Newport & Cardiff Materials Society (NCMS)

"He labours least and yet produces most who best cooperates"

NCMS was founded in 1934 as the Newport & District Metallurgical Society. It was one of the first to be affiliated to the (then) Iron and Steel Institute and continues to be very actively involved in the affairs of The Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining, both at local and national level.

In 2003, the society changed its name to "Newport and District Materials Society" to reflect the increasingly diverse range of materials based industry located in the area. The name was changed again to "Newport and Cardiff Materials Society in early 2021. This current name change reflects the progessive migration of the society from industrial locations in Newport to Cardiff University.

The society caters for the materials profession in the widest sense, but given the history of the South East Wales area there remains a strong steel influence. The programme of activities runs from October to May each year and contains a variety of events tailored to the Professional Development needs of the active members. We organise a series of lectures which are held monthly and selected to cover a wide range of topics with something to everyone. There is also a local heat of the IOM3 Young Persons' Lecture Competition and a popular annual dinner.

Everyone interested in the fascinating world of materials is welcome to join.

Tony Jones is awarded the Certificate of Outstanding Service for 2024

Alan Coombs presents Tony Jones with his Certificate of Outstanding Service. Alan says of Tony:

Tony Jones has been a staunch supporter of N&CMS (and NDMS) for some 40 years. He has been a committee member since the early 1990's and has held a range of positions. He has been President twice and organised the successful lecture programme for more than ten years. He has also been the webmaster and is currently the treasurer. He really is an invaluable asset to the Society.

He was deeply involved in the realignment of the Society to become first a materials society and then the migration to Cardiff ( NCMS) thus protecting the future with Tony rewriting the constitution. The Society won IOM3 small society of the year in 2016 which reflected this achievement

He has also been a frequent attendee at the Local Society Forum over the years and has provided valuable feedback.

Apart from his service to the N&CMS, he was a long term and active member of The Iron and Steel Society and chaired the organising committee for a very successful galvanising conference. He also sat on a working party looking at ways of attracting more young people to studying materials science in university. He has been a supporter and mentor of many young people on the road to professional qualifications as a senior manager in the steel industry.

He is a FIMM and in 2012 was awarded the Thomas Medal for his services to the iron and steel industry. We firmly believe Tony's unstinting service deserves recognition