ACBE Newsletter No 22 February 2024

School of Architecture,
Building & Civil Engineering
Newsletter Issue 22
February 2024
Tell us your news!

If you would like to include your news and photos
on any aspect of your work, as well as School social
activities, Kay Davey (K.A.Davey@lboro.ac.uk) will be
very happy to receive these at any time.
We are also inviting suggestions or short guest articles
(max 500 words) so if there is something you would like
to write about relating to the School, or have an idea
that someone else might do(!) please let Kay know.
Image: C-DICE celebrates postdoctoral researchers

at the National Postdoc Conference 2023, featured on page 20.
Courtesy: Phil Wilson, Loughborough University Photographers,
Marketing and Advancement
School of Architecture, Building & Civil Engineering Newsletter Issue 22
Dean’s Is change the only

Column constant?
Earlier this year I needed to develop Perhaps it’s a slight exaggeration to

some new mathematics lectures suggest that ‘change is the only constant’,
for our Architectural Engineering but it’s certainly true to say that the
students. It was tougher than I had world of higher education is facing
anticipated – given the 32 years that significant challenges, and will change as
had elapsed since I last had cause to a consequence. Some of these challenges
use Taylor series! But it reminded me are clear, such as how to make £9250 per
of the various assumptions we make student go further! Others are less so,
when using mathematics. Making such as what courses will students want
assumptions, such as keeping things in 2030? However, I can assure you that
constant, enables us to solve a problem this School, and this University, are in a
that would not be possible otherwise. As strong position to navigate these exciting
convenient as it might sound, you cannot challenges.
run a School like a set of simultaneous
Students recognise the value of being
equations! I can’t force things to be
part of a School where academics talk to
constant, and making assumptions is
audiences all over the world about their
very risky! More specifically, our key
research, and, following recent interviews,
input parameters – such as Government
there is absolutely no doubt in my mind
policy, student expectations, research
that people are attracted to this School
priorities and global pandemics, – are
because of the research we do. Refining
largely out of our control and subject to
and refreshing our educational offering
change.
will be essential, but we will do this as an
In general, people don’t like change: “internationally engaged research-intensive
it can make it harder to plan, harder university”.
to be efficient, and sometimes render
As the world around us changes, how will
previous activities redundant. When I
you respond?
come into the office at the beginning
of the week, only one thing is certain:
there will be surprises, whether it be
lemon drizzle cake or the sad news of Malcolm Cook
someone’s suffering. (Dean)
page 2 January 2024

Education
and Student Experience
Matt Frost, Associate Dean (Teaching)
Part A Collaborative Design Project

ABCE Part A students were engaged in a outside their immediate disciplines that hopefully
collaborative design effort to create something for set them up for the rest of their studies. The
the University. process for the week followed a tried and tested
275 students were put into 48 inter-disciplinary regime that involved five stages: Monday exploring
teams, drawing from across all School disciplines. (finding a problem to address), Tuesday inspiring
It was a huge effort, expertly coordinated by (coming up with three solutions to Monday’s
Dr Cansu Curgen-Gurpinar, with help from problem), Wednesday evaluating (selecting the best
Dr Tom Dijkstra and Professor Chris Goodier. idea to go forward), Thursday finalising and Friday
The teams were split across 6 rooms and these delivering. On Friday, all 48 groups presented their
were facilitated by a large team of colleagues, work using a set of posters.
including Tom, Dr Tim Marjoribanks, Our very own Estates and Facilities Management
Dr Craig Morton, Professor Marcus Enoch, (E&FM) team again acted as the client. All putting
Dr Andrew Timmis and Martin Mejia Tamariz / in a lot of their time to guide the students. It is
Dr Steven Firth, who in turn, received great support tremendous that we receive this continued support,
from Dr Asya Natapov, Rebecca Scott, and we cannot thank them enough.
Muhammad Umer Jadoon, Neda Abbasimaleki, This collaborative design week is held up as an
Negin Sadeghi, Edwin Sam-Mbomah, exemplar in The University of what is possible in a
Marlena Swan and Kun Wang. It was great to have truly integrated, collaborative School. Our students,
support from so many Doctoral Researchers, having only just arrived at university, developed
adding a unique and vibrant input to the activities. solutions to real-world problems and had their
Engagement from the students was exemplary, and ideas and views taken seriously. They said they felt
they forged connections with other Part A students valued, and recognised they had achieved a lot!
ASHRAE Conference, Florida Ginger Scoggins,

The ASHRAE conference was held in Tampa, Florida, in June 2023, P.E., Fellow ASHRAE,
Professor Mahroo Eftekhari was officially elected as a member of 2023-24 ASHRAE President said:
ASHRAE Board of Directors (BOD), 2023-2026. She was elected as “We are living in a climate
Director and Regional Chair of ASHRAE European Region XIV, and emergency. Our desire to be more
then voted by ASHRAE members as BOD. This is a great achievement comfortable has brought us to
and will greatly impact global reputation of LU. a place where we need to make
uncomfortable decisions. We
ASHRAE is a global society with the mission to serve humanity by can accept the challenge of our
advancing the arts and science of heating, ventilation, air conditioning, day regarding the impact of our
and refrigeration. The presidential theme for the 2023-24 ASHRAE buildings on the climate crises by
Society Year is “Challenge Accepted: Tackling the Climate Crisis”. equipping our members with the
knowledge they need to design and
renovate buildings to address the
greenhouse gas emissions of our
Photographed below:
industry.”
ASHRAE Board of Directors, courtesy of Mahroo Eftekhari
Photograph below courtesy:

Mahroo Eftekhari
page 3 January 2024

Learning
New ERBE CDT Cohort
ABCE welcomed our new cohort of ERBE CDT system, before translating that strategy into actions
students in September 2023, commencing their which would result in hitting the net-zero goal.
PhD journey with a week-long residential course in
The students were given a tour of the Sir Frank Gibb
Energy Resilience and the Global Built Environment.
Laboratory, which showcased experimental equipment
This immersive “block week” introduces them to used in energy resilience research, and they enjoyed
the training they will undertake during their time a residential construction site visit, facilitated by
with the CDT, and brought together members of William Davis Homes. A highlight of the week was
the new intake – comprising students based at viewing houses in all stages of construction, from
Loughborough University, UCL, The University of excavation and foundations, through to completion,
Galway, and University College Cork – in person providing invaluable insight into the practical realities
for the first time. of UK housebuilding.
Introducing the breadth of the energy resilience
This year marks the fifth and final intake for the
challenge, taught sessions covered the history of
ERBE CDT, and the fifteenth overall (including the
climate change, energy and innovation; energy
LoLo CDT for Energy Demand Studies), from which
demand in both domestic and non-domestic
ERBE was formed. The block week has been hosted
contexts; security and resilience in net zero
by Loughborough since 2010, and has played a
systems; and the sociotechnical interface between
crucial role in initiating the PhD studies of well
energy demand and human behaviour. Further
over 100 students. Delivery of each block week has
sessions provided insight into ongoing energy
been made possible through the support of a wide
resilience research projects at each of the ERBE
range contributors, to whom our deep thanks are
partner institutes.
due: William Davis Homes and the Imago facilities
Students also worked in groups throughout the management team, for facilitating invaluable site
week, they were challenged with: developing an visits; University catering services and Burleigh Court
energy systems pathway for the UK’s transition Hotel, MaREI and UCL academics and staff, for their
to net-zero by 2050 using the MacKay Carbon tireless efforts developing and delivering an engaging
Calculator tool. Each group presented their pathway and stimulating programme that has stayed relevant
to an assessment panel of ERBE academics at the year after year; and of course our students, for their
end of the week. Groups agreed on a high-level contributions during their own block weeks, and in
strategy for the transformation of the UK energy supporting delivery in subsequent years.
Site visit photographs courtesy of PR,

William Davis Homes, group image
below courtesy of Kevin Lomas
page 4 January 2024

Learning
ABCE Students Triumph at Net Zero Energy
ASHRAE Design Competition
ABCE students Tom Crook, Alex The key features of the ABCE In recognition of their outstanding
He, Girishkumar Gudnennavar, team’s winning design included achievement, each of the five team
Rodrigo Gonzalez Morra, and Mirza high-performance fabric, solar members received a $1,000 award,
Habeebullah Baig, achieved an PV, free cooling and heating in addition to the £250 previously
exceptional milestone by winning systems, heat recovery from awarded during the launch of the
the prestigious Setty Family high-performance chillers, ASHRAE UK chapter for making it
Foundation Net Zero Energy Design, energy electrification, green to the finals. Team members were
in August 2023. roofs utilising recycled water, also given free registration to the
thermal mass and energy- 2024 ASHRAE Winter Conference,
The competition is open to teams efficient lighting. held in January, in Chicago,
of students of mixed disciplines USA, including complimentary
who can work collaboratively on The team was mentored by transportation and accommodation
electrical, building and mechanical Professor Mahroo Eftekhari, during the conference. The awards
design. The teams were asked Programme Director of Net Zero ceremony will take place during the
to design an energy-efficient, Building Services Engineering ASHRAE Winter Conference, where
sustainable project approaching a MSc, and Dimitris Tseno, the team will be honoured by the
zero net energy building. Doctoral Researcher. ASHRAE President.
Professor Eftekhari commented:

"This momentous victory marks the third time out of five competitions that Loughborough University and NZBSE MSc
students have claimed the top spot in the ASHRAE Net Zero Energy Design competition, showcasing our institution's
commitment to excellence and innovation in the field of building services engineering. Their success not only brings
accolades to the University but also reaffirms our commitment to sustainable building practices and cutting-edge
research. We appreciate the input and support from our industrial partners."
VP Forum
ABCEs Visiting Professors (VPs) areas of research, closing with applications in 3D printing;
Forum, is now an established a tour of some of our latest urban form and disaster
event taking place in the facilities in the lab. We were risk; and circular economy
School every September. As pleased to have our Chief assessment, respectively.
part of our School strategy, Financial Officer with us, Ten of our seventeen VPs
we wanted to increase our Alex Owen, who presented attended the forum, including
engagement with these details of the University’s Nick Sartain (Head of
important stakeholders. Partnership Core Plan, Geotechnics at HS2),
Following dinner with the which were well received. Caroline Field (Partner and
Vice Chancellor on Monday The afternoon featured three champion for National
evening, we offered our VPs excellent presentations from our Resilience at PA Consulting)
a packed agenda, including post docs; Dr John Kolawole, and Shamir Ghumra (Executive
discussions around the staff Dr Monia Del Pinto and Yiping Director at NS Property
experience surve,y and new Meng, who talked about rheology Services).
page 5 January 2024

Research & Innovation

News Sergio Cavalaro, Associate Dean (Research & Innovation)
RAAC: A Media Engagement Success Story

With some RAAC now showing signs of failure and Their expertise has reached in excess of 6.7billion,
the Department for Education (DfE) decision to with nearly 1000 mentions and has appeared in
close a number of schools because of concerns more than 900 newspaper, radio and TV items,
over the building material, journalists were including; BBC Breakfast, BBC Newsnight,
scrambling for expert insight. The Independent, The Telegraph and The Guardian.
Academics from the School of Architecture, The research has been referenced in the media in
Building and Civil Engineering have been 17 countries, including the US, India and Sweden,
researching RAAC for several years, undertaking as well as being quoted in the House of Commons.
NHS-funded projects in hospitals and advising the There have been several positive outcomes from
DfE and other top-level Government bodies on the the RAAC media engagement, including:
risks associated with the material and how best to
• Highlighting the world-leading research being
manage them. Their work has been instrumental
undertaken by the team, helping to raise the
in identifying the main issues with RAAC and
profile of the University on a global stage.
developing recommendations on how to tackle the
growing problem. • Raising the individual profile of the academics
Capitalising on the intense media interest in RAAC, involved, firmly establishing them as research
the team – made up of Professors Chris Goodier, leaders in this field.
Sergio Cavalaro and Chris Gorse, and Drs • Creating new partnerships with numerous
Karen Blay and Ana Blanco – stepped forward to government departments, construction bodies,
share their expert knowledge. and businesses. These include:
Several weeks before the DfE decision was - The Cabinet Office
announced the research team recognised that
- The Scottish Parliament
RAAC was an issue of national concern, and that
they were the experts who should lead the debate. - The Welsh Parliament
- The APPG (All Party Parliamentary Group)
They worked with the University’s Public Relations
Team to create a RAAC explainer, establishing their - The NHS
significant knowledge in this area and setting out - The DfE (include their Chief Scientific Officer,
their willingness to work with the media to tell the Property Director, AI/data experts and RAAC
RAAC story. lead)
When the DfE story broke and journalists were - The Government Chief Scientific Advisor,
searching for experts, the explainer signposted Professor Dame Angela McLean
them to the team. And as the many media requests - The MOD
came in the academics stepped up to respond,
- The Building Safety Regulator
dedicating several days and weeks to interviews
and filming requests. - The Construction Leadership Council
- Several professional bodies, including
the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors,
the Chartered Institute of Building and
the Institution of Structural Engineers
Professor Chris Goodier
For more and updates about this ongoing sucess,
and famiy, following his
please visit: https://www.lboro.ac.uk/news-events/
appearance on the
news/living-with-raac/
BBC Breakfast
news programme ...and visit the new ABCE webpage about RAAC
page 6 January 2024


