Dr. David Bryant, a member of RAE’s key scientific team, was the 1998 winner of the Perkin Medal, the Society of Chemical Industry’s annual award for “innovation in applied chemistry resulting in outstanding commercial development." The Perkin Medal is considered the highest honor bestowed by the U.S. industrial chemical industry. The medal originated in 1906, commemorating the 50th anniversary of the discovery of mauveine, the world's first synthetic aniline dye, by Sir William Henry Perkin, an English chemist.