Stan Higgins among those honoured at CIA awards ceremony

Higgins, who in 2003 established NEPIC, the Teesside-based body representing the chemical processing industries, was honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the CIA event.

He said: “This award clearly recognises the work the NEPIC team and the industrialists concerned have undertaken to revitalise and grow this industry. I am proud to have been part of that and must thank those that gave me this opportunity to explore my passion for the sector.”

Higgins, who also works with UK Trade & Investment to promote UK excellence internationally, announced in March he was retiring from NEPIC.

Elsewhere at the awards, gongs were handed out across 10 other categories, including the Innovation Award, which was picked up by chemical manufacturer BASF for switching to a more environmentally friendly polymer production process.

Meanwhile, Stephen Donnelly, an economist at Dow Chemical in Belfast, scooped the Young Ambassador Award for his role in mentoring interns and attending career fairs to promote the wide variety of roles within the chemical industry.

A full list of the winners can be found here.