News
3D Concrete Printing and Process Automation Group
The 3-D concrete printing (3DCP) at the start of October 2023 for trawling many hours of footage
team welcomed five students (www.lboro.ac.uk/beyond3dcp) to source suitable clips.
who form the Vice Chancellor to support raising our UK
Scholarships ‘miniCDT’ on NetZero industrial profile at the Representing Loughborough
manufacturing: Greeshma Giridhar, UK Construction Week (3-5 University and ABCE at the event
Babak Jamhiri, Egemen Ertem, October 2023, NEC, were: Jim Dobrzanski, John
Najib Hamza and Alireza Habibi. Birmingham). Where we Kolawole, Hamed Sadaghian,
They all started their PhD's exhibited the latest output Mo Osmani, Abdul Azziz Al-Farhan,
along with Tommy Whitlow, from two recently completed Siduo Lei, Xingzi Liu, Liam Whyte,
on 1st October 2023. Their EPSRC research awards. Egemen Ertem and Richard
supervisers are; We presented 3DCP as a mould- Buswell.
Professor Richard Buswell, less manufacturing technology.
ABCE alumni, Rob Law, was also
Dr Ana Blanco, The group developed a hybrid
at the show. Rob completed his
Dr John Kolawole, method that builds on 3DCP,
UG year out, in 2008-2011, as a
Jim Dobrzanski, and deploys a 'green' milling
researcher on the original project
Professor Mohamed Osmani, technique to achieve sub 2mm
that produced The Bench, and the
Dr Andre Jesus, Abby Patterson manufacturing tolerances and
Double-Curved Panels which are
(Loughborough Design School), super flat surfaces. Two 200kg
now on display in the reception area
Peter Kinnell (Wolfson School parts were on display, designed
(both world firsts). Rob contributed
of MEME), and Professor Steve by Cundall and Foster &
to the paper ‘Hardened properties of
Christie, School of Science: Partners, manufactured in our
high-performance printing concrete‘,
Chemistry. The new intake join labs – which generated a lot of
the seminal article in the 3DCP
Hamed Sadaghian and Abdul Azziz interest with over 200 visitors on
materials research field, published
Al-Farhan (who started in July and Tuesday alone.
in 2012 – now with an impressive
January respectively, supervised
A big part of our display was a 880 citations (Google Scolar)! Rob
by Professor Sergio Cavalaro,
concise, professional 2-minute is now head of temporary works at
Rasti Bartek (Cundall) and Peter
video, created by Rod Shaw, Conquip, and said he was thrilled to
Kinnell).
which showcased the process, see the work still going strong more
The students will be contributing our thanks also go to Abdulazziz, than a decade later.
to the research to improve
the hybrid concrete printing Left: Rob Law and Richard Buswell
technology we have developed Both photographs taken at the UK Construction Week,
across design, process, materials, NEC, Birmingham, by the 3DCP team
structures, and control – and be
supported by the latest grant:
‘First Time Concrete: Integrated
digital models for right-first-time
3D concrete printing and milling’ –
which is another 2.5 year, +£1.0m
collaboration with Wolfson (Peter
Kinnell, Richard Buswell, Andy
Gleedle and Sergio Cavalaro).
A new website, created by

Stevie Ashurst, Marketing and
Advancement was launched on
page 7 January 2024


News
Inclusive Engineering Excellence Hub (IEEH)
Wins Prize at 2023 Vice-Chancellor Awards
On 15 October 2023, the Inclusive Engineering Excellence on intersectionality within our student body and in
Hub (IEEH), won the prestigious VC's Advocates and Allies industry – lower proportions of engineering students
Award, for their work in ED&I on Campus. The award and engineering professionals are female; fewer declare
recognises groups who have developed activities that have disabilities or come from low-socioeconomic or ethnic
progressed EDI on behalf of others. The IEEH project is minority backgrounds. This is an important part of our
a collaboration between the three Engineering Schools: wider efforts to increase diversity and inclusion across
ABCE, AACME and Wolfson. engineering and more broadly across the University, and
to influence what happens in industry.
The nomination was made by the Deans of all three
Schools, and read as follows: The team has also won a VC’s Researcher Cluster of 5 PhD
studentships (Inclusive Engineering—People to Products)
"The Deans of Engineering (Conway, Cook
& Rielly) are nominating the team led by with interconnected projects that address the way future
Liz Ratcliffe, Sheryl Williams, Laura Justham, engineers are inspired to develop inclusive engineering
Tarek Hassan and Ksenia Chmutina, for their products and services (including VR simulations for
collaborative work on several EDI initiatives experiential and flexible training) which are accessible,
to deliver more inclusive education and better ethical, sustainable, and free from discrimination and bias.
engagement with minoritized engineering
students." Members of the team enhanced our international
reputation for leading EDI best practice through the
In 2022 the team won £65k from the RAEng Diversity Invisibly Leaky Pipelines project, which was highly
Impact Programme for a project ‘Don't forget the Mortar! commended in the 2022 IChemE Global Awards Diversity
A new approach to engineering education’, augmented by a and Inclusion category. They took an innovative approach
further $10k charitable donation from Fluor. The aim is to tackle systemic barriers in the engineering community,
to transform the outcomes and experiences of students by looking at diversified pathways for minoritized groups
from under-represented groups and provide benefits to through the cycle of education and career development.
the wider engineering HE sector, using new approaches This involved embedding EDI principles in our
to remove barriers to progression. Educational ‘mortar’ programmes, running sessions with Doctoral Researchers
experiences have been developed for our students to on personal motivations in making career choices, and
enhance their skillsets and prepare for industrial careers. establishing School-level staff and student EDI groups
Workshops have focussed on cross-skilling our engineers to ensure an active voice around recruitment, retention,
(e.g., creating electronic Rubik’s cube solvers and Arduino progression, and the student lived experience.
coding), whilst others widen appreciation of accessibility
challenges (e.g., the Empathy lab). Thus, the team are performing at an exceptional level, as
advocates, ambassadors and allies, playing an important
The project also aims to create more inclusive learning part in delivering EDI within LU’s Strategy 2030, raising the
environments on campus, e.g., the formation of the profile and importance of EDI in our Engineering Schools,
Inclusive Excellence Engineering Hub (IEEH), which putting our University’s values into practice to influence
is a dedicated space in WPTH, open to all engineering industry and the HE sector, and delivering benefits for
students. The hub comprises study space and common our students, particularly those from under-represented
room, with PCs, accessible workstation, Lego activity groups.’
zone, area for mindful art (peer-led by student
ambassadors) and relaxed seating. Working with Read more online at: https://www.lboro.ac.uk/internal/vc-
the Student Success Academy, the IEEH offers drop- annual-awards/winners-nominees-2023/advocates-allies/
in sessions with key services (e.g., Careers Network)
Photograph courtesy of Laura Justham, Wolfson School of MEME
to provide facilities in West Park, where engineering
students are taught. The IEEH will run an Annual
Workshop, with industrial participation, to develop policy
and practical guidance on how to lobby Government,
industry, and education decision-makers.
The team have geared their RAEng funding with three

School PhD studentships to address research questions
page 8 January 2024


News
UNESCO Chair in Informatics
and Multi-hazard Risk Reduction Launched
On 18 August 2023, Loughborough University and UNESCO joined forces to inaugurate the UNESCO Chair in Informatics
and Multi-hazard Risk Reduction.
The online event, chaired Professor Liang discussed SAADRI, a

by ABCE Dean, Professor delved into the realm platform dedicated to
Malcolm Cook, brought of informatics and building capacity for
together approximately disaster risk reduction transboundary risk
300 participants from research conducted at resilience in South Asia. Professor
23 countries, with an Loughborough University. Professor Jim Hall, FREng, Anne Anderson
opening address by He elaborated on the from the University of
Professor Dan Parsons, objectives and scope of Oxford, focused on global
Pro Vice-Chancellor for the UNESCO Chair and climate risk analytics for
Research and Innovation extended an invitation resilient infrastructure.
at Loughborough to all stakeholders These three presentations Professor
Malcolm Cook
University. He highlighted to collaborate and offered a comprehensive
the alignment of the advance global view of the challenges and
UNESCO Chair with the disaster risk research opportunities that lie ahead
university's strategic and practices, with a in the field of disaster risk
objectives and emphasized shared commitment reduction. Professor
the Chair's potential to addressing critical Qunli Han
to make substantial The successful launch
challenges and
contributions to the field of the UNESCO Chair in
contributing to the
of disaster risk reduction. Informatics and Multi-
Sustainable Development
Soichiro Yasukawa, Chief hazard Risk Reduction
Goals.
of the Disaster Risk represents a significant Professor
Reduction Unit at UNESCO, Additionally, the step forward in the Jim Hall
emphasized how the Chair event featured three global effort to mitigate
would advance UNESCO's keynote speeches from disaster risks and enhance
priorities in disaster internationally renowned resilience.
scientists who provided
Photographs extracted from the online event, supplied by Huili Chen
risk reduction, and also The collaboration between

profound insights into Professor
highlighted the numerous Loughborough University Qiuhua Liang
opportunities that the the current and future
and UNESCO holds the
Chair presents, with the landscape of global
promise of delivering
potential to reshape global disaster risk reduction
innovative solutions and
disaster risk reduction research and practice.
breakthroughs that will
efforts. Professor Anne Professor Qunli Han, Professor Mahuna
benefit communities
Anderson, Chair of the UK Executive Director Mukherjee
worldwide.
National Commission for of the International
UNESCO, shed light on Programme Office,
Integrated Research Further details are
the significance of the UK
UNESCO Chair network in on Disaster Risk available online at:
advancing research and (IRDR), emphasized the https://www.lboro.ac.uk/ Professor
departments/abce/unesco- Dan Parsons
addressing both national importance of mobilizing
and global challenges. science for inclusive, chair/
The event's spotlight then safe, and sustainable
turned to Professor development. Professor
Qiuhua Liang, the Mahuna Mukherjee from
Soichiro
Chairholder of the UNESCO the Indian Institute of Yasukawa
Chair. Technology Roorkee,
page 9 January 2024


News
Twinning Visit With Ukraine
ABCE welcomed visitors from the Beketov University, will use concrete printing, hastening the creation of form
Ukraine, in June 2023, as part of the UK Ukraine twinning work used to replace structural members in the frames of
project, aimed at assisting post-war reconstruction. the buildings. The challenge is to retain structurally sound
parts of the building and remove damaged areas. Currently
The project, led by Professor Tarek Hassan, with
this is a time-consuming process, using typical timber form
Professor Richard Buswell, Dr Peter Demian, Dr Asya
works, which are all hand-made, and manually installed.
Natapov, Torah Chen, and Jerry Xu. The project has been
The project team aim to use new innovations and ideas to
exploring planning for micro-mobility, implementation of
rapidly regenerate these war-torn areas.
Building Information Modelling and 3D Concrete Printing
with the aim at influencing governing bodies to make better During the visit, the Micro-Mobility visitors engaged in
decisions during post war reconstruction. inspiring research discussions with colleagues from ABCE,
who have expertise in micro-mobility. They contributed their
Beketov University is the major institution in eastern
views and shared their experiences in conducting micro-
Ukraine and has a history of providing advice to
mobility research. The discussions about implementation in
government on matters of planning and civil engineering.
Ukraine paved the way for planning further collaborations,
Part of this project is to provide the best advice for leaders
including precise micro-mobility data collection, evaluating
after the war in Ukraine has come to an end, in order to
the effects of interventions, and communicating the use
reconstruct and improve buildings.
ofapplied analysis tools. The Micro-Mobility Group aims
There have been a number of workshops, two of three to assist local authorities and stakeholders in Ukrainian
subgroups of the twinning project; 3DCP and the BIM Group, cities by developing micro-mobility policiesand integrating
and a moving presentation by Oleg Kalmikov. Oleg described sustainable transportation solutions into urban planning.
the extent of rebuilding the poorly insulated buildings, Before the war, cities like Kharkiv experienced significant
which were originally build during the Russian occupation traffic congestion and lacked infrastructure for micro-
and had been thriving metropolitan areas to the North of mobility and active transportation, such as walking and
Kharkiv, just 26km from the Russian border. Now, the area cycling. This project focuses particularly on the post-war
that used to be home to 300,000 people lies empty, with scenario,taking into account the uncertain conditions
many buildings damaged. Nearly 5,000 apartments have in the affected areas. A major challenge is the general
been damaged or destroyed, with approximately 20% of the population's willingness to reduce their reliance on
external façade being fire-damaged, and around 50% of the privatecars. In the early days of the war, individuals with
windows broken. The damage to the area creates not only cars were able to evacuate from shelling more quickly
technical and practical challenges, but also the difficult than those dependent on public transport. Micro-mobility
task of rebuilding communities that have been scattered researchers anticipate a high likelihood of a post-traumatic
across international borders once the war has ended. response, where people are more inclined to favour
sustainable transportationalternatives over their cars.
The old buildings pre-date the Russian occupation and
had little, if any insulation. Part of the ambitious plans
Some members of the twinning project from the
are to renovate these areas, adopting the latest insulating
technologies that are used in Europe, particularly
Ukraine and Loughborough
in countries such as East Germany, Poland, and the
Czech Republic, to bring a huge increase in the thermal
performance of the buildings once reconstructed. The team
The Micro-Mobility Group of the Twinning Project
Photograph courtesy of Torah Chen Photograph courtesy of Dean Sanham
page 10 January 2024


