Nico Zurcher

Prior to becoming an investigator, Nico worked in a international environmental consultancy where he was involved in a number of major government marine projects in Hong Kong, as well as oil and gas, and mining projects around Asia. In 2011 he joined HFS-Asia in Hong Kong, where he worked as a fire investigator and consulting scientist. In 2015, Nico moved to London where he joined Hawkins to bolster our growing International and Shipping Incidents team. He continued investigating a broad range of land-based and marine incidents, both in the UK and internationally. He was also a member of our contamination team, taking on cases in the UK and Europe. Hawkins acquired HFS-Asia in 2016 and in 2020 Nico returned to Hong Kong to head the office he helped to build several years earlier. Nico has investigated several fires in large industrial plants, as well as in commercial and residential premises. On the marine side, he has investigated major fires on container and general cargo vessels. He has worked on numerous cases of bulk cargo spoilage, involving grains, oil seeds and seedcake. Nico has also worked on cases involving the carriage and storage of mixed chemical cargoes, and the contamination of […]

Iain Woodward

Iain left Durham University in 2001 after completing his PhD research into modification of polymeric surfaces using cold plasma technologies. As part of his PhD research Iain also carried out research sponsored by Pirelli into improving the adhesion of polymeric tyre cord to rubber. In 2001 Iain joined Molecular Profiles, a scientific consultancy offering expertise to the polymer and pharmaceutical industries. Here Iain conducted short term research and analysis of failures and characterisation of production line and developing products. The majority of the work involved the use of surface analysis techniques, including microscopy (AFM, SEM and TEM), and surface sensitive characterisation techniques (XPS and SIMS). In 2003 Iain joined Hawkins as an Associate based in the Manchester office. Iain specialises in the investigation of fires and explosions, but has also investigated cases of polymeric failure drawing upon his previous research experience. In 2005 Iain moved to Leeds to open a new Hawkins office. He became Senior Associate in 2006 and a Principal Associate in 2013. Iain has investigated over 250 fires and explosions. He has provided numerous written reports for Court and has given expert evidence at County Court. Iain is listed as an expert in the Expert Witness Directory.

Hawkins Investigators Meet The London Fire Brigade Dog Teams

Hawkins fire investigators David Reid Rowland and Claire Mann, and forensic architect Niralee Casson, recently met members of London Fire Brigade’s Fire Investigation Team and their two exuberant accelerant detection dogs, Simba (6 years) and Smokey (14 months).

Paul Gee

Paul started his career in engineering in 1988, with a four year technician apprenticeship with GEC Traction at its Trafford Park headquarters. Following the completion of his apprenticeship, Paul took the position of a Laboratory Technician in the now renamed GEC Alsthom Traction’s engineering laboratory, based at its Preston headquarters. In this role Paul was working within the electrical division covering product type testing, environmental testing, mechanical testing, EMC testing and product failure investigation of rail traction equipment. From this Paul was then promoted to Technician Engineer status to lead all aspects of the validation of its newly formed company ALSTOM Auxiliary Converters Ltd. During this time Paul completed a five year part-time degree course qualifying highest in the year and was awarded the IEE Institution Prize for distinction on the course. On graduation in 1997, Paul took the position of Design Engineer, then Lead Design Engineer within the ALSTOM Auxiliary Converter Business. Paul led the design on many auxiliary power supplies for use on all types of rail vehicles including trams and trolleybuses in the power range of 10 to 300kVA, for both AC single/three phase applications and DC battery charging systems. In 1998 Paul took the opportunity to […]

Paul Willis

Following on from his degree thesis research Paul worked with a specialist research group at Southmead Hospital in Bristol. Whilst there he designed experimental methods to determine metal release in-vivo from cobalt chrome orthopaedic implants. In 2005 Paul began working for Bureau Veritas in London as a member of a team which provided scientific support to London Fire Brigade. In addition to being part of a hazardous material emergency response group, Paul also assisted the Fire Brigade with on-scene fire investigations and laboratory based examinations of fire damaged exhibits. In 2009 Paul joined Dr J H Burgoyne and Partners LLP investigating the cause and circumstances of incidents of fire and explosions involving vehicles, domestic residences, retail, agricultural and industrial premises. Paul has prepared expert witness reports for use in both civil and criminal litigation. Paul joined Hawkins in 2012 as a fire and explosion investigator and continues to investigate a broad range of incidents in the UK. Paul is also a member of Hawkins specialist International and Shipping Incidents team and has investigated ship fires involving bulk cargo and container ships worldwide. Paul is a Principal Associate based at our Bristol office.

