Otto Edholm Award

This award is for any individual who is a Registered Member or Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Ergonomics and Human Factors who has made significant contributions to the application of ergonomics/human factors.
If a nomination is for applied research, the significant application should actually have been put into practice. Applications in terms of hardware, software, systems and organisation designs will be considered, as will ergonomics tools and techniques.

Nominate someone for this award

Download the nomination form

Who was Otto Edholm?

Otto Edholm was born in 1909 and studied Medicine at St George’s Hospital, London. He also took a BSc in Physiology at London and then took a lectureship at Queen’s University, Belfast. After a period as Professor of Physiology at the University of Western Ontario, he returned to the UK and, in 1947, was invited to head the Division of Human Physiology at the MRC National Institute of Medical Research at Hampstead.

For the next 25 years, he was a leader in physiological research in the UK, building the foremost research unit in this field. Internationally recognised for his work, he and his colleagues studied the human responses to the environment from the tropics to the Arctic, as well as within buildings. On retirement he was Visiting Professor at the University of London’s Bartlett School of Architecture until his death in 1985.

Roll of honour

2017 Jon Berman
2016 Mike Gray
2015 Tanya Heasman
2014 Patrick W Jordan
2008 Peter Hancock
2007 Alastair Gale
2003 Andrea Caws
2002 Dr Tom Leamon
2001 Prof Neville Stanton
2000 Mr Tom Stewart
1999 Dr Jan Noyes
1997 Katharine M Wykes, British Aerospace
1995 Jane Dillon, Post Office Research Centre; Christine Haslegrave, University of Nottingham
1994 Dr J M Porter, Dr K Case & Prof M C Bonney, Sammie CAD
1993 Robert Stone, National Advanced Robotics Centre, Salford
1991 Dr Michael F Haisman
1990 Dr P J Barnard
1989 John C C Mitchell, Department of Health Studies, Sheffield City Polytechnic; Robert B Stammers, Division of Applied Psychology, Aston University; John E Wood, Martin Hazell and Michael Clark, Communications Complex Designs Limited
Formerly The Applications Award (1979-1988)
1986 Prof Gideon Gerhardsson, of the Swedish Employers Federation
1985 Robert J Stone, of the Human Factors Research Department, British Aerospace Dynamics Group
1983 Anthony A Clarke, for his ergonomic contribution to the Department of Industry Code of Practice for Ships’s Bridge Design
1982 Geoffrey C Simpson, on behalf of the Ergonomics Branch, Institute of Occupational Medicine, National Coal Board, for their contribution to the design of underground locomotives
1981 Prof Ulf Aberg, for his contribution together with the Laboratory of Industrial Ergonomics, Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, to the design of the new SKF steelworks at Horfors
1979 John A Levis, for his contribution together with the Human Factors Group, Research Engineering, Leyland Vehicles Limited, to the design of the Leyland Titan bus, particularly with respect to the needs of elderly and handicapped users