MICHAEL BRUCE SCOTT

Mike was the person responsible for getting me into Geotechnical testing work. I came to STL in 1971 as a lab tech. Lisa is right he never saw jobs as boys or girls jobs just expected as all to get it done one way or another. He was a great teacher and a good boss. Site visits with him were always enjoyable but often challenging in a good way. Working with Scotty started me out on a career that found me work wherever I ended up and lasted 20 years both in the UK and Canada. I always looked forward to visiting Mike and Glen whenever I returned to England. How many people can say they have kept in touch with their first boss for over 50 years. The world will be a poorer place without him.

Dear Mike, I'm sad to know the world no longer has you within it. We met doing 'dog things', first at agility when we were both newbies, then doing things with sheep and dogs. You took this interest to heart and perfected the art of working sheepdogs, all in your own highly individual manner. We lived nearby and you often popped in when you came to 'do' the sheep in Cowden. We had Tess, one of your gorgeous sheepdog puppies, and you kindly looked after her for us when we were away. You took Tess with you to some trials, where she apparently nipped one of your friends who stretched out a hand to greet her, and that ended up in a trip to hospital rather than enjoying the trials. Oops! Glen showed us how to find field mushrooms, but we were never brave enough to eat them! Thank you for a memorable Christmas, spent with you at Kronkup, all enjoyed in a typically relaxed Scott style. Both of you embraced life to the full and I feel privileged to have known you.

Sincere Condolences to Glen and family on the passing of Michael. Our thoughts are with you all at this time. Apologies I couldn't make the funeral but will be watching to the service on line.

Have SO many happy memories of us all being together - Birthday parties together for me and Lisa Lisa and Karen living with us for a while and going to school together and long distance phone calls to you both From introducing me to bees at Cowden and then being attacked by a swarm of them chasing and attacking us and Glen hiding in the shed! Us 'kids' trying to sell wild garlic to passing drivers. From so many meals together and Mike falling asleep mid sentence! Some fascinating and interesting conversations on a huge variety of topics Travelling round the country going to sheep trials with a variety of dogs. Your home being our second home and sleep overs. Endless Christmases together and then our completely different sunny Christmas when we visited you and celebrated Oz style. This is just a small flavour of loads of happy memories together. He was an amazing man and will be missed. Love to you all, Louise xxxx

Sending love to Glenn, Karen, Lisa & Blair. Mike was always so very kind to me. I remember his clever conversation.......and then him falling asleep mid conversation. I enjoyed learning how to shear a sheep with Mike and how to herd sheep from one field to another. I am still disappointed that not all dogs are as impeccably behaved as Mike's always were.

I’m so sorry to hear about Michael …. What a gentle interesting and patient man he was …. I have a vision of him now in the house in East Grinstead at the top of the table surrounded by random friends of Lisa’s … carving a turkey, dishing out Glenn’s famous cauliflower cheese and regaling us with stories of his beloved dogs and his fascinating career ….. and then he fell asleep ! I knew Michael such a short time when Lisa and I lived together in Liverpool whilst studying for our masters degrees ….. but he was always very easy to talk to and a great storyteller…. he will be sadly missed by all who knew him …. Love and strength to Glenn Lisa Blair and Karen and all the grandkids and extended family xx

I enjoyed working for Mike for all of my 24 years at STL and always found him a genuinely lovely, warm and generous boss and a friend. I think of him with fondness and smile when I remember him dropping off during meetings and the Burns Night he organised complete with the piper and his rendition of " address to a haggis". RIP Mike

Mike was a force to be reckoned with, a wise mentor, a keen sheep dog owner, obsessed with spicy food, a skilled apiarist, my boss (briefly), and most importantly, a friend. Mum and Glen met at antenatal classes, so we have known the Scotts our entire lives, they have truly been a second family to us. Spending time as the guests of Glen and Mike was such a welcoming experience. The house was constantly full of all manner of random visitors and after dinner stories from Mike kept us all both deeply engrossed and highly amused! His antics, and the tales of past adventures (I can still be found quietly chuckling to myself about some) will be deeply missed. We are all so blessed to have been lucky enough to have spent the time we did with him. Our love goes out to Glen, Karen, Lisa, Blair and the extended family. Fondly, the Osborns.

