Professor Sunil Maharaj, Dean of Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment and IT, was recently awarded the South African Institute of Electrical Engineers (SAIEE) 2015 Engineering Excellence Award at its Annual SAIEE Banquet and Awards Function.

This award is sponsored by Doble Engineering and is awarded to an Electrical or Electronic Engineer who is a member of the SAIEE that has excelled in electrical engineering. The award recognizes an individual for their outstanding and dedicated contribution to furthering the growth and development of the community and the SAIEE in its works of supporting the Electrical Engineering Profession.

The SAIEE has a membership of almost 7000 and is dedicated to the interest of professional Electrical and Electronic Engineering in South Africa. Members are professionally engaged in the full range of engineering activities, including academic research, manufacturing, electronics, telecommunications, measurement and control, mining, and power infra-structural services. They make meaningful contributions to the quality of life of the community and to the steady advancement of technology.

The South African Institute of Electrical Engineers strives to be a leading and respected learned society of Electrical Engineers through:

• Promoting electrical science and its applications for the benefit of its members and the Southern African community.
• Close contact with appropriate national and international organizations.
• Recognizing achievements by advancement of individual members to higher grades of membership within the Institute and thereby enhancing the status of the profession.
• Being apolitical and non-discriminatory.

This is the first time that such an award has been bestowed on a University academic.