Joining the Royal Artillery, he was captured in the Battle of Crete and spent four years as a prisoner of war in Nazi Germany.

Returning to university, he obtained a degree in mechanical science, followed in 1947 by a job as technical officer with the glass manufacturers Pilkington Brothers.

American inventors had tried several times to achieve an improved and lower-cost process to replace the costly plate glass, but had not succeeded.

These consist of cash grants for three undergraduates registered at Lancaster University for a single major or combined degree in chemistry, computing, engineering or physics.

[12] Since the mid-1990s, the University of Liverpool has used the annual Sir Alastair Pilkington Awards to honour staff members for their contributions to student learning.