News
Launch of Global Partnership ICE Awards
for Smart Informatics and Multi-
hazard Reduction (SIMR) Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) East
The Global Partnership for Smart Informatics and Multi-hazard Reduction
(SIMR) was officially launched on 24th September 2023 during the XIV Congress
of the International Association for Engineering Geology and the Environment (XIV
IAEG Congress 2023). This is a joint initiative between the UNESCO Chair in William
Informatics and Multi-hazard Risk Reduction (IMRR) at Loughborough University, Kemp Award,
and the State Key Laboratory of Geohazard Prevention and Geoenvironment
Protection (SKLGP) at Chengdu University of Technology, China. Over 40 world-
leading experts in informatics and multi-hazard risk reduction from over 20
countries, including the UK, China, France, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, New
Zealand, Japan, India, Nepal, Malawi, were invited to participate in the launch
meeting, to discuss the future development of SIMR.
Chengdu University of Technology's Vice President, Xu Qiang, delivered a

welcome address and highlighted the University's commitment to supporting
SIMR and various scientific initiatives. ABCE's Professor Qiuhua Liang
highlighted the necessity and significance of establishing SIMR, addressing
its background, challenges, and operational framework. He pointed out that
Dr Ana Blanco
recent advancements in digital technology offer significant opportunities
Professor Sergio Cavalaro
for disaster risk mitigation and climate adaptation. However, limited
resources, especially in low-income regions, hinder the full utilization of
(Eric) Zhi
these technologies. To address multi-hazard risks, global academics need Hu, Muhammad Umer Jadoon,
to embrace new technologies and innovative methods, integrating diverse Design, Studies and Research
knowledge systems and information from various sources.
SIMR is committed to providing an effective global platform to foster

international and transdisciplinary collaboration and advance research. The
aim is to harness emerging informatics for effective disaster risk reduction Bekaert
related to multi-hazard systemic risk in the fast-changing world. Additionally,
it will share resources and ensure effective North-South and South-South
knowledge transfer and capacity-building. In the breakout group discussion
session, 40 participants engaged in a profound exchange, deliberating
current key challenges and opportunities in global disaster risk reduction,
strategies to make SIMR a unique initiative to address these challenges and
create real impact, future activities of SIMR, and ensuring the sustainable
development of SIMR. Representatives from each group provided summaries
Group Lead
of their discussions. The participants shared their perspectives and made
active contributions to the establishment and advancement of SIMR.
Update:
Geotechnics and Geomatics, and the
The establishment of this Global Partnership marks a significant milestone
in the collective endeavours of global academics to tackle the challenges Structures and Materials new group
presented by the evolving multi-hazard risks and climate change in lead is Dr Ashraf El-Hamalawi, who
today's world. has kindly agreed to lead this combined
group for the remainder of his current
term. The Group Lead’s term will run
until August 2024 initially, after which
time, group colleagues will be invited
to apply for the position.
Photographs from the SIMR event provided by the XIV IAEG Congress 2023


News
Achievements, Awards and Fellowships

• Dr Karen Blay, elected as a new Member of Senate, technologies and artificial intelligence to develop
and also Member of the Chartered Institute of Building, new people-centric methodologies for transport,
making her a ‘Chartered Construction Manager’ aiming to drive this paradigm shift through
• Professor Paul Fleming, University Fellowships scenario testing and optimisation, aligning with
(sabbaticals), to commence next academic year. the UK's recent strategic investment of £15 billion
Paul’s research on sports surfaces technology will in promoting multimodal transportation over the
enhance the University’s national and international coming decade
reputation, build a sustainable legacy that other • Dr Seyed Mohammad Mojtabaei, with a colleague
colleagues and early career researchers can from the University of Sheffield, have been
progress over the next decade, and significantly awarded £12k by the Royal Society. Their two-
advance the development of equitable and inclusive year International Exchange award will support
global policies and practice research on ‘New Generation of Sustainable
• Lennie Foster, awarded a place on the EDI+ Lightweight Cold-Formed Steel Structures’. The
Fellowship Programme, funded by the EPSRC and funding will facilitate bilateral research visits
managed by Durham University. The programme between the Loughborough/Sheffield team, and a
aims to support organisations to develop in‑house team from the University of Western Australia
expertise to help navigate the complex issues that • Dr Asya Natapov, Fellow of the Higher Education
EDI can present. Lennie will benefit from £25k of Academy, July 2023
funding to participate in the scheme over the next 2
• Dr Cagri Sanliturk, Fellowship of the HEA,
years
September 2023
• Professor Chris Gorse, joined experts picked
to chair CIOB Advisory Panels – The CIOB has • Dr Tanja Radu, awarded funding from the Alliance
assembled a coterie of construction gurus to chair of International Science Organizations, in
its new advisory panels. The panels – sustainability, collaboration with colleagues in Serbia and Greece,
heritage, innovation, quality, health and safety, to increase resource recovery from agri-food
EDI, global and UK – provide expert knowledge on industry wastes
key policy priority areas in support of the CIOB’s • Dr Long Chen and Dr John Kolawole, awarded the
corporate plan, at a global, national and regional opportunity to submit a Fellowship application to
level. Chris will be heading up the sustainability the Royal Academy of Engineering. Their outline
work applications secured half of the University’s four
• Dr Cansu Curgen-Gurpinar, Fellowship of the HEA, application places for 2023
September 2023 • No fewer than 12 of our academic colleagues have
• Dr Haitao He, recently secured a Future Leaders been appointed to the UKRI Talent Peer Review
Fellowship award. This highly prestigious award will College:
provide funding for Haitao for 4 years – with potential Professor David Allinson, Dr Taimaz Larimian,
to extend to 7 years – and is worth £1.2million! Professor Chris Goodier, Dr Vivien Chow,
The MULTIMODAL urban transport project looks at Dr Ashraf El-Hamalawi, Dr Steven Firth,
integrated modelling and simulation towards net- Dr Matyas Gutai, Dr Tanja Radu, Rebecca Scott,
zero, inclusive mobility. Addressing the challenges Dr Alister Smith, Professor Ksenia Chmutina
in congestion, emissions, and the need for greater and Tim Marjoribanks, who joined experts from
accessibility amidst a changing demographic around the UK to provide independent, informed
necessitates a paradigm shift from a car-centric to comments on research proposals submitted to
a people-centric solution, placing people and their EPSRC and NERC. This will be a great experience
differences at the core of planning, operating, and for these colleagues, providing invaluable insights
controlling future multimodal transport systems. that can shape winning research bids, and be
Haitao’s Fellowship will leverage nascent digital shared with colleagues here in the School.


News
PhD Award Winners 2023
ABCE celebrated at the University PhD Awards 2023, held on 16/10/2023. Our DRs were nominated in
fifteen categories, with five winning outright. This remarkable accomplishment reflects the dedication and
excellence of our DRs and staff, and it is testament to the exceptional quality of education and research
that ABCE consistently upholds.
ABCE nominees, winners and categories at the PhD Awards, 2023:

• Community Impact Award: Hans-Heinrich Schumann (Winner), Safia Bahas
• Loughborough Doctoral Researcher Community Engagement: Neda Abbasimaleki, Rebecca Lewis
• Buddy of the Year: Marziye Ramezani-Lashkariani (Winner), Neda Abbasimaleki
• Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Champion: Nana Nsiah-Appiah (Winner)
• Doctoral Researcher Rep of the year: Dimitris Tseno
• Doctoral Researcher Lead Rep of the Year: Kuldeep Singh Sodha (Winner)
• Doctoral Researcher Teaching Excellence: Amr Suliman, Joshua Vasudevan, Kuldeep Singh Sodha
• Doctoral College Future Leader: Jaydeep Bhadra
• Peter Beaman Unsung Hero: Berkeley Young
• Outstanding Commitment to Doctoral Researcher Support Award: Berkeley Young (Winner)
DR Winners at
the ABCE Awards
Three ABCE DRs took part in the Engineering Schools Doctoral
Researcher Conference, held on 5th and 6th September 2023, at WPTH.
2023
All three won a prize, the winners were: Md Umer Jadoon, Shalaka The ABCE Awards 2023 were held after
Hire, and Harry McGowan (highly commended for his presentation the PhD Awards.
“Understanding Traction Mechanisms on Artificial Turf”). The categories and winners were:
The Engineering Schools have a strong research pedigree and a Doctoral Researcher Excellence Award:
vibrant research culture. The aim is to ensure that our research Winner: Eeman Al-Ameen
strengths are aligned with national priorities in order to maximise Highly Commended: Muhammad Umer
funding opportunities, so generating: high quality research, Jadoon
meaningful impact and international reputation. Doctoral Researcher Culture and
Environment Award:
The conference provides opportunities to demonstrate and celebrate
Winner: Neda Abbasimaleki
these strengths and to enhance our future collaborations with
Highly Commended: Rebecca Lewis
colleagues and industrial partners.
At the event were representatives from the Research and Innovation

Photograph courtesy
Support Team (https://www.lboro.ac.uk/internal/research-innovation-

of Dean Sanham
support/), the Loughborough Materials Characterisation Centre

(https://www.lboro.ac.uk/research/lmcc/), the Doctoral College
(https://www.lboro.ac.uk/services/doctoral-college/), and the
Women's Engineering Society (https://www.wes.org.uk), to discuss all
aspects of future and current collaborations. Pictured l-r: Berkeley Young, Rebecca Lewis,
Neda Abbasimaleki, Eeman Al-Ameen and
Muhammad Umer Jadoon


News
Selected Journal Papers
July 2023 – January 2024
Monte FL, Repesa L, Snoeck D, Doostkami H, Roig-Flores M, Jackson SJP, Blanco-Alvarez A, Nasner M, Borg
RP, Schröfl C, Giménez M, Alonso MC, Serna P, De Belie N, Ferrara L (2023) 'Multi-performance experimental
assessment of autogenous and crystalline admixture-stimulated self-healing in UHPFRCCs: Validation and
reliability analysis through an inter-laboratory study', Cement and Concrete Composites, Vol. 145, SJR 3.146.
DOI: 10.1016/j.cemconcomp.2023.105315
Habibi A, Bamshad O, Golzary A, Buswell R, Osmani M (2023) 'Biases in life cycle assessment of circular concrete',
Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Vol. 192, SJR 3.036. DOI: 10.1016/j.rser.2023.114237
Dai K, Chen Y, Xu Q, Hancock C, Jiang M, Deng J, Zhuo G (2023) 'A functional model for determining maximum
detectable deformation gradients of InSAR considering the topography in mountainous areas', IEEE Transactions
on Geoscience and Remote Sensing, Vol. 61, SJR 2.649. DOI: 10.1109/tgrs.2023.3287590
Almansa XF, Starostka R, Raskin L, Zeeman G, De Los Reyes F, Waechter J, Yeh D, Radu T (2023) 'Anaerobic
digestion as a core technology in addressing the global sanitation crisis: Challenges and opportunities',
Environmental Science & Technology, SJR 2.535. DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.3c05291
Zhou YY, Yu B, Fan W, Dijkstra T, Wei YN, Deng LS (2023) '3D characterization of localized shear failure in loess
subject to triaxial loading', Engineering Geology, Vol. 322, SJR 2.069. DOI: 10.1016/j.enggeo.2023.107174
Monsuur F, Enoch M, Quddus M, Meek S (2023) 'Investigating the role of preference variation in the perceptions of
railway passengers in Great Britain', Transportation, SJR 1.911. DOI: 10.1007/s11116-023-10397-x
Shaheen MA, Tsavdaridis KD, Ferreira FPV, Cunningham LS (2023) 'Rotational capacity of exposed base plate
connections with various configurations of anchor rod sleeves', Journal of Constructional Steel Research, Vol. 201,
SJR 1.892. DOI: 10.1016/j.jcsr.2022.107754
Powell E, Mojtabaei M, Liew A, Hajirasouliha I (2023) 'Shear strength design of cold-formed steel channel sections
with web openings', Engineering Structures, Vol. 291, SJR 1.69. DOI: 10.1016/j.engstruct.2023.116426
Schumann H-H, He H, Quddus M (2023) 'Passively generated big data for micro-mobility: State-of-the-art and
future research directions', Transportation Research Part D: Transport and Environment, Vol. 121, SJR 1.359.
DOI: 10.1016/j.trd.2023.103795
Kassim F, Sohail M, Taylor B, Afolabi O (2023) 'Hydrothermal carbonisation of mixed agri-food waste: process
optimisation and mechanistic evaluation of hydrochar inorganic chemistry', Biomass and Bioenergy, Vol. 180, SJR
1.235. DOI: 10.1016/j.biombioe.2023.107027
Helm PR, Svalova A, Morsy AM, Rouainia M, Smith A, El-Hamalawi A, Wilkinson DJ, Postill H, Glendinning S
(2023) 'Emulating long-term weather-driven transportation earthworks deterioration models to support asset
management', Transportation Geotechnics, Vol. 44, SJR 1.149. DOI: 10.1016/j.trgeo.2023.101155
Morton C, Mattioli G (2023) 'Competition in Multi-Airport Regions: Measuring airport catchments through spatial
interaction models', Journal of Air Transport Management, Vol. 112, SJR 0.981.
DOI: 10.1016/j.jairtraman.2023.102457
Young P, Chow V, Haslam C, Barker J (2023) 'A qualitative study exploring white-collar employee/manager
experiences of mental health and wellbeing initiatives in corporate environments', Journal of Occupational and
Environmental Medicine, Vol. 65, SJR 0.812. DOI: 10.1097/JOM.0000000000002969
Colvin V, Prokosch ML, von Meding J, Chmutina K, Smith CT (2023) 'Individual differences in psychological rigidity
and beliefs about system fitness predict attitudes about social determinants of disaster risk', International
Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, Vol. 95, SJR 0.769. DOI: 10.1016/j.ijdrr.2023.103876
Natapov A, Cohen A, Dalyot S (2023) 'Urban planning and design with points of interest and visual perception',
Environment and Planning B: Urban Analytics and City Science, 0(0). DOI:10.1177/23998083231191338
Adamu Z, Hardy O, Natapov A (2023) 'The Impact of Greenspace, Walking, and Cycling on the Health of Urban
Residents during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Study of London', International Journal of Environmental Research
and Public Health, 20, 6360. DOI:10.3390/ijerph20146360


