Francis Small (engineer)

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Francis Small

CNZM
Born
Arthur Francis Small

(1946-02-26)26 February 1946
Palmerston North, New Zealand
Died5 March 2021(2021-03-05) (aged 75)
Wellington, New Zealand
Alma materUniversity of Auckland
Scientific career
ThesisHydroelastic excitation of cylinders (1971)
Doctoral advisorArved Raudkivi
82nd
National president of Scouting New Zealand

Arthur Francis Small

Asia-Pacific Regional Scout Committee.[1]

Early life

Small was born in 1946,[2][3] He studied civil engineering at the University of Auckland, completing a Master of Engineering degree in 1969,[4] and a PhD in 1971.[5] His doctoral thesis, supervised by Arved Raudkivi, was titled Hydroelastic excitation of cylinders.[6]

Career

Joining the New Zealand Railways Department in 1964, Small rose to become managing director of New Zealand Rail in 1990 and its successor, Tranz Rail.[7] He retired from Tranz Rail in 2000 and was replaced, as managing director, by Michael Beard in May of that year.[8] Small was then vice-chairman for some time.[9] For his services to the transport industry and the community, he was appointed a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the 2000 New Year Honours.[10]

In 1999, Small was appointed by the National Government as one of three people on the high-profile INCIS inquiry into the failed computer system that had been ordered by New Zealand Police in the 1990s. Early in 2000 after a change to the Labour Government, the other two members were dispensed with and Small conducted the enquiry by himself.[11][12] Small's report on INCIS was published in November 2000.[13]

Small was a Distinguished Fellow of the

Institution of Professional Engineers New Zealand (IPENZ) and was the group's president in 1996–97.[3][7] In 2013, he received an individual award from the Railway Technical Society of Australasia for outstanding service to New Zealand's rail industry.[7] In 2015, he founded the Francis Small Scholarship at the University of Auckland, available to civil, electrical, mechanical or chemical engineering students.[14]

In 1999, Small was awarded the 278th

Bronze Wolf, the only distinction of the World Organization of the Scout Movement, awarded by the World Scout Committee for exceptional services to world scouting.[15]

Small died in Wellington on 5 March 2021.[16]

References

  1. ^ Page 17 World Organization of the Scout Movement – Triennial Report 1996–1999
  2. .
  3. ^
    Institution of Professional Engineers New Zealand
    . Retrieved 12 April 2017.
  4. ^ "Library search". University of Auckland. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
  5. ^ "Library search". University of Auckland. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
  6. ^ Small, A.F. (1971). Hydroelastic excitation of cylinders (PDF). University of Auckland. p. ii. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
  7. ^ a b c "2013 Dr. Francis Small". Railway Technical Society of Australasia. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
  8. ^ Lee, Yoke Har (30 June 2000). "Boss who took Tranz Rail up a gear". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
  9. ^ "Rail shares in limelight as port eyes stake". The New Zealand Herald. 30 June 2000. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
  10. ^ "New Year honours list 2000". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 31 December 1999. Retrieved 18 August 2019.
  11. ^ Young, Audrey (30 June 2000). "David Caygill gets 'just' $1500 a day to head electricity inquiry". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
  12. ^ Bingham, Eugene (30 June 2000). "Fears of $7m bill for Incis inquiry". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
  13. ^ "Widespread blame for Incis fiasco". The New Zealand Herald. 17 November 2000. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
  14. ^ "Francis Small Scholarship". University of Auckland. Retrieved 11 April 2017.
  15. ^ "List of recipients of the Bronze Wolf Award". World Organization of the Scout Movement. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
  16. ^ "Arthur Small death notice". New Zealand Herald. 8 March 2021. Retrieved 9 March 2021.