Richard Woodward

Richard completed his EngD qualification in 2017, working alongside Jaguar Land Rover, developing innovative adhesive bonding processes for high volume vehicle assembly. Throughout this work, Richard developed a detailed understanding of material joining techniques, associated test methods and failure mode identification. He also gained experience in the manufacture and testing of fibre ‑reinforced composite materials, as well as establishing an appreciation for the complexities inherent with using such materials. Prior to this, Richard completed a Masters Degree in Mechanical Engineering with Business Management at the University of Warwick. This degree brought with it an appreciation of a wide range of engineering principles with a particular focus on mechanical systems. Richard has also worked for Aston Martin Lagonda, focusing on the development and testing of new material technologies for use on future vehicles. This work primarily included adhesives and fibre reinforced composites, extending as far as material model generation for use with finite element structural analysis techniques. This work included substantial elements of durability assessment, understanding the durability limits of materials prior to failure, as well as investigating the effects of corrosive environments upon various materials and joints. Richard comes from a background in agriculture, where he spends a lot of […]

Jon Watkins

Jon graduated from Imperial College London in 2010 with a first class degree in Civil Engineering. Having previously worked in both Consulting Engineering with Atkins, as well as in Contracting with Sir Robert McAlpine, he has particular experience in assessment of existing structures for refurbishment projects. In addition to this, Jon has performed seismic surveys for residential buildings in high risk zones across the Middle-East. He was also seconded to Atkins Qatar as part of the Doha Metro project providing client support to a remote design team. Jon joined Hawkins in 2016 to strengthen our services in Civil & Structural Engineering investigations, but soon developed his skills to undertake fire, explosions and personal injury investigations. He has since investigated over 500 cases including fires, explosions, construction incidents, water ingress, foundation settlement and personal injuries. Jon has led investigations of a domestic, industrial and commercial nature, which have ranged in size from small losses to multi-million pound complex claims. Jon is experienced in the legal process in both Scotland and England & Wales, and the preparation of CPR Part 35 compliant reports. He has experience advising solicitors and Counsel on technical engineering issues and has given expert evidence in the All-Scotland […]

Chris Wareham

After he graduated, Chris completed a doctoral research project on the isotope and trace element chemistries of precious- and base-metal mineral deposits in the Rocky Mountains. Following a brief spell contributing to a variety of research projects at the NERC Isotope Geoscience Laboratory he joined the British Antarctic Survey and headed for the mountains of Antarctica, where he continued his research using isotopes and trace elements. Chris published many scientific papers before leaving academia in 1998 to join Hawkins at our Cambridge office, after which he opened the Glasgow office in 2008 and the Dubai office in 2014. During this time he has investigated 1200 incidents in Europe, the Americas, Asia, the Middle East and Africa. His investigations include fires, dust and vapour explosions, electrical and mechanical failures, product defects, personal injuries/fatalities, and post-incident contamination assessments; the incidents have occurred in many environments such as refineries, power plants, retail, manufacturing, construction, agriculture, mining, warehouses, hotels, hospitals, dwellings and ships/aircraft/trains/automotive. The root causes he regularly encounters involve systems’ failures and process faults, equipment and materials’ failures of all types and ‘human intervention’ (e.g. fraud, ‘poor practices’ and breaches of Regulations such as DSEAR). Chris has extensive experience in the litigation process […]

James Wade

James graduated from the University of Leeds in 2006 with a MEng degree in Automotive Engineering. Whilst at University he developed a bench top reactor to simulate oil degradation in internal combustion engines and was also an integral part of the University’s Formula Student Engine team, where he designed the fuel, electric and cooling systems for the 2005/6 car. After graduating, he accepted a role as a Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) Associate working between the University of Sheffield and JCB Earthmovers Ltd. Here, he participated in a research project focussing on optimising the arrangement of pin joint and component materials. The aim of the project was to reduce the dependency on grease whilst improving service life. He developed designs for a test rig which could test a variety of loading conditions and joint arrangements. James then worked as a self-employed subcontractor for a Kent based Kit Car manufacturer where he carried out a variety of roles including design, fabrication, servicing, modification and repair of a broad variety of both road and race cars. In 2010 James set up his own Automotive Engineering practice specialising in the maintenance and modification of classic BMW cars, as well as sourcing parts. James joined […]

Mark Turner

After completing his degree in Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Sheffield, Mark worked as a Project Engineer at one of the UK’s leading engineering investigation companies. Specialising in non-destructive investigation techniques Mark worked within a wide range of civil engineering environments, which included carrying out detailed electromagnetic surveys of roads, railways and structures for most of the UK’s leading engineering consultancies and contractors. Mark then led a team of technicians specialising in the testing of deep pile foundations before working as a site engineer for a piling contractor involved mainly in limited access applications. Following his time working in construction, Mark decided investigation work was where his skills were best applied and he joined Hawkins in 2008 as a fire investigator. He has since investigated over 1000 fires, ranging from small domestic incidents to large multi-million pound losses. In 2011 Mark completed a Masters degree in Fire and Explosion Engineering at the University of Leeds and is now a Principal Associate and Regional Manager of our Cambridge office.