The Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining (IOM3) is a UK engineering institution whose activities encompass the whole materials cycle, from exploration and extraction, through characterisation, processing, forming, finishing and application, to product recycling and land reuse. It exists to promote and develop all aspects of materials science and

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...

, geology, mining and associated technologies, mineral and petroleum engineering and extraction metallurgy, as a leading authority in the worldwide materials and mining community. It is a

registered charity A charitable organization or charity is an organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being (e.g. educational, Religion, religious or other activities serving the public interest or common good). The legal definitio ...

governed by royal charter and in 2021 had a gross income of £3.86million. The institute is also a member of the UK

Science Council The Science Council is a UK organisation that was established by Royal Charter in 2003. The principal activity of The Science Council is the promotion of the advancement and dissemination of knowledge of and education in science pure and applie ...

. In 2019 the institute celebrated 150 years since the establishment of the

Iron and Steel Institute The Iron and Steel Institute was an English association organized by the iron trade of the north of England. Its object was the discussion of practical and scientific questions connected with the manufacture of iron and steel. History The first mee ...

, a learned society that IOM3 now encompasses.

Structure

Having resided at

Carlton House Terrace Carlton House Terrace is a street in the St James's district of the City of Westminster in London. Its principal architectural feature is a pair of terraces of white stucco-faced houses on the south side of the street overlooking St. James's Pa ...

off Pall Mall in

St James's St James's is a central district in the City of Westminster, London, forming part of the West End. In the 17th century the area developed as a residential location for the British aristocracy, and around the 19th century was the focus of the de ...

in central London since 2002, the institute moved to 297 Euston Road on 30 June 2015. The organisation has its education, marketing and

knowledge transfer Knowledge transfer is the sharing or disseminating of knowledge and the providing of inputs to problem solving. In organizational theory, knowledge transfer is the practical problem of transferring knowledge from one part of the organization to ...

office in

Grantham Grantham () is a market and industrial town in the South Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England, situated on the banks of the River Witham and bounded to the west by the A1 road. It lies some 23 miles (37 km) south of the Lincoln a ...

, and its Membership office in

Stoke on Trent Stoke-on-Trent (often abbreviated to Stoke) is a city and unitary authority area in Staffordshire, England, with an area of . In 2019, the city had an estimated population of 256,375. It is the largest settlement in Staffordshire and is surrou ...

. Members of the institute come from a variety of backgrounds, from students to company chief executives. Members qualify for different grades of membership, ranging from Affiliate to Fellow of the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining (FIMMM), depending on academic qualifications and professional experience. IOM3 has an individual membership of over 18,000, and represents a combination of scientific, technical and human resources which links industry, government, research and the academic world. Almost 60 UK 'local societies' are affiliated with the institute, covering a wide range of disciplines including ceramics, composites, mining, packaging, polymers and metallurgy, and organising events throughout the year.

Technical Communities

Since April 2022 IOM3 has 22 Technical Community groups representing the breadth of disciplines covered and the materials cycle. These groups previously known as Divisions are now termed as the "IOM3 XXXXX Group" with a common identity and branding/logo. * IOM3 Adhesion and Adhesives Group (formerly the Society of Adhesion and Adhesives, SAA) https://www.iom3.org/group/adhesion-adhesives-group.html * IOM3 Applied Earth Science Group – https://www.iom3.org/group/applied-earth-science-group.html * IOM3 Biomedical Applications Group - https://www.iom3.org/group/biomedical-applications-group.html * IOM3 Ceramics Group ( formerly the Institute of Ceramics until 1993 and Ceramics Society) https://www.iom3.org/group/ceramics-group.html * IOM3 Composites Group (formerly the British Composites Society, BCS) https://www.iom3.org/group/composites-group.html * IOM3 Construction Materials Group - https://www.iom3.org/group/construction-materials-group.html * IOM3 Defence, Safety and Security Group https://www.iom3.org/group/defence-safety-security-group.html * IOM3 Elastomer Group ) formerly the Rubber in Engineering Group, RIEG) https://www.iom3.org/group/elastomer-group.html * IOM3 Energy Materials Group https://www.iom3.org/group/energy-materials-group.html * IOM3 Energy Transition Group https://www.iom3.org/group/energy-transition-group.html * IOM3 Iron & Steel Group https://www.iom3.org/group/iron-steel-group.html * IOM3 Materials Characterisation and Properties Group https://www.iom3.org/group/materials-characterisation-properties-group.html * IOM3 Materials Processing and Manufacturing Group https://www.iom3.org/group/materials-processing-manufacturing-group.html * IOM3 Minerals Processing and Extractive Metallurgy Group https://www.iom3.org/group/mineral-processing-extractive-metallurgy-group.html * IOM3 Mining Technology Group https://www.iom3.org/group/mining-technology-group.html * IOM3 Natural Materials Group https://www.iom3.org/group/natural-materials-group.html * IOM3 Non-ferrous and Light Metals Group https://www.iom3.org/group/non-ferrous-light-metals-group.html * IOM3 Packaging Group (formerly the Institute of Packaging, up to 2005 and the Packaging Society) https://www.iom3.org/group/packaging-group.html * IOM3 Polymer Group https://www.iom3.org/group/polymer-group.html * IOM3 Surface Technologies Group – includes the Corrosion subgroup, and the former Institute of Vitreous Enamelling, IVE https://www.iom3.org/group/surface-technologies-group.html * IOM3 Sustainable Development Group, includes the Resources Strategy Group, RSG https://www.iom3.org/group/sustainable-development-group.html * IOM3 Wood Technology Group https://www.iom3.org/group/wood-technology-group.html

History

The institute's roots go back to the

. In 1869,

ironmaster An ironmaster is the manager, and usually owner, of a forge or blast furnace for the processing of iron. It is a term mainly associated with the period of the Industrial Revolution, especially in Great Britain. The ironmaster was usually a larg ...

