Biomedical Engineering Division: How we are governed

Reader, Director of the Engineering for Health Research Centre, Aston University

Antonio is a Bioengineer with a vocation of improving clinical outcomes and patient participation to a more efficient, informed, and inclusive healthcare. He graduated in 2005 with an MSc in Electronics Engineering from University of Naples Federico II (with a specialisation in Medical Instrumentation), followed by a PhD at the University of Bologna in Bioengineering in 2009 (and a further PhD in healthcare systems management in 2016).

Antonio’s research interests lie in the areas of biomedical data processing (imaging, segmentation, modelling and AI), medical devices (biosensing and diagnostics) and healthcare processes (workflow, technology assessment and management). Through the years Antonio has contributed to the design, development and testing of cutting-edge medical devices in collaboration with leading national and international Academic institutions and SMEs.

Dr Tom Allen is a Reader in Mechanical Engineering at Manchester Metropolitan University. He specialises in Sports Engineering, particularly sports safety. Tom is a Chartered Engineer and a Fellow of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers. He holds various external positions, including Editor-in-Chief of the journal of the International Sports Engineering Association, Chair of the IMechE Sports Engineering group, Vice-President of the International Society for Snowsports Safety and Deputy-Chair of the British Standards Institution committee Protective Equipment for Sports Players. Tom advocates inclusivity in sport and recently co-authored an IMechE policy report on sports engineering, outlining recommendations for the development of inclusive and sustainable sports technology. His media appearances span TV, radio, online and print, including the BBC, Sky News, the Guardian, and the Telegraph.

David has a background in Engineering, Manufacturing, NPD and R&D. His experience includes a cross-sector portfolio of roles in the private sector leading to his current role as Knowledge Transfer Manger in support of UK Innovation. He joined IUKBC in 2014 where he is lead for health and care, this includes digital health and population health and healthy ageing / independent living agendas. He also participates in cross-sector activity mainly through his experience of managing technical and business consultancy projects.

Director and SaMD Regulatory Specialist, Charlton Regulatory Consulting

Iain is a regulatory consultant who has been working in medical device software for over 25 years, specialising in the regulation of software as a medical device. Iain’s background began in biomechanical engineering research and development, graduating in Mechanical Engineering at Durham University and as a PhD at Newcastle University, having studied the biomechanics of the upper limb.

Before founding Charlton Regulatory Consulting, Iain worked in small and startup medical device software companies, writing software, building systems and teams, and achieving UK, EU and US clearance for new medical devices. Iain also provides regulatory support through Prova Health as their regulatory advisor. As a consultant, Iain helps businesses with their strategy and implementation to bring new healthcare and medical device software to market, with expertise in the medical device, privacy, security and AI regulations relating to medical devices. Iain’s passions in Medical Engineering are helping get new innovative products to market that improve patients’ lives and help clinicians achieve more, particularly those that address mental health and sustainability.

Iain is an enthusiastic supporter of Yorkshire MedTech and talks at events relating to medical device and AI regulations as well as providing Pro Bono help to early stage local MedTech businesses, University spinouts and entrepreneurs.

Iain also supports men’s mental health in the West Yorkshire region, helping run a men’s mental health support group.

Professor of Incontinence Technology, University College London.

Alan Cottenden is Emeritus Professor of Incontinence Technology in the Department of Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering at University College London. He sits on the Editorial Board of the Institution's Journal of Engineering in Medicine and cochairs the organising committee for Incontinence: The Engineering Challenge, the Institution's long-running series of multi-disciplinary conferences aimed at encouraging the development of more effective technology for diagnosing, treating and managing incontinence.

Lecturer in Medical Engineering, University of Hull.
Sarah graduated with a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Leeds in biotribology with a focus on diabetic foot ulceration. Prior to this she studied both Physics and Prosthetics and Orthotics, which lead to her working as an honorary Orthotist within Leeds Teaching Hospitals Trust. Her clinical experience directly feeds into her research focus, where her interests lie in orthopaedics, biotribology, diabetic and pressure ulceration and biomechanics.

Following her PhD, she undertook a Postdoctoral position in Diabetic Foot Biomechanics at Manchester Metropolitan University before moving to her current position at the University of Hull where she is a Lecturer in Medical Engineering. She joined the IMechE Biomedical Engineering Division in 2023 where she supports the Orthopaedic division.

Peter Culmer is Professor of Healthcare Engineering at the University of Leeds, leading the Healthcare Mechatronics Group. He brings research expertise in the development of medical devices with a focus on sustainability and global healthcare. He leads research into sustainable materials for Circular Medical Devices (EPSRC ReMed project, with Loughborough University) and leads the Sustainability theme of the NIHR HealthTech Research Centre in Accelerated Surgical Care. He sits on the UK IMechE Biomedical Engineering Division (BMeD) committee and Innovations in Global Surgery organisation, working as an advocate for sustainable, global healthcare engineering.

