For over 35 years, Professor William Ion has shaped design education in the UK and internationally, establishing Product Design Engineering as a discipline that unites engineering design, industrial design, and manufacturing.

Early in his career, he co-developed and taught the groundbreaking Total Design course at the University of Strathclyde (1986–1991) with Professor Stuart Pugh, attracting over 300 students weekly from across engineering disciplines and setting new standards for interdisciplinary collaboration.

He went on to found the MEng Product Design Engineering programme in 1991, which remains the flagship course of Strathclyde’s Department of Design, Manufacturing and Engineering Management (DMEM). Professor Ion also played a key role in the Sharing Experience in Engineering Design (SEED) network and the establishment of the Design Education Special Interest Group (DESIG) within the Design Society, co-founding the influential E&PDE Conference, now a global annual event.

Beyond education, he has been central to manufacturing innovation as founding Director of the Advanced Forming Research Centre (AFRC) and part of the team that established the National Manufacturing Institute Scotland and the establishment of its Manufacturing Skills Academy, with a focus on lifelong learning.