Alfred Pippard
Personal information
Name	Alfred Pippard
Nationality	English
Birth date	6 April 1891
Birth place	Yeovil, Somerset
Date of death	November 2, 1969 (aged 78)
Place of death	Putney, London,
Education	University of Bristol
Work
Engineering Discipline	Civil, aeronautical
Institution memberships	Institution of Civil Engineers (president), Royal Society (fellow),
Significant projects	R100 and R101 airships

Alfred John Sutton Pippard MBE (6 April 1891 – 2 November 1969) was a British civil engineer and academic. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Events 46 BC - Julius Caesar defeats Caecilius Metellus Scipio and Marcus Porcius Cato in the Battle of Thapsus Year 1891 ( MDCCCXCI) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Yeovil (ˈjovɪl is a town in south Somerset, England, on the A30 and A37. Somerset ( or) is a county in south west England The County town is Taunton, which is in the south of the county Events 1570 - A Tidal wave in the North Sea devastates the coast from Holland to Jutland, killing more than 1000 Year 1969 ( MCMLXIX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Putney is a district of south-west London in the London Borough of Wandsworth. London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. the University (or derivatives but lower-case when referring to many universitiesor universities Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design construction and maintenance of the physical and naturally built Aerospace engineering is the branch of Engineering behind the design construction and science of Aircraft and Spacecraft. Founded on 2 January 1818, the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE is an independent Professional association, based in central London, The Royal Society of London for the Improvement of Natural Knowledge, known simply as The Royal Society, is a Learned society for science that was founded in 1660 WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British Order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by King George V. Events 46 BC - Julius Caesar defeats Caecilius Metellus Scipio and Marcus Porcius Cato in the Battle of Thapsus Year 1891 ( MDCCCXCI) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Events 1570 - A Tidal wave in the North Sea devastates the coast from Holland to Jutland, killing more than 1000 Year 1969 ( MCMLXIX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located A civil engineer is a person who practices Civil engineering, one of the many engineering professions ^[1] Pippard was the son of a carpenter and joiner and spent much of his early life helping his father on construction sites. A carpenter (builder is a skilled craftsman who performs carpentry - a wide range of Woodworking that includes constructing buildings, A Joiner differs from a Carpenter in that he cuts and fits joints in wood that do not use nails usually as a furniture maker Initially supposed to follow his father into the family business, Pippard instead decided to study for a bachelors degree in civil engineering at the University of Bristol, supporting himself with an Exhibition award. A bachelor's degree is usually an Undergraduate Academic degree awarded for a course or major that generally lasts for three four or in some cases and the University (or derivatives but lower-case when referring to many universitiesor universities At the universities of Dublin, Oxford and Cambridge and at Westminster School and Winchester College, an exhibition is a financial Pippard worked for a Bristol based consulting engineer and for the Pontypridd and Rhondda Valley Joint Water Board in his early career. Bristol ( ˈbrɪstəl is a city, Unitary authority and ceremonial county in South West England, west of London Dŵr Cymru / Welsh Water (DCWW is a company which supplies drinking water and Wastewater services to most of Wales and parts of western England He also completed his masters degree during this period.

At the start of the First World War Pippard joined the Admiralty Air Department where he studied aircraft stresses. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All The Admiralty was formerly the authority in the United Kingdom responsible for the command of the Royal Navy. The Air Department of the British Admiralty was established prior to World War I by Winston Churchill. After the war he joined an aeronautical engineering consultancy with many of his colleagues and was involved in accident investigation cases. Aerospace engineering is the branch of Engineering behind the design construction and science of Aircraft and Spacecraft. He gained his Doctorate of Science from Bristol in 1920 and took up the chair in Civil Engineering at University College, Cardiff in 1922. DSc ScD SD, or DrSc are common abbreviations for the Latin Scientiæ Doctor, meaning Doctor of Science. The meaning of the word professor ( Latin: professor, person who professes to be an expert in some art or science teacher of highest rank) varies Cardiff University (Prifysgol Caerdydd is a leading University located in the Cathays Park area of Cardiff, Wales, United Kingdom This began a long career in academia at Cardiff, Bristol and Imperial College during which he was responsible for the analysis of the methods used in the design of the R100 and R101 airships. Imperial College London (officially The Imperial College of Science Technology and Medicine as given in its Royal Charter It is one of only three universities to have reached WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout The public enquiry into the latter's crash, which ended British participation in airship development, found no faults with Pippard's work but he withdrew from the field of aeronautical engineering - feeling keenly the loss of several of his friends amongst the 48 dead.

