{"id":16770,"date":"2025-07-21T10:04:44","date_gmt":"2025-07-21T10:04:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/westway-park.com\/?p=16770"},"modified":"2025-07-22T12:46:53","modified_gmt":"2025-07-22T12:46:53","slug":"scotland-celebrates-70-years-of-diagnostic-medical-ultrasound-with-historic-tribute","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/westway-park.com\/?p=16770","title":{"rendered":"Scotland Celebrates 70 Years of Diagnostic Medical Ultrasound with Historic Tribute"},"content":{"rendered":"

Commemorative plaque unveiled at Westway, marking pioneering milestone in medical imaging history<\/b><\/p>\n

Today, a historic milestone in global medical innovation has been celebrated with the unveiling of a commemorative plaque at Westway.<\/span><\/p>\n

On 21 July 1955,\u00a0<\/span>Professor<\/b>\u00a0<\/span>Ian Donald<\/b><\/a>, renowned as the father and pioneer of modern obstetric ultrasound visited the Babcock & Wilcox\u00a0plant in Renfrew. There, he began exploring the use of industrial ultrasound technology to detect abnormalities in human tissue. This pioneering moment laid the groundwork for what would become one of the most revolutionary advancements in 20th-century medical imaging.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Seventy years later, Scottish ultrasound technology company\u00a0<\/span>novosound<\/b><\/a>\u00a0has led a tribute to this world-first achievement, commemorating the legacy of 70 years in the field. A commemorative plaque has been installed at the Porterfield Road entrance of the Gatehouse Business Centre at Westway, the site of the former Babcock & Wilcox factory, where Altrad Babcock remains a tenant. A civic ceremony has marked the occasion, with local councillors, industry leaders and special guests in attendance.<\/span><\/p>\n

Dr Dave Hughes<\/b><\/a>, CEO and Founder of novosound<\/b>\u00a0said: \u201c<\/span>This door is where modern ultrasound was born. It\u2019s a story not just of innovation, but of Scottish ingenuity and global impact. We are proud to continue that legacy through our work in wearable medical technology.\u201d\u202f<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Councillor Jim Paterson\u00a0added: <\/b>\u201c<\/span>This plaque marks the beginning of a global transformation in how we care for human life. What started here in Renfrew 70 years ago has touched millions of families around the world. It\u2019s a proud legacy of Scottish innovation and fitting that we honour it where it all began.<\/span><\/i>\u201c<\/span><\/p>\n

Martin Dorman, VP \u2013 Asset Management\u00a0from Altrad Babcock said: <\/b>\u201c<\/span>We are proud to honour the role our Renfrew site played in a medical breakthrough. What began as industrial ultrasound testing sparked a revolution in prenatal care. Seventy years later, that legacy of innovation continues to inspire progress at the intersection of industry, healthcare, and life-changing technology.<\/span><\/i>\u201c<\/span><\/p>\n

Gregor King, Director of Canmoor said: <\/b>\u201c<\/span>As today\u2019s custodians of this historic estate, we\u2019re delighted to host the unveiling and honour a legacy rooted in innovation. This plaque marks a milestone for the countless families worldwide whose lives have been touched by ultrasound\u2019s extraordinary reach.<\/span><\/i>\u201c<\/span><\/p>\n

Among the honoured guests in attendance is Marian McNeil, one of the first babies ever to be scanned in the womb using ultrasound, a living link to this scientific breakthrough and its profound legacy.\u00a0Also attending the ceremony were\u00a0<\/span>Charlie McQueen<\/b>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/span>Eric Welsh<\/b>, both of whom share a personal connection to the site and its remarkable legacy.<\/span><\/p>\n

Charlie McQueen<\/b>,\u00a0began working at Babcock & Wilcox 72 years ago, retired in 1996, and later returned as a consultant.\u00a0Reflecting on his time there, he said:\u00a0<\/span>\u201cI met so many wonderful people, from the shop floor to the boardroom. The company was highly professional and only the best would do.\u201d<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Eric Welsh<\/b>\u00a0also attended, representing a special generational link,\u00a0his father worked at Babcock & Wilcox during the era when Professor Ian Donald first visited. Eric shared that it was a real pleasure to return to the site and meet those now leading the next chapter in ultrasound innovation.\u00a0<\/span>\u201cIt\u2019s inspiring to come back to the place that helped shape medical history and see it continuing to drive technology forward. I\u2019m proud to have worked for a company that\u2019s had such a meaningful impact on the medical industry and on people\u2019s lives.\u201d<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n

