Boy next door
“I was just a regular, playful boy who loved sports, particularly badminton,” said Dr. Lee.
“As a child, I was a very curious boy who liked to dismantle a lot of my toys and try to put them back together again,” he said, laughing. “Over the years, this interest prompted me to pursue a degree in mechanical engineering via a twinning programme at Sunway College.”
In 1996, Dr. Lee moved to Britain to complete his engineering degree at the University of Leicester. Later, the British Government offered him a scholarship to do his PhD at the same university. He was later recruited by Britain’s largest steel manufacturer, Corus.
Hard work pays off
Determined to excel in his career as a material testing specialist, Dr. Lee spent a lot of time outside of work learning more about his job. He was also quick to volunteer for additional tasks at his workplace so that he could improve his knowledge about his specialisation.
“Over the last 15 years, I have been working in the materials testing field,” he said. “I conduct materials testing for the aerospace, oil and gas, marine, power generation and automotive industries. Some of the high-profile clients that I have worked for were Airbus, Boeing, Rolls Royce, Shell, BP and Mercedes.”
In the course of his career in Britain, Dr. Lee also wrote numerous papers and co-authored a book entitled “Structure Property Relations in Nonferrous Metals” with distinguished American academician, Professor Alan Russell. The book describes the relationships between the atomic structure, crystal structure and microstructure of metals and their physical behaviour.
Dr. Lee’s experience and reputation in the material science field also earned him a place in the 2006-2011 editions of the Who’s Who in Science & Engineering and Who’s Who in the World.
His most recent achievement was his appointment to the British Standards Institution Committee which offers expert advice in the fields of standardisation, systems assessment as well as product certification.
“It is a great honour to be part of an expert committee that has developed some of the most widely adopted national and international standards,” Dr. Lee enthused. “Being a member of a standards committee is stimulating and intellectually challenging as it gives me the opportunity to help shape future policy. In addition, it provides an excellent forum to meet other like-minded individuals.”