News
New Grants Since Last Newsletter January 2024
9 new grants Total Value = £1,013,698

Details include funding direct to ABCE and total project value together with project overview where data is available.
Enhancing readiness for circular economy Town Deal

among ASEAN SMEs through inclusive digital Lead PI: Chris Rielly (Chem Eng)
transformation Collaborators: Asya Natapov,
Lead PI: Long Chen Falli Palaiologou
Funder: The Academy of Medical Funder: DLUHC via CBC
Sciences ABCE funding: £495,132
ABCE funding: £10,090 Total project Value: £2,466,000
Total project Value: £25,000 Period of Award: 01/05/2022 - 31/03/2026
Period of Award: 31/03/2023 - 30/03/2024 Overview: ‘The Impact Hub’ (TIH) interdisciplinary project will
Overview: xx Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are a establish an urban observatory concentrating on the township to
critical building block for a robust and sustainable economy, record and monitor change occurring in Loughborough from the
and the ‘circular economy’ is an important global agenda. implementation of the Town Investment Plan. This will support
The GCRF networking grant will propose a network formed to future evidence-based decision-making and sustainable regional
help drive and realise the aim of the Association of Southeast development, research, enterprise, and knowledge to address
Asian Nations (ASEAN) on Bio-Circular-Green Economy (BCG) specific problems identified in the Plan, including strategies
Network, and in-turn achieve the goal of ASEAN Comprehensive to bolster the health and vitality of the town centre. TIH will
Recovery Framework (ACRF). It will be beneficial to the SMEs deliver a data observatory and digital tools for participatory
for understanding their readiness for circular economy by planning as well as stakeholder engagement and community co-
embracing digital economy. design activities to make public space planning more inclusive,
transparent and accessible. TIH is a collaboration between
the School of Architecture, Building and Civil Engineering, the
School of Design and Creative Arts and Charnwood Borough
Council, under the auspices of the wider Healthy & Innovative
Loughborough (H&IL) project funded by the Department for
Non-filled Artificial Turf (TenCate) Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) via the
Lead PI: Paul Fleming Loughborough Town Deal project.
Collaborator: Steph Forrester in the STI,
Wolfson
Funder: TenCate Grass
ABCE funding: £66,373
Period of Award: 01/10/2023 - 31/03/2027
Overview: This project is a jointly funded PhD with TenCate the KTP: Technical Surfaces Ltd and CV
leading global manufacturer of artificial carpets and yarns, Lead PI: Paul Fleming
in addition to many polymeric products used in construction Collaborator: Steph Forrester in the STI,
such as geogrids. The sports surface industry is facing Wolfson
new challenges in regard EU legislation and environmental
pressures to be more sustainable through the products’ whole Funder: Innovate UK and
life cycle. One key area is to develop more sustainable infills Technical Surfaces Ltd
than the commonly used rubber granules from recycled tyres ABCE funding: £260,833
which are classed as ‘intentionally added microplastics’. Total project Value: £260,833
TenCate are leading on innovations in non-filled synthetic turf Period of Award: 01/01/2024 - 30/06/2026
carpets that aim to feel and play much closer to high quality Overview: This 30-month KTP led by Prof Paul Fleming in
natural grass. This PhD aims to support the evolution of their collaboration with Technical Surfaces Ltd., Leicester, will develop
novel turf surface design through bespoke test methods and bespoke monitoring, maintenance and certification criteria
player feedback to help model the synthetic turf behaviour. for next generation (4G) pitches constructed with sustainable
Periods of data collection are envisaged at the TenCate research infills. The new frameworks will support and fulfil obligations
facilities in the Netherlands, including extensive training and to The Football Foundation, funders of grass roots community
support from their R&D team in this extended 42-month project. multi-sports infrastructure. Rubber-sand high-performance
Supervisors are Prof Paul Fleming and Prof Steph Forrester of AGP alternatives do not exist within the marketplace. With
the STI. the impending ban on crumbed rubber (2028) from end-of-life
tyres, installation partners and pitch-installers nationwide are
developing alternative infills from safe, sustainable materials.
Our continued operations require methods and service-lines for
monitoring, maintaining and renovating novel constructions to
certification standards that ensure performance and safety. The
Co-I is Steph Forrester in the STI, Wolfson, and this is our second
KTP, with the last (2014-2018) rated as 'excellent'.
more new grants on next page

New Grants, continued

Impact of REMA on the electrification of heat From Kolmogorov to Catchment: Scales of non-
Lead PI: Stephen Watson locality in river systems
Funder: Net-zero research network Lead PI: Chris Keylock
via Edinburgh University Funder: The Leverhulme Trust
ABCE funding: £5,666 ABCE funding: £46,353
Total project Value: £50,000 Total project Value: £46,353
Period of Award: 09/01/2023 - 08/07/2023 Period of Award: 15/09/2023 - 14/03/2024
Overview: Reform of the GB electricity market to ensure secure, Overview: River systems respond to climatic or anthropogenic
affordable and decarbonised electricity, and the electrification of forcing at various scales. These range from long-term and
domestic heating, are both important areas of UK government large-scale changes due to tectonics and sea-level, through
policy. This project explores the impact of possible changes in to the small-scale turbulence physics at dissipative scales.
electricity market design on the uptake of electric heat pumps An integrated understanding of how these scales behave and
for domestic heating. interact requires knowledge of physics, hydraulic engineering,
and the earth sciences. Nonlocality is a key concept that adds
significant complexity to analysing such systems and manifests
A socio-technical evaluation of external shading to itself in various ways at different scales. This project aims to
mitigate summertime overheating in UK homes (PhD obtain greater understanding of non-locality at the three specific
scales and then use this knowledge to develop an integrated
Studentship) understanding across scales. This will be achieved through
Lead PI: Ben Roberts collaborative research between Loughborough University
Funder: British Blind and Shutter (Chris Keylock), The University of Texas at Austin, USA (Dr Blair
Association (BBSA) Johnson, Dr Paola Passalacqua) and the University of Bayreuth,
ABCE funding: £40,000 Germany (Prof. Michael Wilczek, Dr Maurizio Carbone).
Total project Value: £40,000
Period of Award: 01/10/2023 - 30/09/2028
Overview: External shading devices may be an important
measure to reduce summertime overheating, but they are not
widely installed in UK homes. The project aims to understand
the effectiveness and acceptability of external shading devices to
reduce overheating in existing UK homes. Experiments will take
place in the Loughborough University Matched Pair test houses
to quantify the relative effectiveness of shading devices, and to IGNITE EDI+ Fellowship – Lennie Foster
validate dynamic thermal models of the houses. Interviews will Lead PI: Lennie Foster (Research and
be conducted with people living with external shading devices. Innovation Office)
The studentship is co-funded by the British Blind and Shutter Funder: EPSRC
Association and several shading manufacturers, is supported by ABCE funding: £29,288
CIBSE, and is part of the ERBE CDT.
Total project Value: £29,288
Period of Award: 10/10/2023 - 09/10/2025
Overview: EDI+ is a network for energy researchers funded by
EPSRC to tackle inequalities in the energy sector. The two-year
EDI+ Fellowship Programme, led by Durham University, entails
IUK-Measurement Led Actionable Building designing, implementing, and reviewing an intervention to
Diagnostics improve equality, diversity, and inclusion with the aim of making
Lead PI: David Allinson real change in EDI in the energy research sector. The first cohort,
starting in October 2023, will bring together EDI champions from
Funder: Innovate UK
diverse energy research institutions and train them in EDI issues
ABCE funding: £59,963 and research methods for analysing organisational contexts, how
Period of Award: 01-08-2023 - 31-01-2025 to make organisational changes, how to implement and evaluate
Overview: The Innovate UK funded Measurement Led Actionable plans of action, and supports them to publish their results.
Building Diagnostics project is a collaboration between Build Test
Solutions (Luke Smith and LoLo CDT alumnus Richard Jack),
Loughborough University (David Allinson and Kostas Mourkos)
and SOAP Retrofit (Zak Gill). The team will develop a suite of
monitoring, measurement, and analysis tools for evaluating the
performance of homes at scale and in a cost effective manner.
This will help households to reduce their heating bills while
improving their thermal comfort, and minimising any risks from
e.g. damp and overheating. The Loughborough work will build on
over a decade of collaborative Building Performance Evaluation
research and innovation by the Building Energy Research Group
(BERG).
Recognition for an Excellent Publication

Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB) The Guide to Sustainability
in the Built Environment.
ABCEs Professor Chris Gorse

"This comprehensive
guide to sustainability in the built environment is essential reading for construction professionals as they work to make
their difference to this defining challenge and put sustainability at the heart of everything they do.”
https://ciobpeople.com/ciob-launches-sustainability-guide-for-the-built-environment/
https://www.ciobacademy.org/product/guide-to-sustainability-in-the-built-environment/


News
PhD Completions
Name Supervisor(s) Project Title
Professor Kevin Lomas /
Technical analysis and design of flexible community energy
Ahmed Ahmed Dr Steven Firth /
with a focus on space heating demand
Dr Bianca Howard
Towards Sustainable Urban Development, the application of

Fahad Dr Simon Richards /
Islamic principles and traditional knowledge to achieve
Alghamdi Dr Taimaz Larimian
a sustainable urban form
Dr Derek Thomson / Two ethnographic narratives of construction craftwork in action:

Richard Brett
Dr Scott Fernie a comparison of housebuilding and building conservation
Professor Mahroo Eftekhari /

Developing Thermal Perceptions of Occupants in UK Mixed-
Xiaoyan Luo Dr Simon Hodder (Design
mode Office Building
School) / Dr Faisal Durrani
Jose Dr Karen Blay /

Integrating Social Value in Digital-enabled projects
Salazar-Vela Dr Peter Demian
Marwa Professor Tarek Hassan / Developing a Generic Tool for BIM Adoption Assessment and
Tahseen Dr Karen Blay Associated Implementation Roadmap
Dr Derek Thomson / A Cognitive Process Model of How an Estimator Judges Cost

Lilin Zhao
Dr Scott Fernie Risk Allowances in Highway Construction Projects
Dr Tom Dijkstra / Debris flow modelling for enhanced geohazard evaluation along
Kristine Jarsve
Dr Huili Chen the Bailong River corridor, Gansu, China
Dr Rob Schmidt III / Developing 'Customised Design and Fabrication Protocols' for
Juan Montero
Dr Abby Paterson (Design School) Digital Fabrication
Charlotte Professor Victoria Haines (Design Using domestication theory to support the transition to heat
Shields School) / Professor David Allinson pumps in UK owner-occupied homes
Professor Mahroo Eftekhari /

Joshua Data-driven prediction of spatially distributed parameters and
Dr Vanda Dimitriou /
Vasudevan control of comfort in office buildings
Dr Yasir Ali
Oguzhan Dr Andrew Timmis / Investigating the Agenda for Future Airport Surface Access
Yilmaz Dr Matthew Frost Strategies
July 2023 PhD New Starters