William Menelaus convened and chaired a meeting at the

Midland Railway The Midland Railway (MR) was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844. The Midland was one of the largest railway companies in Britain in the early 20th century, and the largest employer in Derby, where it had its headquarters. It ama ...

's Queen's Hotel in

Birmingham, West Midlands Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...

, which led to the founding of the Iron and Steel Institute, which received its

Royal Charter A royal charter is a formal grant issued by a monarch under royal prerogative as letters patent. Historically, they have been used to promulgate public laws, the most famous example being the English Magna Carta (great charter) of 1215, but ...

s in 1899. Menelaus was its president from 1875 to 1877, and in 1881 was awarded the Bessemer Gold Medal. In 1974 the Iron and Steel Institute merged into the Institute of Metals. The Institute of Metals then merged in 1993 with The Institute of Ceramics and The Plastics and Rubber Institute (PRI) to form the Institute of Materials (IoM). The PRI was itself a merger of The Plastics Institute and the Institution of the Rubber Industry (known as the IRI) during the 1980s, a reflection of the declining UK rubber manufacturing industry during this period. IOM3 was formed from the merger of the Institute of Materials and the Institution of Mining and Metallurgy (IMM) in June 2002. More recent mergers include the Institute of Packaging (2005), the Institute of Clay Technology (2006) the Institute of Wood Science (2009) and the Institute of Vitreous Enamellers (2010). ;List of presidents

Function

The institute ensures that courses in materials, minerals and mining technology and engineering conform to the standards for professional registration with the Engineering Council UK, establishes codes of practice and monitors legislative matters affecting members' professional interests. The professional development programme run by the institute helps contribute to members' career enhancement towards senior grades of membership an
Chartered Scientist
(CSci) and

Chartered Engineer Regulation and licensure in engineering is established by various jurisdictions of the world to encourage life, public welfare, safety, well-being, then environment and other interests of the general public and to define the licensure process thro ...

(CEng) status. Members benefit from reduced rates for the institute's many books, journals and conferences and from access to the institute's Information Services. These include extensive library resources as well as a team of materials experts who provide consultancy services to Institute members, and to companies who have joined the institute's Industrial Affiliate Scheme.

Activities

The institute provides a range of activities and initiatives to benefit the materials and mining community. The institute's educational activities aim to promote the materials discipline to younger generations by allowing access, through the Schools Affiliate Scheme, to a range of educational resources and materials. The institute has very close links with schools and colleges and is responsible for accrediting university and college courses and industrial training schemes. The Education Department offers teachers courses and teaching resources on materials, as well as careers advice for students. Many Institute publications such as definitive textbooks are available to students at reduced prices. The institute also offers a series of grants and bursaries to encourage students, and organises events such as the Young Persons' Lecture Competition.

Publications

The institute's trading subsidiary, IOM Communications Ltd, is responsible for producing the institute's journals. These include the members' journals (magazines) '' Materials World magazine'' and ''Clay Technology''. Materials World now incorporates ''The Packaging Professional'' and ''Wood Focus''. The institute's range of learned journals is published by

Taylor & Francis Taylor & Francis Group is an international company originating in England that publishes books and academic journals. Its parts include Taylor & Francis, Routledge, F1000 Research or Dovepress. It is a division of Informa plc, a United Ki ...

, including the ''Ironmaking and Steelmaking'' journal, ''Surface Engineering'', ''Powder Metallurgy'', ''Corrosion Engineering'', ''International Materials Reviews'' and ''Materials Science and Technology''.. The institute also publishes IMMAGE (Information on Mining, Metallurgy and Geological Exploration), a reference database of abstracts and citations of scientific and engineering literature for the international minerals industry, and has links to

OneMine OneMine is non-profit entity and searchable online global mining and minerals library. History OneMine is a non-profit entity governed by a steering committee whose members are nominated and serve for a term of three calendar years. It was lau ...

, a database of mining publications.

Advice

The Materials Information Service is a service of the institute which has been giving advice to industry on the selection and use of materials since 1988. This is now part of the institute's Information Services which includes technical enquiry and library services for the materials, minerals and mining sectors, an information help desk, regionally based advisors and related services. Companies can gain access to the institute's information resources by joining its Industrial Affiliate Scheme.

Conferences

The institute's Conference Department organises conferences, events and exhibitions with the institute's technical committees to help keep members and other delegates informed of the latest developments within the materials, minerals and mining arena. The highlight of the conference calendar is the bi-annual Materials Congress.

Awards

The IOM3 grants several awards including: Bessemer Gold Medal 1904

* Fellowship: Fellow of the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining (FIMMM) * The Bessemer Gold Medal is an annual prize awarded by the institute for "outstanding services to the steel industry". It was established and endowed by Sir Henry Bessemer in 1874. It was first awarded to Isaac Lowthian Bell in 1874. The 2016 award was to Alan Cramb. * The Silver Medal is awarded annually to an outstanding young scientist (under the age of 35) in recognition of an outstanding contribution to a field of interest. In addition the institute has many other significant awards for Personal Achievement and Published Works covering materials, minerals and mining. In particular there are awards covering surface engineering, biomedical materials, ceramics, rubber and plastics, iron and steel and automotive areas. There are also awards covering education and local societies. Details can be accessed here.

Youth

Engineering Extravaganza was launched to encourage youngsters to consider careers in engineering.