Dr. W. Huw Gibson PhD MSc

Dr. Gibson is a Project Officer in the Department of Electronic, Electrical and Computing Engineering. Huw is currently also on part-time secondment to the human factors group at Railway Safety (the railway industry safety body). He holds an MSc(Eng) in Work Design and Ergonomics and a PhD in Communication Error. He specializes in human error and reliability in industrial systems.

Dr. Gibson has published 2 journal papers and 10 conference papers. Experience of Exploitation: Dr. Gibson has been responsible for the theoretical development, software development and marketing of the CORE - DATA database of human error probabilities for the past four years. The database is used in a range of industries to inform risk assessments. The database is currently being used to develop the HEART human error quantification technique within the Nuclear industry, with further human error probability data collection being sponsored by a cross-industry consortium.

The majority of the research work undertaken has been based in industry. This ranges from the practical implementation of human factors skills as an advisor for accident inquiries to research, for example into Air Traffic Control future communication system definition. Companies for which Dr. Gibson has undertaken work include National Air Traffic Services, Railway Safety, Railtrack, British Energy, British Nuclear Fuels, Lloyds Pharmacy, TRW, Shell, BP, Marathon, Heathrow Express and London Underground.

Work at Railway Safety requires participation in multi-disciplinary teams with disciplines including psychology, operations, engineering and risk assessment. At Railway Safety, he is currently responsible for developing and implementing railway industry research related to safety-critical communication, train driver visual strategies and driver devices used to reduce the risks associated with passing signals at danger.