Michael Uren

Sir John Michael Leal Uren OBE (1 September 1923 – 9 August 2019) was a British businessman. He served as the chairman of Civil & Marine from 1955 to 2006. He donated GBP £40 million to his alma mater, Imperial College London, becoming the most generous benefactor in the College’s history.

Early life

Michael Uren was born on 1 September 1923. He was educated at Sherborne School and Imperial College London, from which he graduated in 1943 with a BSc in Mechanical Engineering and Motive Power.

Career

Uren founded Civil & Marine, a manufacturer of ground granulated blast-furnace slag, in 1955. In the 80’s his company developed the technology that allowed them to make high-quality cement from blast-furnace slag, a waste product of the steel industry. Uren and his business partner John Hobbins turned this invention into a profitable business.

He served as its Chairman until he sold it for GBP£245 million in 2006 to the Hanson Group.

As of 2015, he was worth an estimated GBP£170 million.

He died on 9 August 2019 at the age of 95.

Philanthropy

Uren served as the chairman of the Royal London Society for the Blind.

Uren donated GBP £30 million to the King Edward VII's Hospital Sister Agnes in 2013. In 2014, he also donated GBP£40 million to his alma mater, Imperial College London, to fund the creation of the College's new "Bio-Medical Engineering Research Centre" in White City, London, which he envisioned as becoming a cornerstone for "a new Silicon Valley" of biotechnology.

Personal life

Uren was a member of the Naval Club and the Naval and Military Club. He had two sons, David and Mark.

Honours

Uren was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 1999 and was knighted in the 2016 New Year Honours for philanthropic services.