Ramsey-based watchmaker Roger Smith has been awarded a doctorate by a university in England.

Professor David Roberts of Birmingham City Univeristy spoke of Mr Smith’s work as ’an example of the desire to do what you do with the highest degree of invention and perfection’.

Mr Smith was also recently awarded an OBE.

Mr Smith says he believes strongly that the awards were a reflection on a revitalised and optimistic British watchmaking sector.

He said that he was receiving his doctorate ’at the very moment when Britain’s watchmaking sector is itself graduating - back on to the world stage’.

’These are exciting times for British horology and our place, back at the leading edge of global watchmaking, is rightful,’ he said.

In his acceptance speech, Mr Smith also offered his own reflections and advice to the graduates, who he referred to as ’our creative future’.

He commented on the benefit his own career had enjoyed by firstly identifying a ’life’s work’, and then identifying a mentor to help nurture that objective.

’A great boss or mentor, early in your career, can actually help to define it. And a bad one can help derail it,’ he said.

Before the ceremony, Mr Smith had also enjoyed a tour of Birmingham City University’s facilities in the faculty of arts, design and media, as well as giving a lecture on mechanical watchmaking to the horological students. In this, Mr Smith told students about his approach to advancing mechanical watchmaking through developing his single wheel co-axial escapement.

In comparing the technical virtues of this to previous escapement designs, he emphasised the imperative for mechanical watchmaking to continue striving for improvements in efficiency, performance and longevity.

In summing his two days at Birmingham City University, Roger said: ’I admit to being completely bowled over by the occasion and I feel greatly honoured.’