Industrial Advisory Panel

Andreas is a chartered engineer, having graduated with a degree and a PhD from the Civil and Environmental Engineering department of UCL in 1988. He went on to work in the oil and gas sector for more than thirty years, holding senior positions for major international engineering, construction and service companies including Halliburton Brown and Root, Saipem/ENI and Petrofac.

His roles over the years ranged from corporate director, commercial, supply chain, technical and project management and has worked on projects in the UK North Sea, the US Gulf of Mexico, Australia, the Far East and North Africa amongst others. He formed Aelkemi Ltd in 2016 to provide bespoke energy consulting and advisory services, focussing on renewable energy projects. He is part of a team developing a waste to energy project in Cyprus.

He sits on the steering committee of the Cycladic Preservation Fund, a charity supporting biodiversity initiatives on land and in marine environments, an advisor to Cerulean Winds in the UK, Visiting Professor and Chairperson of UCL’s Civil Engineering Industrial Advisory Panel and a Director of the UK-Cyprus Enterprise Council.

Liam is co-founder/owner of Platform - a development manager and project delivery advisory company that was formed in 2010. Platform is a niche operator that works on a broad range of projects for landowners and investors. These projects vary in size and complexity; location (London, regional UK and continental Europe); and use/sector (commercial office, hotel, healthcare, residential and culture/arts).

Before establishing Platform, Liam led the master planning and development of the 13-acre More London estate from inception to completion, liaising with investors and funders to define the development brief and deliver the vision for this important regeneration project. As development director, he was responsible for the selection, appointment, briefing and management of the design teams appointed for each project within this multi-phase development.

Prior to More London Liam worked for commercial office development companies and as a project manager. He is a chartered engineer and started his career as a structural engineer working for a practice of consulting engineers.

Sophie Collier CEng MIStructE is Structural Engineering Lead at AUAR (Automated Architecture Ltd), a multidisciplinary start-up developing a system for the automated design and robotic manufacture of sustainable timber housing.

She graduated from UCL CEGE in 2018 before gaining extensive consultancy experience at Elliott Wood Partnership, where she delivered a wide range of projects, from large-scale commercial developments to parametrically designed sculptural installations. At AUAR, Sophie leads the integration of structural timber engineering into software and design for manufacture and assembly (DfMA), with a strong focus on holistic sustainability.

Her work combines technical rigour with a systems-thinking approach to rethink how we design and build. She has also contributed to experimental design-led projects such as the BuGa Fibre Pavilion at ITKE Stuttgart, and has taught at The Bartlett School of Architecture, sharing her passion for innovative, sustainable and collaborative design.

Port Hydrographer at Port of London Authority (PLA), John started his career afloat at 18 years old undertaking yacht deliveries and, having decided a maritime professional career was his lot, enrolled on the Liverpool Maritime Studies Course achieving a 1st class honours degree.

Racal survey was his first foray into the Hydrographic world as an offshore surveyor and then party chief in the Oil and Gas sector overseas and in the North Sea, moving to the PLA in 1996 where he worked as a surveyor for 10 years, becoming the Deputy Hydrographer and Commercial Manager in 2005 and Port Hydrographer in 2019. Responsible for the surveying and charting of the 400 sq. miles of the river Thames and estuary, supporting safe marine operations of the UK’s largest port and the capital, from Teddington in the West to the southern North Sea.

John is a Chartered Marine Scientist through IMarEST and sits on the Board of the Hydrographic Society and delivering an IHO recognised CAT-A MSc in Hydrographic Surveying at UCL now in its 25th year.

Joanna Dimitriadis is a Chartered Engineer, with 20+ years’ experience in the UK construction sector. She joined Skanska after graduating from UCL with a BEng and a MSc in Civil Engineering and has since worked on the construction of building and infrastructure projects. Notable achievements include the construction of The Royal London Hospital, HMP Thameside, the Elizabeth Line new station at Paddington, the Outernet, and several mixed-use commercial buildings in central London.

She currently holds the position of Engineering Lead in Skanska’s preconstruction building team and, in this early contractor involvement role, she is responsible for the development of permanent and temporary works design solutions that optimise cost, programme and carbon reduction opportunities.

Joanna actively serves as a STEM ambassador, a Professional Reviewer for the Institution of Civil Engineers and a mentor for Skanska’s engineering graduates.

