| 2005 | Sir John Chisholm MA FREng |
| 2004 | John James O’Reilly DSc FREng |
| 2003 | Sir David Brown FREng CEng BSc DMS FIEE |
| 2002 | Michael John Howard Sterling FREng BEng PhD DEng |
| 2001 | Brian Mellitt FREng BTech DIC |
| 2000 | John Edwin Midwinter OBE FREng BSc PhD FRS |
| 1999 | Malcolm William Kennedy FREng BSc PhD |
| 1998 | John Michael Taylor OBE MA PhD FRS FEng |
| 1997 | David Jefferies CBE FEng |
| 1996 | Robert Hawley BSc PhD DSc FEng |
| 1995 | John Parnaby CBE PhD DEng DSc DTech DUniv FEng |
| 1994 | Professor Sir David Evan Naunton Davies CBE DSc FEng FRS |
| 1993 | Alan Walter Rudge OBE PhD FEng FRS |
| 1992 | Professor Peter John Lawrenson DSc FEng FRS |
| 1991 | Brian William Manley BSc DIC FCGI FEng |
| 1990 | David Arthur Jones BSc PhD FEng |
| 1989 | James Cadzow Smith CBE LLD FEng FRSE |
| 1988 | Thomas Bryce McCrirrick CBE DSc FEng |
| 1987 | Professor Eric Albert Ash CBE DSc FEng FRS |
| 1986 | Geoffrey Thomas Shepherd CBE BSc(Eng) DSc |
| 1985 | Admiral Sir Lindsay Sutherland Bryson KCB BSc(Eng) FEng |
| 1984 | Professor John Clifford West CBE PhD DSc FEng |
| 1983 | Maldwyn Noel John BSc FEng |
| 1982 | John Banks MEng |
| 1981 | Sir Francis Tombs BSc LLD DSc |
| 1980 | Air Marshal Sir Herbert Durkin KBE CB MA |
| 1979 | Professor John Brown MA PhD DSc(Eng) |
| 1978 | James Redmond |
| 1977 | John McIntyre Ferguson CBE BSc(Eng) |
| 1976 | Eric Stuart Booth CBE MEng FRS |
| 1975 | Robert James Clayton CBE MA |
| 1974 | James H Merriman CB OBE MSc FKC |
| 1973 | Archibald George Milne DFH |
| 1972 | Eric Eastwood CBE MSc PhD FRS |
| 1971 | John Flavell Coales OBE MA FRS |
| 1970 | Lord Nelson of Stafford MA DSc |
| 1969 | David Edmundson BSc(Eng) |
| 1968 | John Millar Meek DEng |
| 1967 | Sir Stanley Brown CBE BSc |
| 1966 | John Ashworth Ratcliffe CB CBE MA FRS |
| 1965 | Leonard Drucquer |
| 1964 | Olliver William Humphreys CBE BSc |
| 1963 | Sir Albert Henry Mumford KBE BSc(Eng) FQMC |
| 1962 | Cecil Thomas Melling CBE MScTech |
| 1961 | George Sail C. Lucas OBE FCGI |
| 1960 | Sir Hamish Duncan Maclaren KBE CB DFC LLD BSc |
| 1959 | Sir Willis Jackson DSc DPhil DEng FRS |
| 1958 | Sidney Edward Goodall MSc(Eng) FQMC |
| 1957 | Thomas Edward Goldup CBE |
| 1956 | Sir William Gordon Radley KCB CBE PhD |
| 1955 | Sir George H Nelson Baronet |
| 1954 | Josiah Eccles CBE BSc |
| 1953 | Harold Bishop CBE BSc(Eng) |
| 1952 | Colonel Bruce Hamer Leeson OBE TD |
| 1951 | Sir John Hacking |
| 1950 | Sir Archibald Joseph Gill BSc(Eng) |
| 1949 | Eric Bailleul Moullin MA ScD |
| 1948 | Thomas Graeme Nelson Haldane MA |
| 1947 | Percy Good CBE |
| 1946 | Vincent Ziani de Ferranti MC |
| 1945 | Percy Dunsheath OBE MA DSc |
