Dr. Barry Kirwan | Aviation Safety | Best Researcher Award.
EUROCONTROL, France
Professional Profiles:
👨🎓 Bio Summary:
Dr. Barry Kirwan is a seasoned professional with over 40 years of experience in safety management and human factors across various high-risk industries, including aviation, maritime, nuclear power, and offshore oil and gas. He holds a BSc in Psychology from Southampton University, an MSc in Work Design & Ergonomics, and a PhD in Human Reliability Assessment from Birmingham University. Currently serving as the Safety Research Manager at EUROCONTROL, Dr. Kirwan has led numerous high-profile European aviation projects and has made significant contributions to integrating human factors into safety systems. His work has resulted in the development of human reliability techniques, safety culture approaches, and AI integration guidelines. Dr. Kirwan has published over 280 articles and four textbooks, receiving accolades such as the Lifetime Achievement Award for Practical Application from the Chartered Institute for Ergonomics and Human Factors. His research focuses on enhancing safety culture, human reliability assessment, and the integration of artificial intelligence in aviation systems, emphasizing the operational applicability and academic rigor of his findings
🎓 Professional Experience and Leadership:
Over 40 years of experience in safety research, human factors, and human reliability assessment.
Leadership roles including Safety Research Manager at EUROCONTROL and Head of Human Factors for organizations like BNFL and NATS.
Significant project management experience with European and international projects
🔍 Academic and Research Contributions:
Holds a BSc in Psychology, an MSc in Work Design & Ergonomics, and a PhD in Human Reliability Assessment.
Published over 280 articles and authored 4 textbooks on human factors and safety culture.
ResearchGate metrics include an h-index of 40 and nearly 7,000 citations, indicating a substantial impact on the field.
🏆 Innovative Research and Development:
Developed and validated numerous human reliability techniques still in use today.
Integrated human factors into major projects across different industries, enhancing safety and reliability.
Recent work on AI integration into aviation systems, focusing on human-AI interaction and societal impacts.
💼 Significant Achievements and Awards:
Received the Lifetime Achievement Award for Practical Application from the Chartered Institute for Ergonomics and Human Factors (CIEHF) in 2024.
Led the development of industry-standard tools and methodologies like HURID and the Safety Culture Stack approach.
Industry Impact 🛫 :
Contributed to safety culture improvements in air traffic management, influencing over 30 European states.
Developed safety culture approaches adopted by major organizations and regulatory bodies like EASA and ICAO.
Worked on high-profile projects with substantial budgets and multi-industry partnerships.
Educational and Mentoring Roles 🎓 :
Experience as a lecturer at Birmingham University and visiting professor at Nottingham University.
Conducted professional courses in collaboration with the Technical University of Delft
📚 Top Noted Publications :
Title: Moving towards joined-up safety culture across different aviation players
Authors: Kirwan, B.
Citations: 0
Index: International Air Safety Seminar Proceedings
Year: 2017
Title: Railway action reliability assessment, a railway-specific approach to human error quantification
Authors: Gibson, W.H., Mills, A.M., Smith, S., Kirwan, B.K.
Citations: 13
Index: Rail Human Factors: Supporting Reliability, Safety and Cost Reduction
Year: 2013
Title: Evaluation of separation provision for enroute sector
Authors: Pinska-chauvin, E., Hickling, B., Kirwan, B.
Citations: 1
Index: 27th Congress of the International Council of the Aeronautical Sciences 2010, ICAS 2010
Year: 2010
Title: Human error data collection as a precursor to the development of a human reliability assessment capability in air traffic management
Authors: Kirwan, B., Gibson, W.H., Hickling, B.
Citations: 44
Index: Reliability Engineering and System Safety
Year: 2008
Title: Safety in design – Can one industry learn from another?
Authors: Drogoul, F., Kinnersly, S., Roelen, A., Kirwan, B.
Citations: 26
Index: Safety Science
Year: 2007