Professor Sohail / PPP and BOT Projects in The UK and France, a Comparative
Khaled Aljaber
Dr Kirti Ruikar Study
Dr Haitao He /
Yuan Ma Understanding the impact of cycle lanes in urban areas
Dr Craig Morton
Dr Steven Firth / Simulating Passivhaus Energy Consumption in a Hot Climate

Shatha Medabesh
Dr Sura Al-Maiyah in the Middle East, Saudi Arabia
Professor Richard Buswell /

Hamed Sadaghian Structural design of reinforced 3D-printed concrete materials
Dr Ana Blanco /
Nirosha Ushettige Professor Sergio Cavalaro / Sprayed self-healing cement composites for repair
Professor Chris Goodier
Dr Long Chen /
Dr Craig Hancock / AI-based 2D-3D Joint Modelling and Semantic Enrichment of
Yu Zhang
Dr Gerald Schaefer As-built BIM for Fire Risk Assessment
(Computer Science)


News
October 2023 PhD New Starters
Artificial Intelligence Project Management Implementation
Professor Sohail /
Tamader Al-Malki in Mitigation of Delays to the Construction of Sustainable
Professor Tarek Hassan
Buildings
Madeeha Altaf ERBE CDT TBC
Joy Bempong Water-WISER CDT TBC
Dr Long Chen /
Dr Mingzhu Wang / Ontology Digital Twinning for Knowledge Modelling and Fusion
Dayou Chen
Dr Russell Lock (Computer in Building Risk Assessment and Insurance.
Science)
Dr Asya Natapov / Improvement of tourism in heritage cities (A narrative guided

Wenjie Chen
Dr Yasir Ali tour way-finding system)
Tom Crook ERBE CDT TBC
Sifiso Dhlamini Water-WISER CDT TBC
Dr Mohamed Shaheen / Rubberized Concrete: a sustainable material to enhance the

Venuka Don
Professor Chris Goodier dynamic performance of concrete structures
Professor Richard Buswell

3D Concrete Printing Processes for Efficient Manufacture and
Egemen Ertem / Professor Peter Kinnell
Production: Minimising Material Waste
(Wolfson School of MEME)
Marzieh Fallahpour ERBE CDT TBC

Design and performance of high volume - low carbon printing
Greeshma Giridhar / Dr Ana Blanco /
materials for 3DCP and hybrid manufacturing processes
Dr John Kolawole

Road Mapping Life Cycle Assessment and Approaches for
Alireza Habibi / Professor Mohamed
Circular Manufacture Using Hybrid 3D Concrete Printing
Osmani
Professor Richard Buswell New approaches for Design for Manufacture to enable
Md Nadjib Hamza / Dr Abby Paterson (Design disassembly of construction using 3D Concrete printing and
School) hybrid manufacturing processes
Dr Andre Jesus / Structural Health Monitoring of 3D Reinforced Concrete-

Vincent Ike
Dr Mohamed Shaheen Printed Structures using Dynamic Indentification System

Durability and in-service performance of 3DCP structures to
Babak Jamhiri / Dr Ana Blanco /
maximise component life
Dr Andre Jesus
Developing machine learning-based microscopic models

Md Tamim Kashifi Dr Yasir Ali / Dr Haitao He
incorporating human factors
Professor Qiuhua Liang / The evaluation of the NBSs' hybrid measures on synergistic
Xuejing Li
Dr Huili Chen effect
Olivia Lochrie Water-WISER CDT TBC
Dr Matyas Gutai /
Brandon Mok The future of glazing: Decarbonising the built environment


News
October 2023 PhD New Starters (continued)
Professor Chris Goodier / Exploration of the reasons why policy has yet to make a lasting
Jonathan Morgan Dr Robert Schmidt III / impact on the use of OSM systems within the house-building
Dr Kudirat Ayinla sector in England and Wales
Dr Mohamed Shaheen / The Endurance Time Method of Seismic Analysis for Resilience-
Farzaneh Pourreza
Professor Chris Keylock Based Design
Barah Rababa ERBE CDT TBC
Raj Srivastava ERBE CDT TBC
Professor Chris Goodier /

Corrosion of steel reinforcement in Reinforced Autoclaved
Christian Stone Professor Chris Gorse /
Aerated Concrete
Horreh Todeh
ERBE CDT TBC
Kharman
Structural damage detection and remaining fatigue life

Dr Mingzhu Wang /
Yuansheng Xu estimation of the reinforced concrete bridge via Peridynamics-
Dr Andre Jesus
based digital twin
Gabriela Yordanova ERBE CDT TBC
New Visiting Students

Home Finish
Name Supervisor Project Title Start Date
University Date
A lightweight wearable University of

Renjie Wu Dr Craig Hancock mapping approach for indoor Nottingham 20/10/23 29/02/24
geographic surveying Ningbo, China
Two-phase flow dynamics Hohai

Professor Qiuhua
Yanqing Lu study of urban stormwater University, 01/01/24 31/12/24
Liang
double-layer drainage system China
Assessment of the impact

of biochar and vetiver
Ahmadu Bello
grass on the remediation
Abdulmalik Musa Dr Sola Afolabi University, 15/01/24 14/01/25
of alkyl polycyclic aromatic
Nigeria
hydrocarbon contaminated
soils
New Visiting Academics

Home Finish
Name Host Academic Project Title Start Date
University Date
O.M. Beketov
“Micro-Mobility Development
National
as a Tool to Rebuild Mobility in
University
Mariia Olkhova Dr Asya Natapov Ukraine” Ukraine Fellowship 01/06/23 31/05/25
of Urban
provided by Cara, the Council
Economy,
for At-Risk Academics
Ukraine
Multi-source Information Heilongjiang

Zhihe Yang Dr Long Chen Fusion for Smart Construction University, 01/09/23 30/08/24
and Management China


News
C-DICE
C-Dice Agrees MOU with the Digital Taskforce for Planning
ABCE welcomed Dr Wei Yang, in the Summer of 2023, to sign an MOU between
Photograph supplied by
C-DICE and the Digital Taskforce for Planning, an NGO seeking to transform
the Planning sector. Dr Yang, who is CEO and co-Founder of the Taskforce,
Malcolm Cook
has recently become the Chair of the Construction Industries Council, as
well as joining the C-DICE advisory board. She met a range of colleagues and
researchers to talk about their work and the potential for collaboration. C-DICE
is funding a secondment with the Taskforce. We hope to host Dr Yang in the Our collaboration with the Digital Task force
future, to further the collaboration and showcase our research facilities. for Planning opens up many opportunities
for our urban planning and construction
To read more, visit: https://digital4planning.com/ management colleagues
C-DICE celebrates postdoctoral researchers

at the National Postdoc Conference 2023
The National Postdoc Conference, researchers conducting sessions
was hosted by C-DICE on for the first time.
campus, on 19 September 2023.
Postdoctoral researchers from The speakers included Professor
around the country were treated Dame Jessica Corner, Executive
to a full day of sessions – helping Chair of Research England,
them to navigate their postdoc and Hetan Shah, Chief Executive Burstow (Director Talent and
journey and thrive in their of the British Academy – who Skills, UKRI) and Antonia Liguori
current role and beyond. The were welcomed by our Vice (Senior Lecturer, Loughborough
conference theme was ‘Postdoc Chancellor, Professor Nick University Creative Arts)
Transitions and New Horizons’ – Jennings, as part of the morning amongst others.
engaging delegates with a wide plenaries. Also presenting
variety of talks and workshops, were Professor Turi King (BBC’s Closing with an awards
and providing a platform for DNA Family Secrets), Frances ceremony hosted by Dr Kathryn
North, C-DICE Director and
APVC for Climate Change and
Net Zero and Professor Sergio
Cavalaro, C-DICE Principal
Investigator and Associate Dean
(Research and Innovation, ABCE)
– this event marked the fourth
National Postdoc Appreciation
Week in the UK, and was
another milestone in C-DICE’s
commitment to postdoctoral
development.
View the conference outputs and

photo gallery online at:
https://www.cdice.ac.uk/npdc23/
Photograph courtesy of Phil Wilson, LU

photographer, Marketing and Advancement


News
C-DICE
C-DICE Win Prize Industrial Secondments for Postdocs
at 2023 Vice-Chancellor Awards from C-DICE
The C-DICE team won an award presented by the C-DICE is currently recruiting for three secondment
Vice-Chancellor on Friday 15 September2023. The opportunities for postdoctoral researchers – with
category was: Collaborative Research and Innovation, industrial partners Smart Power Systems, Everyware,
and Imfuna. A secondment is a temporary transfer of a
for driving forward collaborative partnerships
postdoctoral research fellow or early career researcher
across an institutional theme.
to another workplace or post. They provide an opportunity
Through providing collaboration grants across the for researchers to take a break from their current
majority of the main areas highlighted in the UK research and apply their skills in a new field – along with
government’s 10-point-plan for net zero, C-DICE contributing to solving real world problems on the path to
net zero.
is connecting and enabling an interdisciplinary
community to work effectively to address key Secondees are compensated for their salary and receive a
research challenges. stipend for travel and subsistence.
C-DICE also hosted the National Postdoc Conference The available secondments are:
in September 2023, and is building international 1. Smart Power Renewables
networks through our work around the world. The postdoctoral researcher seconded to this project
Loughborough researchers have benefited directly will benefit from real time, hands-on experience
with around £30k in grants distributed to LU working with experts in the renewable energy field,
researchers, and over 100 days-worth of bespoke control programming projects. This project will be ideal
training and development received. for a postdoctoral researcher in software and product
development with expertise in renewable energy.
To read the feature online, visit:
https://www.lboro.ac.uk/internal/news/2023/ 2. Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC)
monitoring
september/vc-awards-shines-a-light-
The secondee will help develop a digital RAAC data
on-staff/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_
capture tool for mitigating risk and proactively
medium=email&utm_campaign=staff-newsletter- monitoring their RAAC panels. This opportunity is in
22-sep-23&utm_content=vc-awards the form of a three-month industrial secondment (with
a potential job offer at the end of the secondment) for
Pictured below, l-r: Dr IJ Ikpeh, VC Professor Nick Jennings, Dr Kathryn postdoctoral researchers in software development, with
North, Sabrina Cox, Aayushman Prasad, and Professor Malcolm Cook, an interest in sensors and the Internet of Things (IoT).
Photograph courtesy of Phil Wilson, LU photographer, Marketing and 3. AI (Artificial Intelligence) in Infrastructure Engineering
Advancement C-DICE is partnering with Imfuna to offer a three-
month secondment for postdoctoral researchers that
will play a part in bridging academic research into
RAAC with practical AI solutions, to enhance the safety,
sustainability, and longevity of buildings with RAAC
structures. Successful completion of this secondment
can open doors for further collaboration with Imfuna,
potentially leading to full-time roles or other advanced
research opportunities.
More information is available at:

https://www.cdice.ac.uk/news-category/opportunity/

Hub Committee
News
One-day trip to Peak District International Lunch
ABCE Doctoral Researchers went on an unforgettable In our cherished tradition, another international lunch was
one-day journey to the captivating Peak District, on held on 3 August 2023,. The Hub team extend heartfelt thanks
10 June 2023. to everyone who attended, and were particularly appreciative
of the academics who also attended, including
Dr Tom Dijkstra, Professor Pat Carrillo, and
Immersing themselves in the breathtaking landscapes
Dr Peter Demian.
of the Peak District, they fostered a deep sense of
camaraderie, forging stronger connections, and
The International Lunch is a testament to the Hub's
creating cherished memories that will undoubtedly
commitment to diversity and inclusivity, continuing to provide
stay with them for years to come.
a fantastic opportunity for both our recent members and
colleagues who may not have yet experienced this cultural
Some of those who went, said this experience not only feast. It stands as an embodiment of the cultural exchange
deepened their bonds as colleagues but also reignited that our community values it, and we look forward to many
their shared enthusiasm for research and friendship. more enriching moments of togetherness in the future!
Research Hub’s Social accounts

Join us on our Research Hub's Instagram and Twitter accounts, where you can stay updated on the latest news and events.
Instagram account: insta@Hub_ABCE Twitter account: ABCE Research Hub
Library
News academiclibrarians@lboro.ac.uk
ABCE Academic Librarian Libby: Your New Digital Leisure Reading Collection
Our new academic librarian is Need time to relax and unwind? Have you tried Libby, the exciting,
Nathan Rush, contact him brand-new reading app provided by the Pilkington Library?
if you need any support with
Enjoy Ebooks (leisure reading, wellbeing and graphic novels), audio
your teaching, and let your
books, Emagazines and more. Diverse, inclusive and designed to
students and researchers
reflect the preferences of our campus community.
know that support is available
for them in the Library. To get started, simply download the Libby app, from the app store, or
Nathan can help with finding from a link on the Libby homepage. You can also access Libby on your
information, building search computer’s web browser. When first setting up your account you will
strategies, systematic reviews, need to be on campus using either Eduroam on wifi, or a networked
publication strategies, PC or on the VPN.
referencing, using Mendeley,
If you need any support, then please contact library@lboro.ac.uk
citation analysis, SciVal and
bibliometrics. During the summer
of 2023, he started to update
ABCE's Study Skills module and
Dissertation and Project Success
module.
Nathan can be contacted directly

on email (n.p.rush@lboro.ac.uk)
or via Teams.

