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1. THE AWARD

The Vincent Tam Fire & Explosion Safety Award, sponsored by FABIG and DNV Spadeadam Research and Testing, recognises an early career practitioner or researcher who has demonstrated an outstanding contribution to fire & explosion safety.

The winner of the Award will receive:

• Free attendance at one of DNV’s training courses held at the Spadeadam Research and Testing facility, where they will experience live fire and explosion demonstrations, or registration for a relevant fire & explosion safety course or conference agreed by FABIG (if they have previously attended a DNV Spadeadam training course);
• Travel expenses associated with attendance at the course or conference, as well as attendance at the FABIG Technical Meeting during which the Award will be presented (to be agreed by FABIG);
• An Award Certificate.

2. ELIGIBILITY

• The Award is open to both Members and non-Members of FABIG;
• Candidates must be at an early stage of their career and must not be older than their mid-30s in the year of the award;
• Candidates must be able to demonstrate an outstanding contribution to fire & explosion safety, typically as engineers or researchers;
• Candidates must be endorsed by their Line Manager / Supervisor.

3. THE PROCESS

Step 1: Completion and submission of entry form, including any supporting documentation by end of June 2026. CLICK HERE to download a preview version of the entry form. An editable version will be made available shortly. 

Step 2: Shortlisting of candidates by FABIG during July/August 2026. Short virtual interviews with shortlisted candidates may be held in order to select the Award winner.

Step 3: FABIG will contact all candidates during September 2026 to advise on the results of the selection process.

Step 4: The Award will be presented to the winner in person at the following FABIG Technical Meeting, during which the Award winner may present their work.

4. AWARD JUDGING CRITERIA

Candidates’ entries will be assessed according to the following criteria:

• Relevance to fire and explosion safety: Candidates will need to demonstrate the relevance of their work to fire & explosion safety. Work leading to an improved understanding of fires and explosions is considered relevant.
• Contribution to project(s): Candidates will need to demonstrate key responsibility / stakeholder management / significant involvement in the project(s) referred to in their submission.
• Innovation / originality: The extent to which candidates employed novel and original methods and approaches in their work.
• Impact: The extent to which the candidates’ work will benefit the industry and wider society in the context of fire & explosion safety.
• Development: The extent to which the candidates have developed their fire & explosion engineering knowledge whilst working on the project(s) referred to in their submission.

5. PRESENTATION / PUBLICATION OF WORK AT FABIG

The Award winner will be required to present their work to the FABIG Membership via either a technical article in the FABIG Newsletter, or a presentation at a FABIG Technical Meeting or Lunchtime Webinar.

ABOUT VINCENT TAM PhD, DIC, CEng, CPhys, FIChemE, FInstP, PPSE Over an illustrious career spanning more than 35 years - predominantly with BP - Vincent made significant contributions to fire and explosion engineering through his involvement in research and development, major hazard technology, inherently safer design, consequence modelling, risk assessment, hazard management, accident investigation, and the development of engineering guidance. In the latter part of his career, he served as BP’s Advisor on fire, explosion and design safety - a role reserved for around one hundred individuals recognised for exceptional expertise across the entire organisation. Vincent’s work earned numerous honours, including multiple BP awards and the IChemE Hutchison Medal. As a founding Steering Committee member of FABIG since its inception in 1992, Vincent has also played a key role in shaping the organisation into the respected body it is today. Since retiring from BP in 2014, Vincent has redoubled his efforts in research and knowledge-sharing activities, and has been passionate about developing the next generation of fire and explosion safety practitioners.