Arthur Francis Small CNZM (26 February 1946 – 5 March 2021) was a New Zealand engineer and scouting leader. He served as the national president of Scouting New Zealand, as well as the vice-chairman of the Asia-Pacific Regional Scout Committee.[1]
Francis Small | |
|---|---|
| Born | Arthur Francis Small 26 February 1946 Palmerston North, New Zealand |
| Died | 5 March 2021 (aged 75) Wellington, New Zealand |
| Alma mater | University of Auckland |
| Scientific career | |
| Thesis | Hydroelastic excitation of cylinders (1971) |
| Doctoral advisor | Arved Raudkivi |
| 82nd President of IPENZ | |
| In office 1996–1997 | |
| Preceded by | Douglas Armstrong |
| Succeeded by | John Philip Blakeley |
| National president of Scouting New Zealand | |
Early life
Small was born in 1946,[2][3] He studied civil engineering at the University of Auckland, completing a Master of Engineering degree in 1969,[4] and a PhD in 1971.[5] His doctoral thesis, supervised by Arved Raudkivi, was titled Hydroelastic excitation of cylinders.[6]
Career
Joining the New Zealand Railways Department in 1964, Small rose to become managing director of New Zealand Rail in 1990 and its successor, Tranz Rail.[7] He retired from Tranz Rail in 2000 and was replaced, as managing director, by Michael Beard in May of that year.[8] Small was then vice-chairman for some time.[9] For his services to the transport industry and the community, he was appointed a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the 2000 New Year Honours.[10]
In 1999, Small was appointed by the National Government as one of three people on the high-profile INCIS inquiry into the failed computer system that had been ordered by New Zealand Police in the 1990s. Early in 2000 after a change to the Labour Government, the other two members were dispensed with and Small conducted the enquiry by himself.[11][12] Small's report on INCIS was published in November 2000.[13]
Small was a Distinguished Fellow of the Institution of Professional Engineers New Zealand (IPENZ) and was the group's president in 1996–97.[3][7] In 2013, he received an individual award from the Railway Technical Society of Australasia for outstanding service to New Zealand's rail industry.[7] In 2015, he founded the Francis Small Scholarship at the University of Auckland, available to civil, electrical, mechanical or chemical engineering students.[14]
In 1999, Small was awarded the 278th Bronze Wolf, the only distinction of the World Organization of the Scout Movement, awarded by the World Scout Committee for exceptional services to world scouting.[15]
Small died in Wellington on 5 March 2021.[16]