Knowledge Transfer Manager, Innovate UK Business Connect

James began his career as a Medical Physicist with a focus on Ultrasound, Ionising and non-ionising radiation. He later moved into Research Commercialisation for the NHS and raised £1.5M for a spin-out from the NHS and two universities in orthopaedic product development. After working for the spin-out he then moved into consultancy with a range of experience in IP, technical and market research, business planning, grants and tenders. He has significant experience of both UK and European grants having written, managed and delivered on nearly 200 grants and been a judge on several regional and national programmes. Prior to joining InnovateUK Business Connect he was responsible for due diligence and equity investment for a UK research charity.    

James has an MPhys in Physics with Medical Appplications, an MSc in Medical Physics and an MSc in Science Entrepreneurship.

Diogo is a Director for Regulatory Strategy at Veeva Systems, specialising in the EU MedTech market. Before this role, Diogo was the UKCA certification manager and a principal technical assessor at DNV, ensuring the safety and compliance of medical devices for the EU and UK markets. Diogo's career also includes work as a designer at Stryker/Stanmore Implants, where he contributed to the development of over 250 patient-specific implants, particularly focusing on complex cases in limb salvage and paediatric oncology. With a background in Biomechanics, Diogo earned his PhD at Imperial College London, where he focused on computational modelling of bone adaptation in the femur. He followed this with a Post-Doctorate at Imperial, where he developed and patented a novel glenoid implant. Diogo combines academic rigour with design, research, modelling and clinical experience in orthopaedic implants and regulatory affairs.

Lecturer in Biometrology, within the Wolfson School of Mechanical, Electrical and Manufacturing Engineering, Loughborough UniversityRebecca Grant is a Lecturer in Biometrology within the Wolfson School of Mechanical, Electrical and Manufacturing Engineering at Loughborough University. She obtained her MEng (Hons) in Product Design Engineering, then her PhD explored measurement of operators within healthcare and cell therapy manufacturing. Rebecca’s current research focuses on developing measurement methods for people in manufacturing, health and sporting scenarios, quantifying measurement uncertainty of human movement, workload and performance.

Her research and teaching focuses on human factors methods for improved human-product interaction. Rebecca joined the IMechE Biomedical Engineering Committee in 2016 as a Young Member following her award as the 2015 IMechE Postgraduate Scholar, to help raise the profile of Biomedical Engineering.

Fareda AlWakeel, originally from Egypt, holds a Master’s and Bachelor’s degree in Medical Engineering from the University of Leeds. She currently serves as a Visiting Research Associate at King’s College London, a MedTech Foundation Research Officer, and a volunteer engineer at REMAP, a national charity organization where she develops bespoke medical solutions for people with disabilities.

Fareda was an active member of the student body during her studies. She founded the Women in STEM Conference at the University of Leeds during her tenure as the Undergraduate Mechanical Engineering School Representative and the Faculty of Engineering & Physical Sciences Officer. She created a platform to support, celebrate, and empower women in male-dominated fields, helping to build a future more welcoming to women in STEM.

Her contributions have been recognised with multiple awards, including the Engineering the Future Student of the Year Award by Bright Network UK NextGen 23 and the prestigious Green Plaque, which is displayed at the University of Leeds’ School of Mechanical Engineering. Fareda is a passionate, enthusiastic individual with a keen interest in innovative breakthroughs in the medtech field.

Dr Mohamed Hassan graduated from the University of Manchester with an MEng in Mechanical Engineering in 2019, and he obtained his PhD in Mechanical Engineering from the same university in 2023.   

He is currently a Postdoctoral Research Associate at the University of Manchester, within the Textile Circularity Centre. His work involves developing and implementing digital frameworks for textile design and manufacturing, designing a 3D printing head for robotic arm conformal 3D printing, and producing cellulose-based polymers. He also serves as an Associte Lecturer at the University of Manchester, lecturing on Reverse Engineering. 

Prior to his current position, Dr Hassan served as Lab Manager at Graphene Innovations Manchester, where he led high-profile projects, oversaw experiments, and delivered results to clients. He also has experience as a Graduate Teaching Assistant at the University of Manchester, where he facilitated laboratory work for undergraduate and postgraduate students.   

Dr Hassan has also been active in the academic community, contributing to conferences and journals, and supervising research students.

Founder & CEO, The Care Machine Ltd

Prof. Helen Meese is an award-winning chartered mechanical engineer with over 20 years’ experience in industry and academia. She is CEO of The Care Machine, an engineering consultancy that works with early-stage innovators to develop medical technology and services; accelerating collaboration and creating positive engagement.