Dr. John Harris is a Technical Director at HR Wallingford and is both a Chartered Engineer and Chartered Marine Scientist with specialist skills in numerical hydrodynamic modelling, turbulence and sediment transport. John has over 34 years’ experience in the application and development of turbulence models for modelling wave and wave-current boundary layer interaction in the coastal zone and over 33 years’ experience in the application of numerical models for river, coastal and estuarine studies. He also has specialist knowledge of hydraulic, sediment transport and wave modelling techniques, and in particular scour and boundary layer processes and is one of the UK’s authorities on marine scour.

To date John has worked on various aspects of wind farm developments and has worked on around 80% of built or currently planned wind farms in the UK and is the co-author of several industry guidance documents including “Dynamics Of Scour Pits And Scour Protection” and the COWRIE “Modelling Best Practice Guide”. John was a co-recipient of the Sir William Halcrow Maritime Prize in 2010 and the David Hislop Award in 2011 presented by the Institution for Civil Engineers.

John was the Chair of the Editorial Panel for the Institution of Civil Engineers Maritime Engineering Journal from 2016 – 2020 and between 2017 – 2020 the Royal Academy of Engineering Visiting Professor in Coastal and Offshore Engineering at UCL. John is currently the Honorary Professor in Coastal and Offshore Engineering at UCL.

Steve is an award-winning structural engineer with extensive experience in the design of buildings and special structures. He is the Structural Engineering Discipline Leader for Arup London and leads multidisciplinary and structural engineering design teams for projects in London and across the world.

Steve’s team recently completed 8 Bishopsgate and The Scalpel, in The City. He is leading the design of retrofits at The Acre, in Covent Garden and Park Tower Hotel in Knightsbridge and has designed the six new prestressed stone masonry towers at the centre of the Basilica of La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona.

Steve is co-author of the Concrete Centre guide to the design of tall buildings. He has spoken recently within the industry on tall building design methods; low carbon design, BIM and scripted optimisation; as well as approaches to high-risk structures; viscous damping; core prestressing; design for manufacture and the design and construction of T5, Heathrow.

Caragh McWhirr leads Xodus’ Hydrogen Xcellence Hub, using a technical expertise that spans multiple engineering disciplines over 20 years in the energy sector. She steers a team of specialists in tracking global policy, market trends, and technological advancements, shaping strategic pathways for both Xodus and its clients in the fast-growing hydrogen sector.

Caragh was instrumental in development of a pioneering 150MW hydrogen production facility in Western Australia, where her team’s innovative approach allowed the project’s value and scalability to be demonstrated. She also co-led the Bacton Energy Hub Infrastructure Special Interest Group, fostering the development of a hydrogen hub in East England. Caragh was an influential part-time secondee at The Net Zero Technology Centre for four years, supporting key hydrogen initiatives including Scotland’s Net Zero Roadmap and a report for Scottish Enterprise on ‘Development of Early Green Hydrogen in Scotland’.

Elena Rinaldi, a Chartered Engineer (CEngMICE), has a dynamic and results-driven career spanning over 30 years in the built environment field. She has extensive experience in design, business development, client relationship management, and strategic planning.

Elena has worked in various roles across New Zealand, Italy, and the UK, including design positions at Buro Happold Engineers and Beca. Her expertise extends to the education sector, where she has significantly contributed to the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE). As the Academic Partnerships Manager, she leads innovative programs to enhance collaboration between ICE and higher education institutions, increasing student membership and engagement.

Elena also spearheaded the ICE team in the EngTechNOW initiative, transforming the promotion of engineering technician qualifications. Her leadership and creative thinking have made her a respected figure in both engineering and education, driving impactful changes and fostering strong professional networks.

A Chartered Civil Engineer with more than 30 years’ experience as a rail engineering consultant, Julian worked for British Rail, Atkins, and Steer Davies Gleave before setting up Cadenza Transport Consulting Ltd in 2015 which he continues to lead.

Julian has worked on transport schemes (particularly railways) in the UK, Europe and Middle East, ranging from small feasibility studies to development of major railways. He now focuses on providing strategic advice (including asset management), early-stage feasibility designs, and multidisciplinary project management.

