Steve Diksa

Said the following about Nigel Stockdale:

““Think of the characteristics of the old type typicial railwayman/person and Nigel Stockdale immediately springs to mind: competent, reliable, friendly, flexible, goes the extra mile, always willing to help others, competent, safety conscious with a view to keeping the railway running. We here at Bridgeway Consulting had no hesitation in nominating Nigel for the “Lifetime Achievement Award”. He is exactly the sort of person that the railway has always relied upon to ensure that the trains keep running. We cannot put a price of the value of knowledge like Nigel’s, which he uses so selflessly for the benefit of the railway. Over the years, we here at Bridgeway (and his clients) really admire his can do/will do attitude and he rises to the challenge of the ‘too difficult to do’ jobs Bridgeway Consulting and Clients continue to turn to Nigel whenever there are challenging projects to be managed and delivered.

Regarded as one of the most experienced Rail Engineers within Bridgeway Consulting, he has also gained a reputation within our business and his clients as a ‘railway fountain of knowledge’. Nigel is always willing to share his knowledge and expertise to newcomers to the industry and has also successfully trained and mentored a significant number of new staff to the rail industry and his nurturing approach has helped them with knowledge in their field and provided them with the guidance and confidence to build a long and successful career in the industry. His influence has certainly driven these people to become motivated and hard working rail professionals.

Nigels distinguished railway career highlights include:

• He joined British Rail in 1979 at the Nottingham Area Civil Engineer’s office and he immediately embraced the ethos of the industry, which was one of “hard work”. This remains even true today as he has worked at 100% throughout his railway career, like many a railway person, this has included nights, weekends and bank holidays.

•In 1980 he trained as a diver and joined the famous British Rail Underwater Inspection team, working on inspections of Portsmouth Harbour, Ryde Pier head, Holyhead harbour and many other railway structures. Immediately after the privatisation of British Rail In 1996, joined Bridgeway Consulting. For many years Nigel was responsible for the Bridgeway Underwater Inspection team and during this period he expanded the examination section until it was responsible for the underwater inspection of railway bridges in over half the country. As an inspection diver, Nigel applies his engineering knowledge to ensure that inspections fully reflect the condition of the structure and the work to be carried out to high standards. Nigel continues to maintain his diver qualifications and occasionally still gets underwater – irrespective of the weather!

•As a Railway Engineer Nigel has gained a thorough knowledge of Permanent Way renewals and maintenance as well as bridges and Buildings. He has also been responsible for many major projects, including numerous bridge reconstructions and civil engineering work. Over the years he has held many posts and is now Engineering Projects Manager, a role in which he is (as usual) excels in. He has been instrumental in expanding the range of work that Bridgeway Consulting undertakes and his experience and qualifications as an Engineer mean that he can ensure that all the work we take on is delivered within budget with safety always at the heart of everything he does.

We are very proud to have Nigel as a colleague and indeed a friend. Given what he has done consistently over his railway career he really does deserve to be awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award 2015 for his unparalleled services to the rail industry. It would a fitting acknowledgment for a true railwayman.““