FREng
Renishaw has announced the appointment of Professor Karen Holford CBE FREng as Non-executive Director.
The UK-founded engineering firm welcomed Professor Holford to its Board of Directors in September, in addition to its Audit, Nomination and Remuneration Committees.
Professor Holford currently serves as Chief Executive and Vice-Chancellor at Cranfield University and brings over four decades of experience in the sector including engineering, technical management and governance. Professor Holford has also previously helped to address a lack of diversity in organisations by challenging perceptions and working with underrepresented groups.
“We are delighted to welcome Karen to the Board,” said Sir David McMurtry, Executive Chairman at Renishaw. “She has a wealth of engineering and R&D experience, bringing vital skills to the business.”
Professor Holford began her engineering career at Rolls Royce as an Undergraduate Apprentice, graduating from Cardiff University with a BEng (Hons) in Mechanical Engineering. She returned to academia to pursue a passion for research, gaining a PhD in Materials Science/Acoustic Emission. She continued her interest in research and development in industry at AB Electronic Products, eventually becoming a senior engineer leading a large mechanical design team.
Professor Holford then returned to academia, specialising in industry-led teaching, research and development and progressing to Professor of Mechanical Engineering. She served in leadership roles such as Head of School of Engineering, Pro Vice-Chancellor of Physical Sciences and Engineering, and spent 5 years as Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Cardiff University. Holford is a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering and in 2017, received a CBE for services to engineering and the advancement of women in engineering.
Earlier this year, Renishaw celebrated its 50-year anniversary, dating back to the creation of a prototype touch-trigger probe for co-ordinate measuring machines (CMMs), through to the company's investment in metal additive manufacturing in 2011, to today where the company is gearing up for the next generation of AM technologies. Speaking to TCT about the company's vision for what's next, Louise Callanan, Director of Additive Manufacturing at Renishaw said: “Our strap line is ‘apply innovation’ and I think it's definitely more than just a strap line. It's something that's completely embedded within the company and it gives us that ability to challenge the status quo, to always be pushing technology innovations forward and really looking at the future in terms of the long term.”