Technicians'
News Mark Harrod
Interview with
Lee Page, Technical Supervisor, Manufacturing and Modelling. Lee joined ABCE in
June 2023 and is the School’s Workshop Supervisor, covering Manufacturing and
Modelling in a multitude of materials.
Mark: Tell us what your job entails. Mark: What did you do before you started work with
ABCE?
Lee: My role involves the day-to-day running of the
School’s analogue and digital workshops, including Lee: I spent three years working in the Wolfson
the wood/plastics machine workshop, the Digital School; working for a year and a half in the main
FabLab, Metalworking Machine Workshop and workshops where I supported student projects
Mezzanine Assembly Space in the Sir Frank Gibb and research and then I moved to the Sports Tech
Labs. Institute, over in Sports Park, where I was involved
in similar, but more involved work, which entailed
This includes supervising two technicians and also
working on test rigs sometimes in the field. A lot
two apprentice technicians, who are based in the
of work centred at the time on sports protective
School at the moment.
equipment design, such as helmets that need to be
I provide instruction to staff and students, together able to withstand considerable impacts, so I worked
with maintenance and health and safety aspects, with ball canons quite a lot.
as well as manufacturing items for teaching and
research purposes. Mark: Is there anything you've discovered about
working in The School that has surprised you?
Mark: What do you enjoy the most about your job?
Lee: The variety of topics which this school has
Lee: I enjoy the variety that the job offers, such as activity in is really impressive, I never realised that
all the different projects we get involved with, and ABCE covered such a wide range of subjects – not
the different places we work across the School just those obviously mentioned in the title of the
and The University, rather than just working in school – but other things associated directly with
one place either sat at a desk or working with one the built environment I guess we all generally
machine etc. take certain things for granted, such as Water
Engineering, Building Services and Structures, so
Mark: What does your typical day look like? I was quite impressed with such a diverse range of
subjects and expertise.
Lee: Well, I haven’t had a lot of student contact
so far other than to provide workshop inductions
Mark: Tell us a little about yourself and what you like
to all the Architecture students, but I have been
to do outside work
involved in lots of preparation work to make sure
we have all the up-to-date training of staff, buying Lee: Well, my wife and I have 4 kids and 2
new machines and tools, maintaining stocks of grandchildren, which pretty much keep us
materials and familiarising myself with staff, entertained but when we can dodge them, we like
processes, procedures and recordkeeping so I can to go travelling on our motorbike across Europe
build a good platform to both fill in any gaps and and America. I like History and visiting historical
move things on where needed. sites such as battlegrounds like Waterloo and
Little Big Horn. I enjoy Sci-Fi too.
Q+A session between Mark Harrod and Lee Page,

November 2023.

Supporting
Charity: Updates
Shine Night Walk for Cancer Research
Karishma Joshi completed a 10k Shine Night Walk, Leicester on
21st October 2023, in 2 hours 37 minutes (including two mini breaks). She took
on the challenge with friends on behalf of her best friend who was diagnosed
with a rare form of lung cancer 6 years ago, and the group exceeded their
target of £500, raising a whopping £1265 (+ £241.25 Gift Aid) for the charity.
Karishma thanks everyone who took the time to read her story and to all
who made donations. It was announced shortly after the event, that Cancer
Research UK raised over £90,000 from the walk in 2023!
To donate and read more of the story, visit:
https://fundraise.cancerresearchuk.org/page/kizzs-10k-walk-lc
ABCE Cake and Coffee Mornings

Our School has raised £431.40 for Rainbows Hospice for Children and
Young People, since we started these events on 7th June 2023.
Karen Chadwick and Tom Dijkstra plan to visit the hospice to handover your
generous gift. Thank you for being so generous, both with your money and
your cake making skills. To find out more about the charity, visit:
https://www.rainbows.co.uk/
We also held a cake and coffee morning on behalf of Macmillan Cancer
Support on 6th September 2023, raising a superb £65 for the charity, thank
you. To find out more about Macmillan Cancer Support,
visit: https://www.macmillan.org.uk/
This year, we are looking for ideas for another charity to support with our cake and coffee
mornings, so please send suggestions to Karen and Tom.

Equity, Diversity & Inclusion (EDI)

News
Ksenia Chmutina
Sense of belonging is this from engaging with IEEH, please

year’s Equity, Diversity and
Inclusion theme. This is
mention it to them.
Inaugural
one of areas of EDI that the
Our student EDI Champions
represent all of the programmes Lecture
University hope to champion
in the School; some of them Professor Ksenia Chmutina will
in, in addition to the area of
joined the scheme last year deliver her inaugural lecture,
social justice.
but most are new. Our EDI Disaster risk reduction or disaster
Yet, sense of belonging is not Champions are: risk production? The folly of devising
shared by all. In particular, • Candis Boateng; a technocratic solution to a socio-
political problem, on 15 May 2024.
some of our students • Ayo Awe;
with certain personal • Anuraga Kodeswaran; Rarely, a day goes by without news
characteristics feel left out, as • Natasha Duncan; of an earthquake devastating a city,
our last year’s student survey a flood inundating a community
• Katherine Searle;
and focus groups showed. or unprecedented temperatures
• Jenisha Devaliya; afflicting a region. The images of
This year we will be working
• Jeremy Burnett; people losing everything – including
closely with Hannah Swollow,
• Nana Appoh; their lives – are accompanied by
the student president,
• Saarah Dawood; reporters and politicians referring
to establish a better EDI
to these disasters as “unexpected”
presence among students and • Saakshi Shah;
and “shocking”, but “unavoidable”
to better understand their • Amelia Chase;
and “natural” events to which we
needs and wants. • Hannah Swallow must adapt. But are these types of
The main purpose of the EDI disasters really “natural”? Disasters
One of the most exciting
Champions is to promote a don’t just cause suffering – they
initiatives is student EDI
positive learning culture and expose it. Those who are most
Champions. This initiative marginalised in our societies are
environment that supports
was introduced and piloted most harmed by them. However,
EDI values within the School
last year, as a part of the for them, a disaster is not a
and the University. Different
Royal Academy of Engineering- sudden or unexpected danger. It
Champions will be looking after
funded Inclusive Engineering is a continuation of everyday harm
different activities, but all of
Excellence Hub (IEEH). The inflicted on them – but framing
these activities will be aimed disasters as “natural” obscures this
IEEH ‘s aim is to enhance
at promoting and sharing best fact.
inclusion and excellence
practices, representing students’
among engineering students; In her inaugural lecture,
voices, contributing to relevant
all its activities are co- Professor Chmutina will explain why,
EDI policies and procedures
developed with students and instead of being “natural” events,
within the School’s strategy,
for students. The IEEH is disasters are a reflection and a
and facilitating effective and manifestation of an unjust society.
the actual Hub: WPTH0.07
comprehensive EDI-related
has been refurbished She will explore why many disaster
communications across the
into a student facility with risk reduction and resilience building
programs in School. All of this
PCs, a quiet study space, efforts actually re-construct the risk
will help us to support the EDI
a mini kitchen, an area to and re-create – even exacerbate
agenda amongst students across
relax between lectures; it – inequalities that eventually lead
the School. These efforts are led to further disaster. She will offer
provides a community hub
by Deputy Director of EDI, ways in which we can resist disaster
for engineering students with
Dr Karen Blay, and supported by risk creation through dialogue,
access to key services and
the EDI Committee. empathy and humility – as well as
organisations from across
the recognition of our collective ties,
the campus, such as Student In the next few months, you will
interconnections and vulnerabilities.
Success Academy and Careers see a lot of EDI-related student
Network. If you feel that your and staff-facing activities – and Book your place at: https://www.
personal tutees might benefit we hope to see you there. lboro.ac.uk/inaugural-lectures/book/


News
2024
SABCE Internal Email and Communication Charter for Staff
The purpose of this charter is to offer guidance that, if employed collectively, could help us reducing the
volume of work and the sense of pressure that can arise from internal staff communications. It also serves
as an aid to help avoiding potential miscommunication. This is not to prevent you working flexibly but to
avoid creating pressures on others and yourself. The guidance is not prescriptive; it is a living document
that will be updated overtime to reflect changes in communication channels and culture as well as
feedback from colleagues. The Charter has been inspired by similar initiatives at LUiL and other UK HE
institutions.
1. Timing and impact. Think about the time that you send emails or messages. Is it necessary that an
email is sent out of hours? If not, put it in draft and send in office hours, or use the delay function.
Try to avoid holding important exchanges by email or Teams messages out of office hours. To
prevent inadvertent exclusion of relevant colleagues from important conversations, postpone
important exchanges until office hours. This is not to prevent you working flexibly but to avoid
creating pressures for others to respond out of hours.
2. Choose channels with care. Email, Teams, and personal channels (e.g., text messaging) are now all
being used for work purposes. While email remains the standard means of work-related written
communication, exchanging quick messages or calling over Teams may be preferable for some
discussions or close working relationships. However, try to avoid using multiple channels to send
the same message, and please do not expect an instant response. We would also encourage you
to seek out colleagues and have quick face to face conversations.
3. Prioritise clarity and brevity. Keep emails as clear and brief as possible: it is easy to miss key details in
long messages. Provide extensive instructions, directions, or explanation in attachments wherever
possible. Make good use of subject lines: these should deliver the most important information in no
more than 10 words. Indicating high or low importance also helps.
4. Reduce response content. Short messages should not necessarily be considered rude, signoffs are nice
but not required. You can also use the emoticon to indicate the response.
5. Addressees. Check who needs to be included before CC’ing or Replying All; move people to BCC if they
can be taken out of the thread (this works particularly well for mailing lists such; BCC-ing the lists also
mean that the accidental ‘reply all’ would not happen). You can still let colleagues know who the email
has gone to by including a BCC list in the e-mail message (e.g., “Dear All [Bcc. cv-xxx]”. Create ‘contact
groups’ if you frequently send an email to the same group of people (e.g., research group).
6. Allow for response time. It’s ok not to respond immediately – don’t feel obligated to give or expect to
receive immediate responses. You may wish to turn off notifications and/or use the ‘Work Offline’
function1 and schedule email checks only once or twice a day. If a response is required by a certain
date/ time, please indicate this clearly – however please ensure that sufficient time is given for a
response.
7. Set expectations and boundaries. Use autoreply to indicate whether and how long for you are away/
on leave/ have urgent commitments, to set the expectations; for example, Student Services has a
practice of emailing students only between 9AM-5PM, which is communicated in an autoreply.
To reduce the number of responses after a period of absence/leave, encourage follow ups2. Use ‘Clean
up’ function to remove redundant conversations and reduce the number of messages in your inbox.
8. Email and information security. The majority of information security incidents within the university
result through misuse of e-mail and the consequences can be serious for the individual and university.
Avoid sending confidential attachments by e-mail and instead use One-Drive. If your e-mail body
contains confidential information, can this information be extracted and shared by OneDrive? Please
double check who you have copied in your ‘To’ and ‘cc’ lists before pressing send.
1Even if using the “Work Offline” function you can still send emails by applying the “Update Folder” button to the “Outbox” folder.
2An automated response could be along the following lines: “I am on annual leave until [date]. I will not be checking my email during
this time, and on my return, I may not have enough time to go through all emails that have come in. Please consider following up if I
have not got back to you after the [x date]’.