During the Second World War Pippard was a member of the Civil Defence Research Committee which met at Princes Risborough and continued his teaching at Imperial College. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including Princes Risborough is a Town and Civil parish within Wycombe district in Buckinghamshire, England, about 9 miles south of Pippard was a member of the council of the Institution of Civil Engineers for fifteen years and was their president for the 1958-9 session. Founded on 2 January 1818, the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE is an independent Professional association, based in central London, During his later career he chaired the fifteen year investigation into pollution in the Thames tideway the length of which he was criticised for by the press. The Thames ( is a major River flowing through southern England. The Tideway is a name given to the part of the River Thames in England that is subject to Tides This stretch of water is downstream from the Teddington He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1954 and was pro-rector of Imperial college for the next year. The Royal Society of London for the Improvement of Natural Knowledge, known simply as The Royal Society, is a Learned society for science that was founded in 1660 The word rector ("ruler" from the Latin regere and Rector meaning "Teacher" In Latin has a number of different meanings but all of them indicate an academic He retired in 1956 and began a lecture tour of the United States and received honorary degrees from Bristol, Birmingham and Brunel Universities. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The University of Birmingham (informally Birmingham University) is a British red brick University located in the city of Birmingham Brunel University is a University situated in West London, England.

Contents 1 Early life and training 2 Apprenticeship 3 Admiralty Air Department 4 Academic life 5 Second World War 6 Post-war 7 Retirement 8 References

Early life and training

Alfred John Sutton Pippard was born on 6 April 1891 in Yeovil and was the son of Alfred Pippard, a carpenter, joiner and devout Baptist. Events 46 BC - Julius Caesar defeats Caecilius Metellus Scipio and Marcus Porcius Cato in the Battle of Thapsus Year 1891 ( MDCCCXCI) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Yeovil (ˈjovɪl is a town in south Somerset, England, on the A30 and A37. A carpenter (builder is a skilled craftsman who performs carpentry - a wide range of Woodworking that includes constructing buildings, A Joiner differs from a Carpenter in that he cuts and fits joints in wood that do not use nails usually as a furniture maker Baptist is a term describing individuals belonging to a Baptist church or a Baptist denomination. His family had a strong connection with the construction industry and included masons, stonecutters and plasterers. Masonry is the building of structures from individual units laid in and bound together by mortar, and the term "masonry" can also refer to the units themselves The craft of stonemasonry has existed since the dawn of Civilization - creating Buildings structures and Sculpture using stone from the earth A Plasterer is a Tradesman who works with Plaster, such as forming a layer of plaster on an interior wall or plaster decorative moldings on ceilings or The elder Alfred was a renowned craftsman and worked on Yeovil Post Office, the offices of the Western Gazette, Yeovil Girls' High School, a bank in Weymouth and several private houses, often working as his own architect and drawing up the plans. A post office is a facility authorized by a Postal system for the posting receipt sorting handling transmission or delivery of Mail. The Western Gazette is a newspaper published in Yeovil, Somerset, England. Weymouth (ˈweɪməθ is a town in Dorset, England situated on a sheltered bay at the mouth of the River Wey on the English Channel coast An architect is a licensed individual who leads a design team in the Planning and Design of buildings and participates in oversight of Building Construction During his youth the younger Alfred helped his father on several building sites. ^[1]

Alfred attended several kindergarten schools before progressing to Yeovil School after which it was presumed that he would enter into the family business. ( German, literally means "children's garden" is a form of education for young children which serves as a transition from home to the commencement of more formal schooling However he particularly enjoyed his studies and wished to further them, to that end he applied to study at the Merchant Venturers College (which would become the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Bristol in 1909). the University (or derivatives but lower-case when referring to many universitiesor universities He spent one year working for a local architect and engineer and studying for the London Matriculation exam which he passed in the summer of 1908 and started at the college in the autumn of that year. ^[1]