Julian loves working with young engineers and sharing whatever he can to help them grow in confidence and enthusiasm. He has been a part of the CEGE IAP for more than ten years and feels privileged to see at close hand how the department has grown and developed in that time.

José works in the field of fire safety where he specializes in complex environments such as complex urban environments, novel architectures, new construction materials, critical infrastructure, aircraft and spacecraft. José is a Chartered Engineer (UK), a Registered Professional Engineer in Queensland, a fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering (UK), The Royal Society of Edinburgh (UK), The Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering, the Society of Fire Protection Engineers (USA), the Institution of Fire Engineers (UK) and the Institution of Civil Engineers (UK).

Katherine has worked as a Structural Engineer for over 20 years in a variety of roles including design consultancy, specialist memberbased advisory and academia. She is currently a Professor of Structural Engineering in the Department of Civil, Environmental & Geomatic Engineering (CEGE) at University College London (UCL) and is also a Chartered Engineer (CEng) and a Fellow of both the Institution of Structural Engineers (FIStructE) and the Institution of Civil Engineers (FICE). Prior to joining UCL in November 2022, Katherine worked as a Reader in Structural Engineering at Brunel University London (2012-2022), a Senior Structural Engineer at the Steel Construction Institute (2010-2012) and a Senior Engineer at High Point Rendel Ltd (2009-2010). Prior to this, she was a Research Assistant at Imperial College London.

At UCL, Katherine leads a very active research group and is also the Director of Studies for the Department of Civil, Environmental & Geomatic Engineering. She is engaged in teaching at both undergraduate and postgraduate level. Her principal research interests lie in the area of structural testing, numerical modelling and the development of efficient design guidance for steel and composite structures. In particular, she has developed an expertise in the analysis of structural response during extreme loading conditions, such as a fire. She is also actively engaged in researching the use of novel materials such as stainless steel, high strength steel and FRP’s in building and infrastructural applications. She has been principal investigator for various research projects, including a current £2m project looking at strategic use of stainless steel for more resilient steel structures.

Katherine has served on a number of panels and committees at the IStructE, including the Education Committee (2019-current, including a term as Chair in 2020), and was also a member of Council from 2020- 2022. She is a Board member of the Joint Board of Moderators (JBM), representing both IStructE and ICE.

Helen finished her PhD and research fellowship at Churchill and Pembroke College, Cambridge, respectively, and is a member of the International Technical Committee TC105 Geo-mechanics from Micro to Macro in the International Society of Social Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering (ISSMGE). Her research interest is on granular geomechanics, in particular using the discrete element modelling on understanding micro-particle interaction mechanisms of geotechnical and soil systems. These include behaviour of crushable soils, transitional soils, sand-silt soil mixtures, methane hydrate bearing soils, soil liquefaction, pile foundations, soil reinforcement, sustainable uses of waste tyres, and recycled crushed glass and soilbags, etc.

Her publications on crushable soil mechanics published in Geotechnique have attracted more than 300 citations each. Her publications based on a EPSRC funded research on gap-graded soil also attracted close to 200 citations. Helen has published more than 60 peer-reviewed articles to date. She also served as editor for several international journals, including Getechnique, Geotechnique Letters, Computers and Geotechnics, and the Open-Access Frontier in Built environment and mdpi journals of Sustainability and fractal.

Before his tenure at UCL, Carmine led and participated in catastrophe risk modelling projects exceeding $5 million at AIR Worldwide in San Francisco, CA, USA, working with clients such as the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank. His research focuses on developing and applying probabilistic and statistical methods, as well as computational tools, for catastrophe risk modelling and disaster risk reduction. He investigates risks to building portfolios and infrastructure exposed to multiple natural hazards, including earthquakes, typhoons, and floods, with particular emphasis on low-income countries and community assets. 

Carmine has authored >300 peer-reviewed journal and conference articles (>130 articles in Q1 journals); his research (>£6.5M as a Project Lead) is funded by a variety of national and international public and private sources. He is the Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction; an Associate Editor for the Bulleting of Earthquake Engineering; a Handling Editor for the Journal of Earthquake Engineering and Nature Communications Engineering; and one of the Founders and the Executive Editor for Operations for Seismica, a new community-driven Diamond Open Access journal publishing peer-reviewed research in seismology and earthquake science and engineering.