Dr Andrew Quinn BSc(Hons), PhD, PFHEA, FIMA, CMath, CSci

• Principle Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (Advance HE), 2019
• Fellow of the Institute of Mathematics and its Applications (IMA) 2018
• Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, 2008
• Post Graduate Certificate in Learning and Teaching in Higher Education, 2008
• Chartered Scientist, 2005
• Chartered Mathematician and Member of the Institute of Mathematics and its Applications, 2001
• PhD Civil Engineering, 1996
• BSc (Hons) Mathematical Physics, 1992

Andrew read Mathematical Physics at the University of Nottingham before undertaking a PhD in Civil Engineering in conjunction with the internationally recognised Wind Engineering group at the former BBSRC Silsoe Research Institute. After successfully completing the PhD he remained at SRI for almost 10 years working on a wide range of multi- and inter-disciplinary projects funded by EPSRC, BBSRC and the EU as well as industrially funded projects including diagnosing the “wobbly” Millennium footbridge in London. This wind engineering research into atmospheric wind conditions and vehicle aerodynamics combined complex full-scale measurements, statistical analysis and computational modelling, achieving new safety standards for roadside temporary signage. Andrew’s research also led to improvements in the understanding of ventilation and pollution movement contributing to new guidelines for farm animal welfare through improved ventilation.

Andrew moved to the University of Birmingham as RCUK Research Fellow in Civil Engineering in 2005. Since taking up this role he has been involved in a wide range of research and teaching activities. He is an advocate of interdisciplinary research and its application to global challenges as embodied in the UN Sustainable Development Goals. His work has been supported by EPSRC, NERC, BBSRC, EU, government departments, such as International Development, World Bank and industry bodies, such as RSSB for the rail industry. This work has had direct impact on industry and society, for example Andrew was lead author of the International Union of Railways (UIC) climate change adaptation framework which he presented at UN CoP 24, helping railway organisations globally to improve their preparedness for extreme weather and climate impacts.

This research has led to over 50 scientific journal publication and a similar number of conference and other papers. The quality and impact of Andrew’s research has been recognised, receiving the IMechE J F Alcock Memorial Prize (2002), the IMechE WA Agnew Meritorious Award (2014) and IMechE CN Goodall Award (2014). Andrew is also a member of the EPSRC peer review college and been project prioritisation panel member for NERC and EPSRC.

Teaching Programmes

• BEng/MEng Civil Engineering
• BEng/MEng Mechanical Engineering
• MSc Railway Systems Engineering and Integration

Andrew has a distinguished track record of achievement in supporting teaching and student learning. He received the Head of College Award for Excellence in Teaching & Supporting Student Learning (2010), received a UoB Teaching Fellowship (2012-13) and was invited to take on the role of EPS Deputy Director of Education (2016). Andrew’s strategic leadership of education was recognised in the awarding of Principle Fellowship of the HEA (2019) for outstanding and sustained contributions to the development of educational practice across the institution.

Andrew currently teaches Year 1 Engineering Mathematics, and Climate Impacts for the Railway MSc. Previously he has taught a wide variety of topics including Atmospheric Science, Computer Programming, Energy Engineering, Railway Engineering, Research and Study Skills, Statics, Statistics, Technical Drawing and Natural Hazards through a wide variety of lectures, tutorials and workshops. Andrew led the final year dissertation projects in Civil Engineering for 9 years and developed principles of educational support that are now recommended practice across the university.

Andrew is a strong advocate for widening participation in higher education and has led initiatives to expand outreach activities in STEM subjects both directly and through promoting involvement in the STEM Ambassadors scheme.

Dr Quinn has supervised 15 PhD students and numerous MSc dissertation students to successful completion. These students have collectively published over 20 journal papers and many conference papers of their own and have gone on to become researchers, consultants and senior engineers. Dr Quinn currently supervises 2 PhD students and is interested in supervising doctoral research students in the following areas:

• Wind structure and statistics
• Wind effects on transport systems and vehicles
• Wind Energy resource assessment
• Climate change impact assessment on infrastructure and utilities
• Resilience of infrastructure and communities to extreme weather events

RESEARCH THEMES

Resilience; Climate Change; Vehicle Aerodynamics (Road and Rail) and Infrastructure; Transport Systems; Wind Engineering and Wind Energy resource assessment

RESEARCH ACTIVITY

Dr Quinn’s research interests cover the broad field of resilience to environmental factors, such as climate change and extreme weather events, and the field of transport systems including pollution and air-quality issues. In resilience to climate change there are significant potential long-term implications for infrastructure adaptation and use that a changing climate and changing social usage patterns will mean. In the short-term there are also significant disruptive potentials from extreme weather events, near- or beyond-capacity usage and aging infrastructure with faster or heavier vehicles. Underpinning both of these fields is an interest in the fundamental study of wind features in the atmospheric boundary layer including coherent structures, extreme wind gusts and the role of topography on wind conditions.

Dr Quinn has been involved in research projects including the 'EPSRC CDFA project Resilience through Innovation: critical local transport and utility infrastructure' and 'iBUILD' which took a multi-disciplinary approach to planning the infrastructure of the future. He was also involved in the EPSRC ARCC FUTURENET project, which first developed quantitative approaches to resilience evaluation; the EU FP7 AeroTRAIN project, which streamlined the assessment of aerodynamic safety for new trains; and 'EU WEATHER – Wind Early Alarm System for Terrestrial Transport Handling Evaluation of Risks' which seeked to improve road safety through an understanding of side-wind forces on large vehicle, a major cause of accidents. These major projects complimented many studies of road and rail vehicle slipstreams and the effect on road/trackside objects that Dr Quinn has undertaken for UK and international clients.

Currently Dr Quinn is a partner in the EU RDF project SIRMA - Strengthening Infrastructure Risk Management in the Atlantic Area. This work will build novel decision support for road and rail organisations looking to build their infrastructure resilience to the changing hazards faced in coastal areas. Dr Quinn is also a work package lead for ASAP-East Africa, the international development project helping cities in the region to develop economically whilst maintaining and improving air quality for residents. 

In the field of Wind Energy, Dr Quinn has been involved in the testing of micro-scale wind turbines and wind energy resource assessment at all scales. Underpinning this is an interest in the study of vortex structure identification, and other types of non-synoptic wind features, in the atmospheric boundary layer and their impacts on transport systems, structures and pollutant movement through the environment. This has led to several projects evaluating the risk to vehicles in exposed locations and the potential for local recapture of pollution by vegetation.

Dr Quinn has also carried out a studies of extreme wind characteristics for Network Rail, wind structure characterisation, the effects of topography and urban buildings on local wind conditions and vehicle slipstream effects, including ballast movement under high speed trains. These studies have been geared toward the improvement of safety for road and rail workers as well as the general public and has led to new operational guidelines and the revision of British Standards.

An important element of all these studies has been the interplay between full-scale measurements, computational modelling and complex data assimilation during the analysis phase. Bringing these elements together in a coherent and sensible way is a challenge because of the very different backgrounds each has developed from and the very diverse assumptions each therefore makes. This raises a number interesting practical and statistical issues for future research.

RESEARCH IDENTIFIERS

• ORCID: 0000-0003-0254-4661
• Google Scholar
• Researcher ID: B-7793-2008
• Scopus Author ID: 7102493009