It is with great sadness that the wider rail community and various public relations bodies have announced the loss of former friend and colleague Bernard Ault, aged 85.
A long-term advocate of greater communication and networking in the rail business and media, Bernard revolutionised the way in which railway engineering, in particular, liaised with the press and media in general.
Bernard began his lengthy and illustrious railway career as an engineering apprentice in the early 1950s at Derby’s famous old Locomotive works. It was there that, in his first supervisory role in work study, he began to appreciate the connectivity required in all forms of communicating effectively.
Progressing to become the public relations officer for British Rail Engineering for many years, and then leading project teams for mechanical engineering within the industry and latterly British Rail Maintenance Ltd, he totally changed contemporary thinking in communicative terms, ensuring that senior managers and staff in general were equipped to understand fully the importance of communicating effectively and handling the press.
Upon retiring, Bernard took up the role as a school governor, in addition to his lay preaching activities and support of the church.
He will be sorely missed far and wide within the industry he loved and never lost touch with.
