Alfred Grenville Pugsley was born in 1903 and began life as a civil engineering apprentice at the Royal Woolwich Arsenal before moving on to the Royal Airship Works. Alfred worked in the design team and went on to have a distinguished career in structural engineering and aeronautical research. He was knighted in 1956.
Below is a tribute to him found on line by Lord Chilver of Cranfield written as part of a 19-page study of his life for the Royal Society following the death of Alfred in 1998.
“Alfred Pugsley was one of the leading structural engineering scientists of his generation. He brought new concepts of scientific understanding to important areas of structural engineering. His perceptive observation and thought enabled him to make a lasting contribution to the understanding of key factors in designing safe structures. His early work was of great importance to aeronautics; in his later career he contributed significantly to modern civil engineering structures. During his long and fruitful life, he made a unique contribution to our understanding of engineering structures, enabling engineers to approach the design of safe structures both in aeronautics and civil engineering in more rational and effective ways.”