Miles Kennedy had a career as a distinguished chemical engineer and educator.
Miles was one of the early graduates of the newly established chemical engineering degree at Canterbury University College. He then completed a PhD in chemical engineering at Cambridge University in England.
After returning to New Zealand, Miles worked at the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR).
In 1960 he was appointed Senior Lecturer in applied chemistry at the University of Otago, Dunedin. In 1965 Miles took up the position of Professor and Head of the chemical engineering department at the University of Canterbury .
Miles served as President of Institution of Professional Engineers New Zealand (IPENZ) in 1981.