The Institute has announced the 2011 winners of its Medal and Prizes. The premier award winners are listed below.

• Bessemer Gold Medal: Ian Christmas MIMMM, Director General of the Worldsteel Association. He has been instrumental in promoting the economic importance, value and relevance of steel to the modern world. He sought to unite the steel industry so that it can better react to important issue, for example, by attracting leading Chinese steel companies to join the Association. This has enabled a better understanding of the country's effect on steel prices and profitability.

• Sir Andrew Bryan: Norman Riley IEng HonFIMMM, Senior Director of Davis Derby Ltd. Riley joined the Institute under its former guise as the Association of Mining Electrical and Mining Mechanical Engineers (AMEMME), as a student member in the 1950s. Riley was on the IOM3 Council as the northeast representative and served on the Local Affairs Board.

• Chapman Medal: Professor Serena Best CEng FIMMM, University of Cambridge. She is a world-leading researcher in using calcium phosphates as bioceramics. Best is interested in transferring research into applications, such as improving bone repair in orthopaedic applications. She represents the UK in several European projects, such as NEWBONE, which is researching biocomposite prosthesis. 

• Futers Gold Medal: Professor John Monhemius CEng FIMMM. Monhemius has over 40 years' experience in academic and industrial R&D in hydrometallurgy and environmental control in mining processes. Monhemius is world renowned for his teaching at the former Royal School of Mines, where he rose to Dean. He is Chair of the Institute's Mineral Processing & Extractive Metallurgy division, and consequently Chairs the International Mining and Minerals Association.

• Gold Medal: Professor Allan Matthews CEng FIMMM, The University of Sheffield. During his 35-year career in surface engineering, he has been instrumental in transferring laboratory-based technologies to industry. Matthews established the UK Research Centre in Surface Engineering, which has developed coatings and surface treatments that are widely used in industry. 

• Griffith Medal and Prize: Professor David Hayhurst FREng FIMMM from the School of Mechanical, Aerospace and Civil Engineering at The University of Manchester. He is renowned for his understanding of the mechanics of materials, and for pioneering techniques that led to the study of computational continuum damage mechanics being recognised in its own right. 

• The Colin Humphreys' Education Awards: Professor Paul O'Brien CEng FIMMM, The University of Manchester. He presented the chemistry of copper to over 1,500 children, in the UK and Singapore, from 1984-1998. Following this work, he devised a nanomaterials outreach lecture, ‘How Small Can You Get', which led to an invitation to become the British Association Chemistry President in 2003. 

• Local Society of the Year for less than 30 average attendance: South Wales Materials Association (SWMA). The society has turned round its fortunes after facing closure in 2008. Its events programme has been put together with clear consideration for the needs of stakeholders, and attendance at meetings has significantly increased. 

• Local Society of the Year for 30 or more average attendance: The Mining Institute of Scotland (MIS). The society was particularly noted for the large geographical area it covers, making good use of video conferencing to link up members in Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Paisley. The society is thriving, with a good mix of social and industrial events, and growing – last year its membership increased by almost 10%. 

• Medal for Excellence: Dr John Ashton FIMMM, Chief Geologist at Tara Mines. As part of the in-house geological team at Tara, he was responsible for organising researchers on topics such as age dating and isotopic studies. Publishing this knowledge has advanced the understanding of carbonate-hosted base metal deposits. Ashton used this geological awareness to help improve grade control and resource estimation protocols.

• Platinum Medal: Professor Tony Cheetham FRS FIMMM, the Goldsmith's Professor of Materials Science at Cambridge University. His interests lie with the synthesis and characterisation of novel inorganic and hybrid materials and their applications. Major breakthroughs include discovering new catalysts based on zeolitic nickel phosphates and the design of phosphors for solid-state lighting.

• Silver Medal: Dr Finn Giuliani, a Lecturer in Structural Ceramics at Imperial College London. His research focuses on high temperature small-scale deformation in brittle material. The work is of interest to industry in terms of ceramics coatings used in the metal cutting industry. He has developed novel transmission electron microscopy and sample preparation methods to allow the properties of these materials to be measured near their operating temperatures (up to 800°C). 

Recipients of The International Award (formerly the Overseas Award) and Prince Philip Award are yet to be confirmed.

Details of all other award winners can be found on the 2011 award winners page.