During the Easter vacation of his first year at Bristol Pippard's father died and the family was put under great financial strain. Easter ( Greek: Πάσχα Pascha or Pasxa) is the most important religious feast in the Christian Liturgical year. With three siblings still at school it was only Pippard's winning of the Proctor Baker Exhibition with the accompanying payment of his tuition fees that allowed him to continue his studies. At the universities of Dublin, Oxford and Cambridge and at Westminster School and Winchester College, an exhibition is a financial He graduated from Bristol with first class honours. The British undergraduate degree classification system is a grading scheme for Undergraduate degrees ( Bachelor's degrees and some Master's degrees ^[1]

Apprenticeship

The laws of the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) at the time required prospective members to undertake articled work for two years for a corporate member and Pippard arranged to work for Mr Cotterell of Bristol, the father of one of his friends who he had undertaken work for with his father as a joiner. Founded on 2 January 1818, the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE is an independent Professional association, based in central London, However the family finances were still poor and his mother could not afford to provide him with his keep for two years and pay the premium that all apprenticeships entailed. Fortunately the Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851 had just started an industrial bursary scheme and invited applications from universities across the country. Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851 is an institution founded in 1850 to administer the international exhibition of 1851 officially called the Great Exhibition of the Works A bursary is strictly an office for a Bursar and his or her staff in a school or college Bristol University submitted Pippard's name and he was accepted as one of ten successful applicants from across the country. ^[1]

With the financial security provided by the bursary Pippard began work at Cotterell's offices in 1911. One of his first jobs was to design the steelwork for a warehouse in Bristol on which he gave a talk to the local students association of the ICE in 1913 for which he was awarded the Miller Prize and a set of drawing instruments which he used for the rest of his life. An engineering drawing is a type of Technical drawing, used to fully and clearly define requirements for engineered items and is usually created in accordance He completed his apprenticeship in 1913 and obtained a job with the Pontypridd and Rhondda Valley Joint Water Board, he did not enjoy this routine work and disliked his district. Dŵr Cymru / Welsh Water (DCWW is a company which supplies drinking water and Wastewater services to most of Wales and parts of western England To continue his interest in civil engineering he began a master of science dissertation on masonry dams which he wrote at evenings and weekends. A Master of Science ( Latin: Magister Scientiæ; abbreviated MSc, M A dissertation (also called thesis or disquisition) is a document that presents the author's Research and findings and is submitted in support of candidature Masonry dams are Dams made out of Masonry, and are of either the gravity or the arch type This was submitted to his alma mater in April 1914, was approved and he subsequently received his MSc. Alma mater is Latin for "nourishing mother" It was used in Ancient Rome as a title for the mother Goddess, and in Medieval ^[1]

He began repaying his mother's financial assistance in 1915 and deeply regretted her death in 1921 before he could make any substantial contribution to her retirement. ^[1]

Admiralty Air Department

A few months after the start of World War I Pippard resigned from the water board with the intention of helping the war effort. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All His poor eyesight barred him from a commission in the Royal Engineers so he entered his name of a register organised by the Institution of Civil Engineers to place their members in appropriate wartime jobs. The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually just called the Royal Engineers ( RE) and commonly known as the Sappers, is one of the corps Pippard's name was brought to the attention of HC Watts, who was a university classmate and a member of the technical section of the Admiralty Air Department. The Admiralty was formerly the authority in the United Kingdom responsible for the command of the Royal Navy. The Air Department of the British Admiralty was established prior to World War I by Winston Churchill. Pippard was offered a job at the department and joined in January 1915. ^[1]