It was with great sadness that we received the news from his family that Mike Scott has passed away. As one of the founding Directors of Southern Testing Laboratories, Road Material Testing Laboratories and Keeble House Ltd., Mike was well respected for his expertise and professionalism as a Consultant Civil Engineer. He came from a background of road and bridge engineering having worked on the Forth Road Bridge and construction of the M1 motorway. During his years at STL he enabled the company to develop and grow into the significant geotechnical and geoenvironmental company which continues to this day. His work encompassed worldwide achievements with projects in Ethiopia, West Africa, Southern Africa and Australia although his projects were mainly concentrated in the UK and Ireland. He will be remembered by many colleagues and clients as a highly respected man and by the landmarks that changed life for the better. We extend our deepest sympathy to Glenn and her children and grandchildren for their great loss. Our thoughts and prayers are with you at this sad time.

We remember Mike as a true and trusted friend over many years. He was wise counsel and generous with his time. Above all we'd pay tribute to the way he encouraged so many youngsters at the start of their careers to explore possibilities and to find avenues for development (not simply in his own field of soils engineering). He was entertaining company in a convivial evening (when not falling asleep) and a man with an eclectic range of interests and a wide ranging curiosity. Our abiding image is of Mike, descending the Gullage byway with the Times open in front of him somehow oblivious to the stones and pitfalls with the dogs trotting by his side. It was a privilege and pleasure to know him. Lovely fellow.

Mike, (universally referred to as 'Scottie' by the staff) was instrumental in the success of Southern Testing and was a force to be reckoned with if you were a graduate engineer placed under his wing, as I, and many others were. A great engineer and a greater character, he led by example, and did so with humour, fairness and confidence. It was a great learning experience to go out on site with Mike, practical experience mixed with tales of sheep dogs, bee keeping and Jamaican road building! A fair few 'Scottie-isms' have stood the test of time and are still repeated to this day by those of us still in the business that worked with him, a testament to his influence, and the fondness with which people remember him.

I joined Southern Testing in 1987 and worked with “Scottie” for 20 years before he retired and I moved on with Richard. I have many fond memories of him during those days. Yes he was at sometimes an infuriating boss but always kind and always fair. He led by example, never shirked the mud nor hard work. I am particularly grateful for the way he and Mike H gave me opportunities in was, at that time, a very male dominated industry. He was ahead of his time in many ways, embracing IT before it was the norm. A true inspiration.

We have known Mike since before his marriage. Attended the wedding & have always been very close to the family. Many wonderful times have been spent together. Great weekends, our escape from London. Sheep dog trials & met his wonderful dogs. He even tried to teach me but the dog knew exactly what to do. We shall miss him terribly & today is his birthday! Goodbye special friend.

I remember going with Mike to get a bee’s nest from someone’s garage in East Grinstead and driving back home in his small car with the whole car buzzing and me in a mini-panic while Mike just acted as if it was the most natural thing ever. Could barely see out the windscreen. Also vividly remember him teaching me how to shear a sheep with clippers and I kept knicking the poor ewe while Mike was saying “just keep going, don’t show her you don’t know what you’re doing”. Still laugh out loud sometimes when I think of that. The world needs more people like him and his passing will be felt by all who knew him.

I didn't know Michael all that well, and don't think I've seen the man since the 90s, when Lisa and I were doing our MSc together, and before we both left the UK. But I remember him very, very fondly. Sharp as a knife, warm as an open fire, funny as hell. A life well lived, for sure, and a man who'll be missed by many.

Mike was my first (and easily most memorable) proper boss. Charismatic, sharp, witty, argumentative and infuriating in equal measure. As with all great role models he taught me a lot about how to lead (and how not to lead) and will be very fondly remembered for all that I learnt from him.