Star Refrigeration's engineer Sam Gills honoured with CIBSE Student of the Year North East Award

NEWCASTLE, England, April 25, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Sam Gills, Design Engineer at Star Refrigeration, has been honoured with the Chartered Institution of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE) Student of the Year North East award, recognising his outstanding academic achievements in Building Services Engineering at Teesside University.

Sam, currently in his second year of a part-time BEng in Building Services Engineering, earned this prestigious accolade after achieving the highest overall grade in his course. Reflecting on this achievement, Sam shared, "It is a huge honour to be awarded CIBSE Student of the Year North East and is certainly a great milestone in my academic and professional career. To have my work recognised by CIBSE, Star Refrigeration, and Teesside University is a great feeling and pushes me to continue trying my hardest."

This award adds to a series of achievements in Sam's career. He has previously been named ACR Trainee of the Year in 2017, won a bronze medal at the Skill Fridge national finals in 2018, and received the Student of the Year award at the RAC Cooling Awards in 2019. These milestones highlight Sam's consistent dedication to both his academic studies and his professional work in the refrigeration industry.

Star Refrigeration has been a pivotal part of Sam's success. Sam Gills said, "Star has fully supported and invested in my professional development throughout my whole career, from an apprentice to a design engineer. The support from colleagues and management has helped me build my confidence and has allowed me to improve in my work and further studies." 

Sam began his career at Star Refrigeration as an industrial refrigeration apprentice with the Operations Group in Newcastle and became a fully qualified engineer in July 2019. He was offered a full time position as an Industrial Refrigeration Engineer, progressing through the company's structured technician grading system. With a keen interest in expanding his technical knowledge, Sam requested to undertake an HNC in Building Services Engineering and Star supported his ambitions by facilitating day release to allow him to study alongside his work commitments.

After successfully completing his HNC, Sam applied for and was appointed to an engineering role in the Design Department. His development has been further supported through enrolment in a Building Services Engineering BEng (Hons) degree, which he is currently undertaking alongside his responsibilities as a Design Engineer.

Greg Collins, Principal Design Engineer at Star Refrigeration, and Sam's line manager, said, "We are delighted to congratulate Sam on winning the CIBSE Student of the Year North East Award. His dedication and hard work throughout his career have been remarkable, and we are proud to support his continued development.

"He has consistently demonstrated a strong commitment to professional development and has achieved several milestones and recognition across the industry. Sam continues to build on both his practical skills and academic knowledge as part of his ongoing growth.

"We look forward to seeing Sam build on his success and continue making a valuable contribution to both the business and the wider industry"

Sam attributes his academic success to effective time management and focus. "Balancing work and study hasn't always been easy, but achieving the highest grade overall so far in the course is something I am proud of myself for. I try to stay focused and plan my time carefully to avoid leaving assignments until the last minute, which has helped me keep on track."

Sam's career at Star has been marked by continued growth and achievement. Looking to the future, Sam is excited about the ongoing support from Star as he continues to progress both academically and professionally.

Star Refrigeration congratulates Sam on this remarkable achievement and looks forward to his continued contributions to the company and the engineering field.

CIBSE is a leading authority and standard setter in building services engineering globally. To find out more visit https://www.cibse.org/.

To find out more about Star Refrigeration careers, visit https://www.star-ref.co.uk/

SOURCE Star Refrigeration