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Commemorative plaque unveiled at Westway, marking pioneering milestone in medical imaging history Today, a historic milestone in global medical innovation has been celebrated with the unveiling of a commemorative plaque at Westway. On 21 July 1955,\u00a0Professor\u00a0Ian Donald, renowned as the father and pioneer of modern obstetric ultrasound visited the Babcock & Wilcox\u00a0plant in Renfrew. There, he began exploring the use of industrial ultrasound technology to detect abnormalities in human tissue. This pioneering moment laid the groundwork for what would become one of the most revolutionary advancements in 20th-century medical imaging.\u00a0 Seventy years later, Scottish ultrasound technology company\u00a0novosound\u00a0has led a tribute to this world-first achievement, commemorating the legacy of 70 years in the field. A commemorative plaque has been installed at the Porterfield Road entrance of the Gatehouse Business Centre at Westway, the site of the former Babcock & Wilcox factory, where Altrad Babcock remains a tenant. A civic ceremony has marked the occasion, with local councillors, industry leaders and special guests in attendance. Dr Dave Hughes, CEO and Founder of novosound\u00a0said: \u201cThis door is where modern ultrasound was born. It\u2019s a story not just of innovation, but of Scottish ingenuity and global impact. We are proud to continue that legacy through our work in wearable medical technology.\u201d\u202f Councillor Jim Paterson\u00a0added: \u201cThis plaque marks the beginning of a global transformation in how we care for human life. What started here in Renfrew 70 years ago has touched millions of families around the world. It\u2019s a proud legacy of Scottish innovation and fitting that we honour it where it all began.\u201c Martin Dorman, VP \u2013 Asset Management\u00a0from Altrad Babcock said: \u201cWe are proud to honour the role our Renfrew site played in a medical breakthrough. What began as industrial ultrasound testing sparked a revolution in prenatal care. Seventy years later, that legacy of innovation continues to inspire progress at the intersection of industry, healthcare, and life-changing technology.\u201c Gregor King, Director of Canmoor said: \u201cAs today\u2019s custodians of this historic estate, we\u2019re delighted to host the unveiling and honour a legacy rooted in innovation. This plaque marks a milestone for the countless families worldwide whose lives have been touched by ultrasound\u2019s extraordinary reach.\u201c Among the honoured guests in attendance is Marian McNeil, one of the first babies ever to be scanned in the womb using ultrasound, a living link to this scientific breakthrough and its profound legacy.\u00a0Also attending the ceremony were\u00a0Charlie McQueen\u00a0and\u00a0Eric Welsh, both of whom share a personal connection to the site and its remarkable legacy. Charlie McQueen,\u00a0began working at Babcock & Wilcox 72 years ago, retired in 1996, and later returned as a consultant.\u00a0Reflecting on his time there, he said:\u00a0\u201cI met so many wonderful people, from the shop floor to the boardroom. The company was highly professional and only the best would do.\u201d\u00a0 Eric Welsh\u00a0also attended, representing a special generational link,\u00a0his father worked at Babcock & Wilcox during the era when Professor Ian Donald first visited. Eric shared that it was a real pleasure to return to the site and meet those now leading the next chapter in ultrasound innovation.\u00a0\u201cIt\u2019s inspiring to come back to the place that helped shape medical history and see it continuing to drive technology forward. I\u2019m proud to have worked for a company that\u2019s had such a meaningful impact on the medical industry and on people\u2019s lives.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":16771,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[59],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16770","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/westway-park.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16770","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/westway-park.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/westway-park.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/westway-park.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/westway-park.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=16770"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/westway-park.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16770\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16780,"href":"https:\/\/westway-park.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16770\/revisions\/16780"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/westway-park.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/16771"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/westway-park.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=16770"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/westway-park.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=16770"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/westway-park.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=16770"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}