Competitions
Young Persons’ Lecture Competition
Sponsored by the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining, with support from The Worshipful Company of Armourers & Brasiers, the Young Persons' Lecture Competition invites students and professionals up to the age of 28 to deliver a short lecture on a materials-related subject. Candidates compete in a series of heats organised by local affiliated societies of the Institute, from which seven regional candidates are selected to compete in the national final.
The Young Persons’ World Lecture Competition (YPWLC) is an extension of the UK Young Persons' Lecture Competition - the winner of the UK national Young Persons' Lecture Competition goes on to represent the UK at the World Final which is held in a different location each year. YPWLC is organised by the Institute's Younger Members Committee and was first held in London in 2005.
Design Innovation in Plastics Competition
Established in 1985, the Design Innovation in Plastics Competition is the longest-running student plastics design competition in Europe and is co-organised by the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining and the Worshipful Company of Horners, an ancient City Livery Company that has forged strong links with the plastics industry.
Starpack has been running since 1960, and is the premier UK annual award scheme recognising innovation in packaging design and technology. Run by The Packaging Society, Starpack constitutes the UK packaging industry’s most prestigious awards, aiming to help raise packaging standards in the UK by rewarding and encouraging creativity. They are considered an integral part of the packaging industry, and the culmination of the Awards at the annual Packaging Industry Dinner is a highlight of the packaging industry calendar.
The Ultimate Bridge Competition
The Institute of Wood Science (IWSc) transferred all its activities to IOM3 in summer 2009, creating a new technical division called IWSc: The Wood Technology Society. Members of the former IWSc are keen to see wood and wood-based products promoted and used in schools and are willing to offer support to teachers to achieve this. The Ultimate Bridge Competition has been designed to bring wood and its uses to the front of the minds of secondary school pupils by getting them to research wood and wood-based products and use their results to design and perhaps construct a novel bridge structure.
RIBA President's Medals Student Awards
The Institute is delighted to partner with the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA), the British Plastics Federation (BPF), Corus and Pilkington to support the RIBA President’s Medals Student Awards and the winners of the scheme who we regard as champions of innovative usage of materials in building design. Each year, the winners and their tutors of the RIBA President’s Medals Awards in the Bronze (Part 1) and Silver (Part 2) medal categories win a year’s e-membership of IOM3, providing access to premium web content including a new materials resource section for students of building industries, IOM3 learned journals, and Materials World magazine.