James O’Callaghan (right) receives the award from Phoenix Chairman, Paul Hutchinson
At a recently-held ceremony in London, the Phoenix Award committee presented its ‘Glass Person of the year’ award. This year’s winner – James O’Callaghan – was nominated for his use of glass in new and innovative ways as a load-bearing material.
The Phoenix Award committee presented its ‘Glass Person of the year’ award to structural engineer James O’Callaghan at an event in London, UK.
O’Callaghan is the 47th recipient of the award and was nominated for his use of glass in new and innovative ways as a load-bearing material.
His work with Apple has led to the construction of some of Apple’s most eye-catching retail stores, all made of glass.
Introducing O’Callaghan to the stage, this year’s Phoenix chairman, Paul Hutchinson, of DSF Refractories in the UK, said: “I’ve had the privilege to meet James a couple of times leading up to this event and he’s got a clear passion and an understanding of glass not only as a structural material but also an understanding of its production and the current limitations of its manufacture.
“The first time I met James what I particularly liked is that we talked about the float glass process for probably an hour and we even talked about tin bath block.
“I part own a refractory company and I rarely talk about refractories for more than an hour so I was impressed. I thought here is a guy that has got a real interest and attention to detail!”
O’Callaghan attended the event with his wife, parents and a number of former colleagues from the UK and the US, including from companies such as Google and Apple.
During his acceptance speech he said: “I have had the great fortune to work with many creative, pragmatic and inspiring people, many of whom are here tonight and for which I’m deeply thankful.
He added: “The only way we can innovate is to do so as a team. It requires all those that design and support to make it happen. Apple has been a supportive client in this regard and has had a direct influence in the way glass is manufactured and produced. It has worked hard to make glass the core of our development.”