| 1944 | Sir Harry Railing |
| 1943 | Colonel Sir Arthur Stanley Angwin DSO MC |
| 1942 | Cecil Lewis Fortescue OBE MA |
| 1941 | Sir Noel Ashbridge |
| 1940 | James Robert Beard MSc |
| 1939 | Johnstone Wright |
| 1938 | Arthur Percy Morris Fleming CBE DEng |
| 1937 | Lieut.-Col. Sir A. George Lee OBE MC |
| 1936 | Henry Thomas Young |
| 1935 | John Macfarlane Kennedy OBE |
| 1934 | William Mundell Thornton OBE DSc DEng |
| 1933 | Philip Vassar Hunter CBE |
| 1932 | Edgar Walford Marchant DSc |
| 1931 | John Muir Donaldson MC |
| 1930 | Clifford Copland Paterson OBE |
| 1929 | Colonel Sir Thomas Fortune Purves |
| 1928 | Kenelm Edgcumbe |
| 1927 | Archibald Page |
| 1926 | William Henry Eccles DSc FRS |
| 1925 | Richard Alexander Chattock |
| 1924 | William Bradley Woodhouse |
| 1923 | Alexander Russell MA DSc |
| 1922 | Frank Gill OBE |
| 1921 | John Somerville Highfield |
| 1920 | Llewelyn Birchall Atkinson |
| 1919 | Roger Thomas Smith |
| 1918 | Charles Henry Wordingham CBE |
| 1917 | Charles Henry Wordingham |
| 1916 | Charles Pratt Sparks |
| 1915 | Charles Pratt Sparks |
| 1914 | Sir John Francis Clerverton Snell |
| 1913 | William Duddell FRS |
| 1912 | William Duddell FRS |
| 1911 | Sebastian Ziani de Ferranti |
| 1910 | Sebastian Ziani de Ferranti |
| 1909 | Gisbert Kapp DrEng |
| 1908 | William Morris Mordey |
| 1908 | Colonel Rookes Evelyn Bell Crompton CB |
| 1907 | Lord Kelvin PC OM GCVO DCL LLD FRS |
| 1906 | Sir Richard Tetley Glazebrook MA FRS |
| 1905 | John Gavey CB |
| 1904 | Alexander Siemens |
| 1903 | Robert Kaye Gray |
| 1902 | James Swinburne |
| 1901 | William Edward Langdon |
| 1900 | John Perry DSc LLD FRS |
| 1899 | Silvanus Phillips Thompson DSc FRS |
| 1898 | Joseph Wilson Swan FRS |
| 1897 | Sir Henry Christopher Mance CIE |
| 1896 | John Hopkinson MA DSc FRS |
| 1895 | Rookes Evelyn Bell Crompton |
| 1894 | Alexander Siemens |
| 1893 | William Henry Preece CB FRS |
| 1892 | William Edward Ayrton FRS |
| 1891 | William Crookes FRS |
| 1890 | John Hopkinson MA DSc FRS |
| 1889 | Sir William Thomson DCL LLD FRS |
| 1888 | Edward Graves |
| 1887 | Sir Charles Tilston Bright |
| 1886 | David Edward Hughes FRS |
| 1885 | Charles Ernest Spagnoletti |
| 1884 | William Grylls Adams FRS |
| 1883 | Willoughby Smith |
| 1882 | Lieut-Col Charles Edmund Webber RE CB |
| 1881 | George Carey Foster FRS |
| 1880 | William Henry Preece |
| 1879 | Lieut-Col John Underwood Bateman-Champain RE |
| 1878 | Charles William Siemens DCL FRS |
| 1877 | Frederick Augustus Abel FRS |
| 1876 | Charles Vincent Walker FRS |
| 1875 | Latimer Clark |
| 1874 | Sir William Thomson LLD FRS |
| 1873 | Frank Ives Scudamore CB |
| 1872 | Charles William Siemens DCL FRS |
