Nutt, John Gilmour (1934 - 2023)

Summary

John Nutt is known as the structural engineer who oversaw the design and construction of the Sydney Opera House. He is also recognised as having revolutionised the engineering industry in Australia. After completing his PhD at the University of Manchester in 1959, he was recruited by the London headquarters of Ove Arup and Partners, where he helped pioneer the use of computers in structural design and wind tunnel testing in the design of tall buildings. Then came the opportunity to be involved in the design and analysis of the Sydney Opera House roof, and in 1963, to return to Australia to head the team that completed the design and construction of the building, and to co-establish the Australian practice of Ove Arup and Partners. By the time he retired 36 years later the practice had grown into a network of 500 staff in 10 cities, and he was simultaneously Global Chairman of Arup Partnerships, and an Arup Director in London, New York and Hong Kong.

Nutt specialised in design and analysis of high rise buildings, including the National Bank building in Melbourne, and the Westpac Plaza, Governor Phillip Tower and Governor Macquarie Tower, all in Sydney. Other notable projects that he was associated with include the Sydney Football Stadium 1988 and facilities for the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games.

He also played a leading role in several committees relating to engineering standards. For 15 years he chaired the Australian Standards Loading Code Committee, advising on wind, earthquake and snow load codes. In 1991 he headed a task force reviewing for government the Australian Building Regulations. He is credited with the development of the first Fire Engineering Code for buildings. For eight years he was the founding Chairman of the Industry Advisory Network in the Faculty of Engineering, University of Technology Sydney.

Details

Associated major projects:
* 1959 - 1973 Sydney Opera House
* 1988 Sydney Football Stadium
* 1993 Governor Phillip Tower, Sydney
* 1994 Governor Macquarie Tower, Sydney
* 2000 Olympic Games venues, Sydney

Chronology

1955

Career event - Graduate Member (GradIEAust), Institution of Engineers Australia

1955

Education - Bachelor of Engineering (BE), University of Queensland

1956 - 1959

Career position - Lecturer, University of Manchester

1959

Education - Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), University of Manchester, United Kingdom

1959 - 1963

Career position - Structural engineer, Ove Arup and Partners, London

1960

Career event - Associate Member (AMIEAust), Institution of Engineers Australia

c. 1960

Career event - Member (MInstCE), Institution of Civil Engineers, London

1963

Career event - Co-founder, Partner, Ove Arup and Partners, Australia

1968

Career event - Member (MIEAust), Institution of Engineers Australia [Former Associate Members were designated Members on this date.]

1968 - 1973

Career position - Senior partner,Ove Arup and Partners, Australia

1972

Award - Special award, Institution of Structural Engineers, United Kingdom

1973

Award - Award of Excellence, Association of Consulting Engineers

1973 - 1999

Career position - Chairman, Ove Arup and Partners, Australia

1991

Award - President's Award, New South Wales, Royal Australian Institute of Architects

1992

Award - Honor Award, American Institute of Architects - for engineering on the Sydney Opera House

1992

Award - Member of the Order of Australia (AM) - for services to engineering

1995

Award - Doctor of Science (DSc), honoris causa, Macquarie University

1997

Award - Honorary Fellow (HonFIEAust), Institution of Engineers Australia

1997 - 2023

Award - Fellow, Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering (FTSE)

1998

Award - Peter Nicol Russell Memorial Medal - Career Achievement Award in Engineering. Institution of Engineers Australia

1999

Life event - Retired

2001

Award - Centenary Medal - for service to Australian society in civil and structural engineering

2001

Award - Doctor of Engineering (DEng), honoris causa, Univerity of Technology Sydney

2001

Award - John Connell Gold Medal, Institution of Engineers, Australia, in recognition of his role in many of Australia's most significant buildings and his leadership in the field of structural engineering

2012

Award - Doctor of Engineering (DEng), honoris causa, University of Sydney

2014

Award - Clunies Ross Award for Lifetime Achievement, Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering

2015

Award - Doctor of Engineering (DEng), honoris causa, University of Queensland

Related entries

Published resources

Conference Papers

• Nutt, J. G.; Care, R. F., 'lnnovation and regulation', in Innovation and Economics in Building Conference 1991: Preprints of Papers (Institution of Engineers Australia, 1991), pp. 149-153., https://search.informit.org/doi/10.3316/informit.688804455715045. Details
• Nutt, J. G.; MacKenzie, I. M., 'The Structural Design of the State Bank Building, Sydney', in First National Structural Engineering Conference 1987: Preprints of Papers (Institution of Engineers Australia, 1987), pp. 685-691., https://search.informit.org/doi/10.3316/informit.648408174027267. Details
• Nutt, J. G.; Thomas, W. C., 'The structural design of No. 1 O'Connell Street, Sydney', in Second National Structural Engineering Conference 1990: Preprints of Papers (Institution of Engineers Australia, 1990), pp. 87-93., https://search.informit.org/doi/10.3316/informit.727411971696374. Details

Journal Articles

• Anon, 'Perth showcases 2014 ATSE Clunies Ross Awards', ATSE focus, 185 (2014), 16-17, https://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-3171718660. "Dr John Nutt AM FTSE (Lifetime Achievement Award) for his ongoing contribution to the engineering profession and commitment to the advancement of the industry over the past 50 years.". Details
• Anon, 'Dr John Gilmour Nutt AM FTSE', Impact: magazine of the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering, 215 (2023), 63, https://www.atse.org.au/what-we-do/strategic-advice/impact-215/. Details

Resources

• 'Awarded honorary DEng, 2015 [Citation provided]', Honorary awards recipients, University of Queensland, 2023, https://alumni.uq.edu.au/awards/honorary-awards-previous-recipients. Details

See also

• Kannegieter, T., 'The iconic legacy of Ove Arup', Engineers Australia: Civil Edition, 85 (4) (2013), 46-47, https://search.informit.org/doi/10.3316/informit.867998351252780. Details