IAE Parsons Medal presented at Engineering Heritage Festival in Offaly

THE Irish Academy of Engineering (IAE) is delighted to announce the recipient of the Parsons Medal awarded for excellence in engineering, the only annual medal given by the IAE.

Fittingly the Award was held during the Birr Engineering Heritage Festival at Birr Castle Demesne, ancestral home of Sir Charles Parsons, eminent Irish engineer, and namesake of this medal who won it for his invention of the compound steam turbine.

The recipient of this year’s Parsons Medal is Dr Ann B. Kelleher from Intel Corporation. The medal was presented to Dr Kelleher by Sir Parsons’ descendant, the Earl of Rosse, Brendan Parsons.

Dr Kelleher is an Executive Vice President at Intel Corporation, where she leads Foundry Technology Development. Advancing semi-conductor technology, a process known in the industry as Moore’s Law, is the core competency of Dr Kelleher’s group at Intel Foundry. Under Ann’s leadership, her team has introduced multiple world’s first technologies to power our increasingly digital society. In the United States, Ann also serves on the Global Semiconductor Alliance (GSA) Board of Directors, and the Industry Advisory Council for NSTC as part of the CHIPS and Science Act.

Speaking about why Dr Kelleher was chosen to be the recipient of the Parsons Medal, Seamus McKeague, President of the IAE said: “The Parsons Medal recognises engineers who have made exceptional contributions to the advancement of the application of engineering, science and technology that result in significant social and/or economic impact. Dr Kelleher is this year’s recipient for her strategic leadership in the global semiconductor industry.”

In response to receiving the Parsons Medal, Dr Kelleher said: “I am honoured to receive the prestigious Parsons Medal and would like to thank the IAE for selecting me from many worthy candidates. The field of engineering has inspired me from my days as a student and semiconductor researcher in Ireland to my career at Intel. I hope that my journey can inspire others to embrace a career in engineering, both for the individual satisfaction of working on interesting problems as well as the chance to make an impact on one’s community both locally and globally.”

Before leading Foundry TD, Dr Kelleher oversaw worldwide manufacturing operations for Intel, including Intel’s facilities in Leixlip, currently the largest and most advanced semiconductor production site in Europe.

Dr Kelleher’s career in Engineering began in 1987 when she graduated with a Bachelor of Engineering (BE) degree from University College Cork with 1^st Class honours. This was followed by an M.Eng.Sc degree in 1989 from the National Microelectronics Research Centre, Cork. In 1993 she became the first woman to receive a PhD from the fledgling National Microelectronics Research Centre (NMRC), the forerunner of Tyndall National Institute. As a Post-doc, Dr Kelleher also worked at imec (a semiconductor research institute) in Belgium.

Dr Kelleher’s career with Intel began at the Leixlip facility as a process engineer in 1996. She advanced to group leader and department manager, and in 2006 she was promoted to Fab24 Factory Manager.

In 2008 Dr Kelleher moved to the US as Intel’s Plant Manager for Fab12 in Arizona and later as Fab11x Site Manager in New Mexico, owning all aspects of F11x process ramp, delivering the steepest and highest ramp in the history of Intel manufacturing. As well as her deeply technical and later managerial roles, Dr Kelleher also set the standard for safety, factory culture, people development and operational metrics.

In 2011, Dr Kelleher became the first Irish woman to be named as an Intel vice president. While operating from the US, Dr Kelleher has maintained strong links to Ireland, using her visits to promote its technology and societal interests. She is a strong advocate for gender equality, for women working in engineering roles and holding senior management positions in the tech industry.

Other honours Dr Kelleher has earned include election as a Fellow of Engineers Ireland (2015), "Ireland's Most Powerful Women” awards (2018), Life Fellowship by the Irish Management Institute (IMI) (2022), a Lifetime Achievement Award from MIDAS Ireland (Ireland’s semiconductor industry association) (2023), and the FDI Hero Award at the Invest in Ireland awards (2024). She also served a full term of 10 years on the Board of Tyndall National Institute.

The IAE is an all-island body promoting excellence in engineering and technology for the betterment of the island of Ireland, and although the award ceremony is usually held in Dublin and Belfast, this year it was held at Birr Castle Demesne, ancestral home of Sir Charles Parsons, eminent Irish engineer, and namesake of this medal. The Science Centre at Birr recently saw significant enhancements with stunning interactive features. Visitors to the Centre, which is managed by Birr Science and Heritage Foundation can see on display electrical and engineering equipment originally belonging to Sir Charles Parsons and used in his experiments.

Lord Rosse said “We are delighted to host this Award here in Birr Castle Demesne, the centre of science in Ireland during Birr Engineering Heritage Festival. The Science Centre provides the inspiration for the exceptional educational department of Birr Castle Demesne & Science Centre, headed by Alison Delaney. This year they have hosted seventy STE(A)M workshops connecting with Birr’s wonderful scientific history and the STE(A)M curriculum taught within Irish schools.

The seven science galleries are an attraction in their own right adding another string to our bow. Key highlights within the galleries are the new upgrades as well as the Lunar Heat machine, the journey it takes you on including all the wonderful unique and rare scientific pieces that can be found throughout the galleries.”