News
Straya Quiz
Dr Vivien Chow was born in Hong Kong and immigrated to Australia with her family when she
was 8 years old. In celebration of what she considers to be her second home country, she's put
together a trivia quiz to share some of her favourite factoids and titbits about Straya.
How much do you know about Australia? Take the Straya Quiz and find out!
QUESTION 1 in length and contains the fourth QUESTION 8
Some of you might know that longest stretch of straight road in the “Waltzing Matilda” is
Australia was first discovered by world. How many miles long is this considered Australia’s unofficial
Dutch seafarer, Abel Tasman, who straight stretch of road? national anthem. The third stanza
named it “New Holland”. This name begins with: “Down came a jumbuck
was used until the mid-1850’s when QUESTION 4 to drink at that billabong / Up jumped
the name “Australia” was adapted The black box flight recorder was the swagman and grabbed him with
instead. Up until then, “Australia” invented by Australian scientist, Dr glee”. What is a “jumbuck”?
referred to another place on the David Warren. What colour is it? (Hint:
it’s not black!) QUESTION 9
globe. What is this other place
Which Australian actor (male or
referred to now?
QUESTION 5 female) remains the only actor
QUESTION 2 Besides Australia and New Zealand, to have ever won an Oscar for
Which of the following are NOT a what are the other three countries portraying another Oscar-winning
place in New South Wales, Australia? that depict the Southern Cross on actor?
1. Barangaroo their flags?
QUESTION 10
2. Woolloomooloo What is special and unique about
QUESTION 6
3. Humpty Doo Which bird lays the largest egg a wombat’s poo?
4. Manly relative to its body size?
BONUS QUESTION
QUESTION 3 QUESTION 7 Which country is better:
The Eyre Highway linking Western Steve Irwin, nicknamed The Crocodile Australia or New Zealand?
Australia and South Australia via Hunter, passed away in 2006, aged
the Nullarbor Plain is 1034 miles 44. How did he die? (answers on next page)
New Director of the Institute of Advanced Studies

Professor Ksenia Chmutina has been appointed as the Disasters: Deconstructed podcast, that
as the new Director of the Institute of Advanced she co-hosts with Dr Jason von Meding, from
Studies, taking over the role from Professor the University of Florida, who was an IAS
Marsha Meskimmon, on 1st February 2024. Visiting Fellow in 2021, with the IAS Annual
Theme, ‘Time’.
As a world leading disaster scholar, Ksenia's
research explores the factors creating Professor Chmutina will step down from her
disaster risk, drawing in researchers with role as ABCEs Director of Equality, Diversity
widely varied types of expertise (from natural and Inclusion to take up the position, but will
sciences and civil engineering to fine arts and retain her role as Special Envoy for East Asia,
linguistics), and bringing together critical theory supporting efforts to develop new relationships
and applied disaster science to enhance inter- and build strategic partnerships across the
and transdisciplinary disaster research. region.
She promotes the discipline not only through Read more online at:
her academic outputs, but also through popular https://www.lboro.ac.uk/internal/news/2024/
science communication for lay audiences, such january/new-director-of-ias-appointed/


News
Sari (or Saree): The Traditional Indian Garment

The people of the Indian subcontinent have worn Modern varieties
some form of draped clothing for several centuries. Ready-made saris have become popular in recent
The actual sari materialised in the late 18th century years as they are easier to wear than traditional
in the form of an outfit that consisted of a skirt, a saris, which require skill and practice in draping.
bodice, and a sheer veil wrapped around the body. These modern saris come with zips, sewn-in
In short it is a traditional garment for women of pleats, and elastic waistbands, making them
South Asian (especially Indian) background. convenient and comfortable to wear. They also
come in a wide range of materials and colours to
Over the years, the basic design of the sari has
suit different budgets.
remained unchanged, but the materials used
to make them has. In the past, most saris were Other modern uses
made of natural fibres such as silk and cotton, but In addition to being worn as an outfit, the sari
synthetic materials such as polyester are most material is now also used for other products. For
popular nowadays. The choli blouse that is worn example, the decorative borders and pallus are
with the sari has undergone various changes over used to make curtain panels, cushion covers, bags
the years. In the early 20th century, the choli had and other home textile products.
high necklines and long sleeves. Subsequently, the
Jayshree Lakha, pictured wearing a sari at her
blouse and sleeves became shorter and the back
nephew’s wedding
neckline lower.
So, what is a sari (or saree)

The sari is a long piece of fabric ranging from
3-8 metres, which is draped around the body. It is
always worn with a short-fitted blouse, known as a
choli, and a long petticoat, covering both the upper
and lower body. There are three main parts to
the sari: a field; borders; and an end piece known
as the pallu. The field is the main section that is
draped around the wearer. Draping is done in a way
to highlight the design and enhancement of the
field. The border runs the length of the sari along
the edges and is meant to beautify the garment as Straya Quiz Answers
well as to add weight at the edges to enable the Q1: Antarctica
fabric to fall nicely in place. The pallu is the end Q2: Humpty Doo (in the Northern Territories, and 30 minutes down the
piece of the sari that is usually embellished and highway from Darwin where Vivien grew up)
draped over the shoulder. Q3: 91.1 miles, and is known as the “90 Mile Straight”
Q4: A bright orange colour called “international orange”
There are many ways in which a sari can be draped. Q5: Brazil, Papua New Guinea, and Samoa
In the past, the way a sari was draped reflected its Q6: The kiwi bird, whose egg averages at 15% of the bird’s total body
geographical origins. For example, in the southern weight (a bit of a trick question because technically the kiwi is a NZ bird
Indian state of Tamil Nadu, the sari was draped not Australian bird…)
with back pleats to create a fan effect. Today, most Q7: Stingray sting to the chest while filming in the Great Barrier Reef
Indian women adopt the popular nivi style, where Q8: A sheep
one end of the sari is tucked at the waist into the Q9: Cate Blanchett, for portraying Katharine Hepburn in ‘The Aviator’,
petticoat. It is then pleated and twisted around the (2004)
Q10: Wombats produce cube-shaped poo – the only known species to
legs to form a long skirt that reaches the ankles.
do so. Read about the science online at:
The remaining end is thrown over the shoulder or
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-australia-46258616
head.
Bonus Q: Both countries are beautiful and full of great people.
But if you said ‘Australia’, come find me and I’ll buy you a coffee

WEDC International
Conference
Online from 9th – 13th September 2024
Water and Climate Resilience

The title for the 43rd International Conference – Delegate contributions
Water and Climate Resilience – recognises that the
Delegates may submit for review two types of
world faces a future that is uncertain as we face
conference contributions – i.e:
the global challenge of reducing the impact the
changing climate has on the water sector. • Extended abstracts with a view to presenting a
10 minute recorded themed presentation of the
For over fifty years, WEDC has sought to develop
subject followed with 10 minutes of discussion.
the knowledge and capacity of both individuals and
The abstract is limited to two pages. We ask
institutions across the world working to meet the
authors to closely address an aspect of one
challenges of the sector, particularly in low- and
of the topics listed above within the context of
middle- income countries. The WEDC International
climate resilience.
Conferences continue to be key to supporting
learning and sharing, which is critical for progress • Poster proposals related to the conference
towards global goals and aspirations. To this end, focus and one of the topics, outlining the
we encourage open and honest exchange and subject. There is the opportunity to display
debate of our experiences within our changing the poster in the Poster Gallery. There are
environment. also additional opportunities for a selection of
posters to be presented live in one of the poster
The conference comprises keynote presentations
sessions.
on Monday 9 September 2024, followed by four days
of online presentations; interactive discussions Agency contributions
of peer-reviewed content; agency events from
International agencies are invited to present a
international organizations working in the sector
session and/or training for delegates (who may
including WaterAid and USAID; and online
include their staff from across the globe) on a
exhibitions.
subject of their own choosing within the broad
Conference focus focus of the conference.
We are inviting delegates to submit an abstract Agency events are 1.5 hour slots integrated into the
or poster proposal for review on a subject that conference programme. An event is an opportunity
specifically addresses the issues related to water for an agency to review and reflect on current
and climate resilience and adaptation within the programmes or projects, share results, introduce
context of one or more of the following topics: new approaches, or consult with the conference
audience on emerging topics in the sector.
• Disaster risk management;
• Water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) services;
• Emerging technologies for water management
(inc. AI);
• Flood management;
• Nature-based solutions;
• Water security; and
• Water quality.
Further details
Visit the conference website at
https://wedc-knowledge.lboro.ac.uk/
conference/43/index.html or contact
Rod Shaw, Conference Manager.

Staffing
News
since last newsletter
New Colleagues
• Dr Kudirat Ayinla, 01/09/2023, Lecturer in • Dr Mariia Olkhova, Research Fellow, supported
Construction Management joined us from by the Council for At-Risk Academics (CARA)
London South Bank University. She is a graduate m.olkhova@lboro.ac.uk
from our MSc programme in Construction
• Lee Page, Technical Supervisor in Manufacturing
Project Management k.ayinla@lboro.ac.uk
and Modelling, June 2023 l.page2@lboro.ac.uk
• Peter Baldwin, Lecturer in Architecture, from the
• Dr Kambiz Rakhshanbabanari (‘Kami’), Lecturer
University of Lincoln p.j.baldwin@lboro.ac.uk
in Construction Management, joined us from
• Matt Biddulph, Technical Specialist in Electrical Leeds Beckett University, September 2023
and Electronics, joined us from Wolfson School, k.rakhshanbabanari@lboro.ac.uk
based in our Laboratory, September 2023
• Saakshi Shah, Net-Zero Carbon Intern,
m.biddulph@lboro.ac.uk
September 2023 s.shah4@lboro.ac.uk
• Lennie Foster, C-DICE Skills Manager, July 2023
• Dr Mohamed Shaheen, Lecturer in Structural
l.a.Foster@lboro.ac.uk
Engineering, September 2023
• Susie Goodall, Lecturer in Water Engineering, m.shaheen@lboro.ac.uk
September 2023 s.goodall@lboro.ac.uk
• Richard Stanley, University Teacher in
• Sarah Howie, Net-Zero Carbon Intern, September Engineering Surveying, September 2023
2023 s.howie@lboro.ac.uk r.n.stanley@lboro.ac.uk
• Aya Jazaierly, Lecturer in Architecture, • Dexter Vernall-Williams, National Engineering

September 2023 a.jazaierly@lboro.ac.uk Slope Simulator Project Intern
d.vernall-williams@lboro.ac.uk
• Dr Seyed Mohammad Mojtabaei, Lecturer in
Structural Engineering, joined us from • Dr Sitsofe Yevu, Lecturer in Construction
Aston University, September 2023 Management joined us from the Hong Kong
m.mojtabaei@lboro.ac.uk Polytechnic University (PolyU), July 2023
s.k.yevu@lboro.ac.uk
• Jacob Mhlanga, Research Associate in Structural
Engineering, and Circular Economy Business • Austin and Casey, who are part of the new
Models, September 2023 Loughborough University technical apprentices
j.j.mhlanga@lboro.ac.uk scheme, joined ABCE in October 2023
International Engagement and Impact New Arrials

One of the strategic aims of our University strategy is to intensify and Dr Yasir Ali and his wife, Fizza,
extend the reach of our international engagement and impact. We have no celebrated the birth of their
fewer than FOUR Special Envoys in ABCE. Professor Tarek Hassan joins second daughter, Zaira Batool
the team as Special Envoy for the Middle East and North Africa. Envoys (meaning: one who loves to visit
fulfil a new role for the University, created as part of the International holy places), on 21 October 2023.
Engagement and Impact Core Plan element of the Strategy. Two envoys
appointed for each region work with our Marketing and Advancement team
to develop and expand relationships across the globe. These collaborations
cover teaching arrangements as well as research and innovation. Tarek
is also our School International Reputation Champion, working to
advance the global impact of our research and our network of overseas
partners, building on our international community of staff, students and
alumni, as well as enhancing Loughborough University’s performance in
international league tables such as the QS World University Rankings.

Staffing
News
New Research Associates & Research Assistants Return to Work

• Seongha Hwang, Research Assistant in AI for Monitoring Welcome back to Professor
Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete, December 2023 Ksenia Chmutina from maternity
leave. Ksenia is one of the
• Mihyun Kim, Research Officer in Spatial Data Science University’s Special Envoys
to East Asia and has recently
• Mohamed El-Taher, June 2023, Research Associate in Numerical
been appointed to the Advisory
Modelling and Experimental Geotechnics, working on the Achilles
Board of the LU Institute of
(Assessment, costing and enhancement of long-life, long-linear Advanced Studies, and is a
assets), with Dr Alister Smith and Dr Ashraf El-Hamalawi panel member for the new UKRI
• Dr Aline Moreira-Fernandes-Barata, joined SDCA June 2023 as Interdisciplinary Assessment
College. She also returns to
a Research Associate in Urban and Regional Studies. Aline will
her role of Director of EDI in
support research and impact activity for ‘The Impact Hub’ (TIH)
the School’s Senior Leadership
interdisciplinary project from LU’s portfolio of projects funded Team. Thanks to Pat Carrillo
by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities and Karen Blay who have done a
(DLUHC) ‘Town Fund’. TIH is a collaboration between SDCA, ABCE, fantastic job developing our EDI
and Charnwood Borough Council. Aline will be working from agenda in Ksenia’s absence and
multiple locations: The Impact Hub (Martin Hall), ABCE Hub, and providing great support to SLT.
the Careers & Enterprise Hub in the town centre. Aline will be They will continue in their roles
establishing and developing research and impact activity for TIH in on our School EDI committee.
close collaboration with Mihyun Kim
• Haoyang Qin, Research Assistant in Coupled Human and Natural

Systems CHANS, December 2023 Staff Departures
• Hans-Heinrich Schumann, Research Associate in Urban Transport • Dr Aaron Anvuur, left in July
Mobility Corridor Assessment, June 2023, supervised by 2023. Aaron was a significant
Dr Craig Morton contributor over the last
10 years
• Jacob Mhlanga, Research Associate in Systemic Enablers for
Circular Economy in Construction, September 2023, supervised by • Falli Palaiologou,
Professor Mohamed Osmani September 2023
• Liam Whyte, Research Associate in Material and Structural • Dr Alessandro Palmeri,
Performance of Hybrid 3DCP, November 2023, supervised by August 2023
Professor Richard Buswell on the First Time Concrete Project
• Dr Teresa Lombardo,
August 2023
• Dr Andy Taylor, August 2023
• Beth Taylor, June 2023, left

us to work as a Scientist with
Public Health England
• Jerry Xu, member of our 3D

concrete printing team, left in
July 2023 for a senior research
fellow post at the University
of Cambridge, in the £8.6m
Digital Roads of the Future
Initiative, led by Professor
Ioannis Brilakis