Pippard's work with the department was to analyse stresses in airframes to ensure that they could survive the rigours of aerial combat, the work was of great importance to the war effort and he often found himself working for ten to twelve hours at a time. Airframe means the mechanical structure of an Aircraft and as generally used does not include the engines In December 1917 he married Olive Field, also from Yeovil, and they moved into a flat together at Earls Court, London. Earls Court, a district in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in London, England. London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. ^[1] He was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire in the New Years Honours of 1918. The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British Order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by King George V. The British honours system is a means of rewarding individuals' personal bravery achievement or service to the United Kingdom. ^[2] Pippard joined an engineering consultancy in 1919 which was set up by Alec Ogilvie, an Air Department engineer, and several colleagure. A consultant (from the Latin consultare means "to discuss" from which we also derive words such as consul and counsel) is a Professional Later that year Pippard and JL Pritchard, another colleague, wrote Aeroplane Structures which became a standard reference for aeronautical engineers and was revised in 1935. Aerospace engineering is the branch of Engineering behind the design construction and science of Aircraft and Spacecraft. For this work, amongst others, he was awarded a Doctorate of Science by Bristol University in 1920. DSc ScD SD, or DrSc are common abbreviations for the Latin Scientiæ Doctor, meaning Doctor of Science. The firm was awarded several accident investigation contracts such as investigating the failure of the Tarrant Tabor triplane and the R38 airship disaster but was unable to win many large contracts due to the military and large aeronautical firms controlling the market. Accident Analysis is carried out in order to determine the cause or causes of an accident or series of accidents so as prevent further incidents of a similar kind The Tarrant Tabor was a British bomber triplane which was designed towards the end of the First World War and was briefly the world's largest aircraft A triplane is a Fixed-wing aircraft equipped with three sets of wings each roughly the same size and mounted one above the other ^[1] Pippard preferred his work as a visiting lecturer at Imperial College, London which he had started in 1919 and applied, and was accepted, for the chair of engineering at University College, Cardiff in 1922. Imperial College London (officially The Imperial College of Science Technology and Medicine as given in its Royal Charter It is one of only three universities to have reached Cardiff University (Prifysgol Caerdydd is a leading University located in the Cathays Park area of Cardiff, Wales, United Kingdom ^[1] He also wrote a series of scripts for radio broadcasts, including two made for schools. ^[3]

Academic life

Upon arriving at Cardiff Pippard set about modernising the department and attracting research opportunities. Pippard's most important research client was the Aeronautical Research Committee which agreed to pay the salary of a full time assistant from January 1924. The Aeronautical Research Committee was a UK government committee established in 1919 in order to coordinate aeronautical research and Education following During this time Pippard and his assistant, John Baker, worked on proving the methods used to analyse airship frames which were proposed for use on the R100 and R101 airships. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout Terminology In some countries airships are also known as dirigibles from the French (fr ''diriger'' to direct plus -ible) meaning "directable" In 1928 Pippard was invited to take over the chair of civil engineering at Bristol University which he accepted. the University (or derivatives but lower-case when referring to many universitiesor universities ^[1]

At Bristol Pippard imlemented many of the modernising methods he has developed at Cardiff and continued his work on the R100 and R101. He took part in the first test flight of the R101 but due to political pressure for quick development he was unable to finish his structural report before the R101 crashed on her final test flight on 5 October 1930, spelling the end for airship development in the United Kingdom. Events 869 - The Fourth Council of Constantinople is convened to decide about what to do about Patriarch Photius of Constantinople Year 1930 ( MCMXXX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display 1930 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The public enquiry found that there were no faults with the airship's structure or the design methods employed by Pippard. However Pippard was so affected by the episode, particularly as several of his friends were among the 48 dead, that he withdrew from the field of aeronautical engineering and thereafter concentrated on civil engineering. ^[1] He moved to Imperial College in London in 1933 and took over the running of the civil engineering department there where he actively encouraged a more research centric teaching method. Imperial College London (officially The Imperial College of Science Technology and Medicine as given in its Royal Charter It is one of only three universities to have reached London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. ^[1] This attitude was demonstrated in a paper presented to the Royal Aeronautical Society in 1935 in which he states that "University years should be devoted to the study of engineering science with as little emphasis as possible on the practical interests of the work". Founded in 1866 The Royal Aeronautical Society, also known as the RAeS, is a multidisciplinary professional institution dedicated to the entire global Aerospace ^[4]

Second World War

In April 1939, predicting the approaching war, Pippard joined the Civil Defence Research Committee at the invitation of Sir John Anderson, Lord Privy Seal and minister in charge of air raid precautions. John Anderson 1st Viscount Waverley, GCB, OM, GCSI, GCIE, PC ( 8 July 1882 &ndash 4 January The Lord Privy Seal or Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal is the fifth of the Great Officers of State in the United Kingdom ranking beneath the Air Raid Precautions (ARP was an organisation in the United Kingdom set up as an aid in the prelude to the Second World War dedicated At the outbreak of the Second World War on 3 September 1939 he was assigned to the research and experiments section located in Princes Risborough. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including Events 36 BC - In the Battle of Naulochus, Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, Admiral of Octavian, defeats Sextus Pompeius Year 1939 ( MCMXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Princes Risborough is a Town and Civil parish within Wycombe district in Buckinghamshire, England, about 9 miles south of The section had little work to do and Pippard found himself bored, especially compared to his frantic work with the Air Department during the First World War. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Fortunately the government's decision to allow university students to complete their degrees before compulsory national service meant that Pippard could spend four days of his week lecturing at Imperial College whilst remaining a member of the committee, a practice he continued for the rest of the war. National service is a common name for mandatory or voluntary government service programs (most often focusing on military service ^[1]

