Name John Ingram | ||
Sir John Henderson Ingram CBE (3 September 1924 – 1 April 2015) was a New Zealand engineer and businessman.
Biography
Sir John was born in 1924 and was educated at Nelson College from 1935 to 1942 and Canterbury University College, from where he graduated with a Bachelor of Engineering in mechanical engineering in 1950. His career included a period as chief executive of New Zealand Steel. He also served as a member of the University of Auckland Council and the Waitangi Tribunal.
In the 1984 New Year Honours, Sir John was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire, for services to manufacturing and the engineering profession, and in the 1994 New Year Honours he was made a Knight Bachelor for services to engineering and business management.
Sir John was elected a Distinguished Fellow of the Institution of Professional Engineers New Zealand in 1997. He was also a Distinguished Fellow of the Institute of Directors in New Zealand, a Fellow of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers and a Fellow of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy.
Sir John was particularly known for his service to Maori, having first interacted with iwi such as Ngati Mahuta ki te Hauauru of Taharoa during his time at New Zealand Steel. He was to develop a lifelong interest in the Maori people and their culture and language in all its diversity. Upon his retirement, John would serve as a member of the Waitangi Tribunal and would attempt to champion the rights of tangata whenua whenever the opportunity presented itself.
Sir John died in Auckland on 1 April 2015. Sir John is survived by his wife Rosemary, Lady Ingram, his three daughters Edwina, Jean (Nichola) and Joan and by his grandchildren and one great-grandchild.