We mourn the loss of our valued friend and colleague Chris Bielby MBE

We are deeply saddened to hear that our much loved colleague and friend Chris Bielby MBE has passed away. Chris was more than a long standing member and a dedicated volunteer of the institution, he was part of the IGEM family.

Chris was committed to the industry and spent 50 years tirelessly lobbying and canvassing support for gas safety issues, particularly around carbon monoxide as Chairman of the Gas Safety Trust and the Gas Action Task Group, and Chairman and Director of the Gas Industry Safety Group (GISG). He was also a member of the Institute of Directors and the Chartered Management Institute.  

We had the honour of awarding Chris with the title of Fellow of the Institution of Gas Engineers & Managers (FIGEM) and of him being President of the institution in 2005-6.

We were also privileged to have had Chris’ support on many IGEM initiatives and activities including being Chair of IGEM’s Audit & Risk Committee for over 10 years and a staunch supporter of the Lions’ Lair, hosted by the IGEM London, Southern & Eastern Section and the Pipelines Industries Guild.

It was a pleasure to present Chris with the Gas Industry Awards Manager of the Year Award in 2001, the Gas Industry Awards Leadership Award in 2016 and the Birmingham Medal in 2017.

Chris had an impact on so many lives of those in our sector, and it’s so hard to write about him in the past tense – with him having so recently been encouraging and supporting colleagues over email and social media only a few weeks ago. It’s easy to say, but he will be so greatly missed. The IGEM Secretariat, Executive Board and Council, individual and company members and wider gas industry mourn his loss, and send the warmest of condolences and wishes to his family.