Born in what is now Bellshill in Lanarkshire, he studied engineering at Anderson’s College, now Strathclyde University, and at Glasgow University. In 1873, on the recommendation of his professor, he was awarded the post of first Principal and professor of engineering at the newly constructed Imperial College of Engineering (ICE) in Japan, where he played a major part in revolutionising the Japanese engineering education system. He greatly contributed to the progress Japan made to become an industrial giant, and contributed much to Scottish and Anglo-Japanese relations.