Post-war

Pippard was elected to the council of the Institution of Civil Engineers in 1944 in which he continued to sit for the next fifteen years, advocating an increased academic presence in that body. Founded on 2 January 1818, the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE is an independent Professional association, based in central London, His dedication to the institution led to his election as president for the 1958-9 session. ^[5] In 1946 he introduced concrete and soil mechanics lecturers to the staff of Imperial College for the first time. ^[6] In 1951 he was appointed by Hugh Dalton, the Minister of Local Government and Planning, to investigate pollution in the Thames tideway. Edward Hugh John Neale Dalton Baron Dalton PC, generally known as Hugh Dalton ( 26 August 1887 &ndash 13 February 1962 The Thames ( is a major River flowing through southern England. The Tideway is a name given to the part of the River Thames in England that is subject to Tides This stretch of water is downstream from the Teddington This was a highly complex task which involved fifteen years of detailed investigation for which he was, perhaps unfairly, ridiculed in the press. Pippard was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1954 and became pro-rector (assistant to the rector) of Imperial College the next year. The Royal Society of London for the Improvement of Natural Knowledge, known simply as The Royal Society, is a Learned society for science that was founded in 1660 The word rector ("ruler" from the Latin regere and Rector meaning "Teacher" In Latin has a number of different meanings but all of them indicate an academic After a year in this capacity Pippard retired in September 1956. ^[1]

Retirement

Upon retirement Pippard began a series of visiting lectures at Northwestern University in Illinois, United States. A visiting scholar, in the world of Academia, is a scholar from an institution who visits a receiving university that hosts him where he or she is projected to teach ( visiting The State of Illinois ( roughly ill-i-NOY is a state of the United States of America, the 21st to be admitted to the Union. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the During his time in the US Pippard also delivered lectures at Berkeley, Purdue, Harvard and Urbana. The University of California Berkeley (also referred to as Cal, Berkeley and UC Berkeley) is a major research university located in Berkeley Urbana University is a small university specializing in Liberal arts education Upon returning from America he took on the duties of the president of the Institution of Civil Engineers, which included a two month visit to South Africa. The Republic of South Africa (also known by other official names) is a country located at the southern tip of the continent of Africa In 1966 Pippard was awarded honorary degrees from both Bristol and Birmingham Universities and from Brunel University in 1968. An honorary degree or a degree honoris causa ( Latin: 'for the sake of the honour' is an Academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding the University (or derivatives but lower-case when referring to many universitiesor universities The University of Birmingham (informally Birmingham University) is a British red brick University located in the city of Birmingham Brunel University is a University situated in West London, England. ^[1][7] Pippard continued to write on the theory of structures throughout his retirement and over the course of his life authored (or co-authored) more than 80 academic papers and six books. The term collaborative writing refers to projects where written works are created by multiple people together ( collaboratively) rather than individually Academic publishing describes the subfield of Publishing which distributes academic Research and Scholarship. ^[1] Towards the end of his life he began writing an autobiography which remained unfinished on his death. An autobiography, from the Greek αὐτός autos "self" βίος bios "life" and γράφειν graphein "to write" ^[3] Pippard died in Putney, London on 2 November 1969 and the memorial service was held at St. Margaret's Church in Westminster. Putney is a district of south-west London in the London Borough of Wandsworth. London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. Events 1570 - A Tidal wave in the North Sea devastates the coast from Holland to Jutland, killing more than 1000 Year 1969 ( MCMLXIX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Anglican church of St Margaret Westminster is situated in the grounds of Westminster Abbey on Parliament Square, and is the Parish church Westminster is an area of Central London, within the City of Westminster. ^[1]

References

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