Staffing
News
Long Service Awards
The Vice Chancellor, Professor Nick Jennings, hosted afternoon tea on campus, on Tuesday 5 December
2023, to celebrate colleagues with long service awards. ABCE contributed the largest number of recipients,
with Kay Davey, Dean Sanham and Rod Shaw each celebrating 35 years of service. Also receiving awards
for 15 years of service were: Karen Chadwick, Malcolm Cook, Steven Firth, Jonathan Hales, and Mark Whale.
Kevin Lomas also achieved his long service award but was not present on the day.
ABCE colleagues celebrating

long service awards of 35
and 15 years (Kevin Lomas in
absentia). Photograph courtesy
of Phil Wilson, LU photographer,
Marketing and Advancement
ABCE Staff Awards 2023

The ABCE Annual School Awards 2023 was held at the National Space Centre, Leicester. Special thanks to
Karen Chadwick for organising and booking the event. There were nine categories and the winners of were:
• Outstanding Academic • Early Career Achievement • The Mentor Award

Achievement Awarded to a member of academic Awarded to any member of staff,
Awarded to an individual member staff in the first five years of their from any job group, who has
or team of Research, Teaching academic career for outstanding excelled at nurturing, encouraging
and Enterprise staff or University achievement in any aspect of and supporting a colleague or more
Teacher for outstanding academic Research, Teaching or Enterprise junior member of staff
achievement throughout the year Winner: Yasir Ali Joint winners: Haitao He and
Winner: Karen Blay Highly commended: Ben Roberts Sarah Rate
• Outstanding Academic Support • Doctoral Researcher Excellence • The “Extra Mile Award”
Awarded to an individual Awarded for outstanding Awarded to an individual or group
member or team of support staff achievement in research for a of staff from any job family who has
(administrative or technical) for doctoral researcher ‘gone the extra mile’ in bringing
outstanding contribution to the Winner: Eeman Al-Amin about positive change in the School
School through academic support Highly commended: through any aspect of their role.
Winner: Karen Chadwick Muhammed Umer Jadoon This award particularly includes
Highly commended: Lewis Darwin collegiality and all aspects of
and Chris Carter • Doctoral Researcher Culture and equity, diversity and inclusion
Environment Winners: Laura Evans and Cansu
• Research Excellence (Academics) Awarded for outstanding Curgen-Gurpinar
Awarded to an individual academic achievement in improving the Highly commended: Hannah Ryan
for outstanding achievement or research culture and environment and Tom Dijkstra
contribution to project success, for the doctoral student body
funding outputs or external Winner: Neda Abbasimaleki
recognition Highly commended: Rebecca Lewis
Winner: The RAAC Team:
Chris Goodier, Sergio Cavalero,
Karen Blay, Ana Blanco and Chris
Gorse

Staffing
News
...and in Other News
Individual Achievements and Promotions
• Dr Yasir Ali, awarded ‘Researcher Matt is also promoted to Reader. • Dr Eftychia Spentzou, promoted to
in Residence’, at the Connected Thanks to Professor Paul Fleming, Senior Lecturer
Places Catapult, to collaborate who stepped down from AD-E in • Dr Andrew Timmis, Director
with colleagues in India when July 2023. of Undergraduate Studies,
‘Unravelling the barriers to the Andrew will work closely with
uptake of shared electric micro- • Dr Simon Richards, co-lead the the Education and Student
mobility in India’ architecture group, coordinating Experience team in ABCE,
teaching activities, October 2023 comprising Dr Matthew Frost,
• Dr Karen Blay, appointed as
Deputy Director of EDI for ABCE, Dr Tim Marjoribanks and
• Dr Kirti Ruikar, Reader in Digital
October 2023 Dr Scott Fernie
Construction
• Dr Mingzhu Wang, promoted
• Dr Huili Chen, promoted to Senior
• Dr Robert Schmidt III, co-lead the to Senior Lecturer. Dr Wang is
Lecturer
architecture group, supporting now also the Admissions Tutor
• Dr Vivien Chow, promoted to research activities, October 2023 for our undergraduate courses
Senior Lecturer in Commercial Management
• Dr Alister Smith, Director of and Quantity Surveying, and
• Professor Marcus Enoch,
Research Impact Generation and Construction Engineering
appointed as Group Lead for
Acceleration; Programme Leader Management, a role she took over
Transport and Urban Planning
for Civil Engineering (BEng and from Dr Aaron Anvuur
• Dr Matthew Frost, appointed MEng); Director of the National • Professor Jonathan Wright,
as our next Associate Dean for Engineered Slope Simulator appointed New Director of
Education and Student Experience. (NESS) facility Doctoral Programmes (DDP)
Collaborative Achievements
• Dr Long Chen and • Two teams whose outline Planning Visualisation (CLPV) Tool:
Dr John Kolawole, who both bids have been supported by Streaming and Visualisation of
submitted RAEng Fellowship the EPSRC for full proposal Planning Application Data" project,
applications in September 2023. development: submitted by the Alan Turing
These are exacting applications Dr Alister Smith, Dr Ashraf Institute and Loughborough
that require significant work, but El-Hamalawi, Dr Craig Hancock University. The Colouring London
can lead to five fully funded years and Dr Matthew Frost, with an Planning Visualisation tool is a
of research and a burgeoning International centre to centre reproducible open-source digital
research profile, as research collaborations proposal tool that visualises colour-coded
Dr Sola Afolabi is demonstrating. geolocated data on planning
Dr Ana Blanco and Professor
applications streamed from the
• High Commendation from the Richard Buswell, with their 3D
GLA datahub.
PVC (ESE), in October 2023, at the Concrete Printing proposal with
collaborators in Brazil. • Our Architectural Engineering
ABCE annual meeting with the
(AE) team were awarded full CIOB
Pro Vice‑Chancellor for Education • ABCEs collaborative project with
Accreditation, in October 2023, for
and Student Experience (Rachel Dr Taimaz Larimian, Falli
our BEng and Meng AE courses.
Thomson) and her team to review Palaiologou and Polly Hudson from
our NSS (National Student Survey) the Alan Turing Institute, won the • our MArch degree was awarded
performance, where our overall Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) the RIBA (Royal Institute of
performance in NSS improved last Award, for Excellence in Digital British Architects) accreditation in
year following interventions we Planning Practice. The award September 2023. The course was
made. was for the "Colouring London accredited with no conditions.

Key ABCE
Contacts
Please use this list of ABCE contacts for work related enquiries. If you would like to add any other key
contacts to the list, please send your suggestions to Kay Davey for inclusion in future newsletters.
Wellbeing Advisors:
Julie Winfield (223789) J.M.Winfield@lboro.ac.uk
Julia Salisbury (227498) J.F.Salisbury@lboro.ac.uk
Health & Safety Advisor:

Rebecca Scott (228309) R.E.Scott@lboro.ac.uk
Mental Health First Aiders:

Adam Crawford (222629) A.R.Crawford@lboro.ac.uk
Berkeley Young (222611) B.K.D.Young@lboro.ac.uk
Helena Geary (222641) H.Geary2@lboro.ac.uk
Jayshree Lakha (223771) J.Lakha@lboro.ac.uk
Karen Blay (228740) K.B.Blay@lboro.ac.uk
Karen Holmes (223433) K.Holmes@lboro.ac.uk
Rabab Zidan (223096) R.M.Zidan@lboro.ac.uk
Sarah Rate (223772) S.J.Rate@lboro.ac.uk
Dean Sanham (223434) D.P.Sanham@lboro.ac.uk
HR Adviser and HR Partnering Support:

Debra Lichfield (226585) D.Lichfield@lboro.ac.uk
HR Services inbox hr.services@mailbox.lboro.ac.uk)
University Chaplains:
Angela Tarry A.Tarry@lboro.ac.uk
Chris Watkins C.Watkins@lboro.ac.uk
University Chaplaincy: Contact (223741) chaplaincy@lboro.ac.uk
https://www.lboro.ac.uk/services/chaplaincy/
UG Student Support Team:

Karen Betts, Hannah Ryan, Pam Wilson and Rebecca Young: abce.studentsupport@mailbox.lboro.ac.uk
PGT Student Support Team:

Helena Geary and Natalie Sullivan: abcepgtsupport@mailbox.lboro.ac.uk
Casual Employment (External and PhD’s) Enquiries:

Pamela Wilson / Hannah Ryan: ABCE.casual.employment@mailbox.lboro.ac.uk

Editor &
Contributors
Editorial, Design and Layout:
Kay Davey K.A.Davey@lboro.ac.uk
Thanks to Contributors:
Neda Abbasimaleki N.Abbasimaleki@lboro.ac.uk
Richard Buswell R.A.Buswell@lboro.ac.uk
Chris Carter C.D.Carter@lboro.ac.uk
Karen Chadwick K.L.Chadwick@lboro.ac.uk
Huili Chen H.Chen2@lboro.ac.uk
Torah Chen T.Chen4@lboro.ac.uk
Ksenia Chmutina K.Chmutina@lboro.ac.uk
Vivien Chow V.Chow@lboro.ac.uk
Malcolm Cook Malcolm.Cook@lboro.ac.uk
Tom Dijkstra T.A.Dijkstra@lboro.ac.uk
Mahroo Eftekhari M.M.Eftekhari@lboro.ac.uk
Chris Goodier C.I.Goodier@lboro.ac.uk
Matyas Gutai M.Gutai@lboro.ac.uk
Mark Harrod M.Harrod@lboro.ac.uk
Tarek Hassan T.Hassan@lboro.ac.uk
Haitao He H.He@lboro.ac.uk
Karen Holmes K.Holmes@lboro.ac.uk
Hub Committee hubcommittee@mailbox.lboro.ac.uk
Karishma Joshi K.Joshi@lboro.ac.uk
Matthew Li M.G.J.Li@lboro.ac.uk
Jayshree Lakha J.Lakha@lboro.ac.uk
Asya Natapov A.Natapov@lboro.ac.uk
Lee Page L.Page2@lboro.ac.uk
Aayushman Prasad A.Prasad@lboro.ac.uk
Nathan Rush (Library) N.P.Rush@lboro.ac.uk
Dean Sanham D.P.Sanham@lboro.ac.uk
Rod Shaw R.J.Shaw@lboro.ac.uk
Phil Wilson (Marketing and Advancement) P.J.Wilson@lboro.ac.uk
Berkeley Young B.K.D.Young@lboro.ac.uk

ACBE Newsletter No 22 February 2024

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ACBE Newsletter No 22 February 2024

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School of Architecture,

Building & Civil Engineering

Tell us your news!

Image: C-DICE celebrates postdoctoral researchers

Dean’s Is change the only

Earlier this year I needed to develop Perhaps it’s a slight exaggeration to

page 2 January 2024

Part A Collaborative Design Project

ASHRAE Conference, Florida Ginger Scoggins,

Photograph below courtesy:

page 3 January 2024

Site visit photographs courtesy of PR,

page 4 January 2024

Professor Eftekhari commented:

page 5 January 2024

Research & Innovation

RAAC: A Media Engagement Success Story

page 6 January 2024

Research & Innovation

A new website, created by

page 7 January 2024

Research & Innovation

The team have geared their RAEng funding with three

page 8 January 2024

Research & Innovation

The online event, chaired Professor Liang discussed SAADRI, a

risk reduction, and also The collaboration between

page 9 January 2024

Research & Innovation

The Micro-Mobility Group of the Twinning Project

Photograph courtesy of Torah Chen Photograph courtesy of Dean Sanham

page 10 January 2024

Research & Innovation

Chengdu University of Technology's Vice President, Xu Qiang, delivered a

SIMR is committed to providing an effective global platform to foster

page 11 January 2024

Research & Innovation

Achievements, Awards and Fellowships

page 12 January 2024

Research & Innovation

ABCE nominees, winners and categories at the PhD Awards, 2023:

• Loughborough Doctoral Researcher Community Engagement: Neda Abbasimaleki, Rebecca Lewis

• Buddy of the Year: Marziye Ramezani-Lashkariani (Winner), Neda Abbasimaleki

• Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Champion: Nana Nsiah-Appiah (Winner)

• Doctoral Researcher Rep of the year: Dimitris Tseno

• Doctoral College Future Leader: Jaydeep Bhadra

• Peter Beaman Unsung Hero: Berkeley Young

• Outstanding Commitment to Doctoral Researcher Support Award: Berkeley Young (Winner)

At the event were representatives from the Research and Innovation

Support Team (https://www.lboro.ac.uk/internal/research-innovation-

support/), the Loughborough Materials Characterisation Centre

page 13 January 2024

Research & Innovation

page 14 January 2024

Research & Innovation

New Grants Since Last Newsletter January 2024

9 new grants Total Value = £1,013,698

Enhancing readiness for circular economy Town Deal

more new grants on next page

page 15 January 2024

New Grants, continued

Recognition for an Excellent Publication