The first event of its kind was held at the Westminster Abbey. It's a Thanksgiving service and it is also designed to represent those from the engineering community. The multi-faith service was very well timed as it was designed to celebrate the Year of Engineering and even the Institution of Civil Engineers. They even had testimonies from ambassadors such as Roma Agrawal MBE and even Deborah Porter.

Colonel Porter went on to state that injured soldiers are benefiting from the engineering advancements that have been made. This is especially the case for those who work in prosthetics. This is a first for the Abbey. She even went on to talk about the idea of osseointegration as well, as this happens when the prosthetic is connected to the bone of the patient. Those who work in engineering recruitment or even technical recruitment will understand more than anyone what a big move this is.

The opening statement was delivered by Dame Ann Dowling. She is the president of the Royal Academy of Engineering. She quoted the Duke of Edinburgh when she was asked to try and describe the profession. She also stated that engineering expertise will be the key to tackling the global challenges that are going to be faced in the years to come. On top of this, engineers are going to play a central role when it comes to addressing the effects of things like climate change and even the ever-rising sea levels. This will help to ensure that the population always have access to things like clean energy and even food as well. This will also have a huge impact on healthcare as well, so this is something else that needs to be taken into consideration when you look at the event as a whole.