Helen is an accomplished public affairs and policy specialist; providing consultation and thought leadership to Government, industry, and the public sector on engineering and its contribution to health & care. She is passionate about all aspects of STEM and provides mentoring and coaching to young engineers as well as being the host of the IMechE’s engineering podcast, Impulse to Innovation for 4 years. She is Immediate Past Chair of the IMechE’s Biomedical Engineering Division and a past Trustee, an Entrepreneur in Residence at Durham University Business School, and a member of the Royal Academy of Engineering’s Healthcare Policy Topic Group.

BEng (hons), EngD, FHEA, MIMechE, MIEEE

Graduating with a degree in Product Design Engineering from the University of Glasgow, Helen started her career as a Mechanical Design and Development Engineer at Renishaw plc before returning to academia to gain qualifications in Medical Science and doctorate in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Strathclyde. Following a brief return to industry as a Project Leader at TWI Ltd, Helen undertook post-doctoral research at Imperial College London before securing a tenure-tracked fellowship back at the University of Glasgow. In 2019, Helen accepted a position as Senior Lecturer at the University of Strathclyde becoming Director of Research and Deputy Head of Department of Biomedical Engineering before returning to the University of Glasgow as Reader in Biomedical Engineering in 2024.

Helen’s research is focused on medical ultrasound and its exploitation as a tool to aid earlier disease detection and non-invasive therapy. Current projects include development and exploitation of novel contrast agents for more sensitive contrast enhanced ultrasound imaging and therapy delivery, quantitative ultrasound techniques to detect early stage tissue pathologies, and exploitation of sonomechanobiology to develop novel, non-invasive therapies. Her group collaborates widely working with other engineers, life scientists and clinicians with the overarching aim to deliver new technologies capable of benefiting society. Helen is a chartered engineer with the Institute of Mechanical Engineers and current VP Ultrasonics for the IEEE Ultrasonics Ferroelectrics and Frequency Control Society, the global society for ultrasound engineers and researchers.

Principal Engineer, TWI Ltd

Tom graduated with an MEng(Hons) in Biomedical Engineering from University of Birmingham in 2006. His first job was within the Research Team at an orthopaedic manufacturer, Biomet UK Ltd. He then joined TWI Ltd. where he managed a £1.94m collaborative project in orthopaedics. He gained CEng from IMechE in 2012.

In 2020, Tom gained an Engineering Doctorate (EngD) developing a novel surface modification technology; the title of the thesis was ‘Development of novel applications for the electron beam texturing (EBT) and Surfi-Sculpt^® processes’. One of the two case studies within Tom’s EngD was novel uncemented acetabular cups for orthopaedic implants. Tom is also the Radiation Protection Supervisor for the Power Beam Processing Section at TWI.

Tom initially joined the IMechE’s BmED Board as Young Member representative in 2013. He was a judge on the BmED student competition that year. He delivered a Young Member engagement study to the Division Board and was involved in setting up the question for the Global Engineering Debate (GED) in 2017. Since 2021 he has been the Chair of the BmED Cambridge Centre for the Division. In 2025 he was a Judge on the BBC Gladiators micro:bit competition (in partnership with the IMechE) to design a fitness gadget for the Gladiators.

Lecturer (assistant professor), Department of Materials, Design & Manufacturing Engineering, University of Liverpool

Dr Rosti Readioff is the chair of the Orthopaedic Engineering committee within the IMechE’s Biomedical Engineering Division. She is currently a lecturer (assistant professor) in the Department of Materials, Design & Manufacturing Engineering, University of Liverpool. Her role involves research in orthopaedic and biomedical engineering, and teaching higher education engineering students.

Before joining the University of Liverpool, Dr Readioff was a lecturer (Teaching and Research) at the Mechanical Engineering Department, University of Bath. She gained leadership and management experience when coordinating students and staff to teach the Group Business Design Project units for the third and fourth-year mechanical engineering students. During this time, she continued collaborating with surgeons and academics interested in orthopaedic and dental bioengineering research.

Prior to her first lectureship, Dr Readioff completed several postdoctoral research positions focusing on bioengineering at various UK institutes, including the University of Leeds and Keele University.

Safah Shaikh is a Biomedical R&D Engineer specialising in medical device development, AI integration, and computational modelling. Safah holds a BEng in Biomedical Engineering and an MSc in Mechanical Engineering from Aston University, and is currently pursuing an MSc in Artificial Intelligence and Data Science at the University of Wolverhampton. Safah has extensive experience in leading the development of orthopaedic implants and surgical devices, working closely with clinicians to translate innovation into real-world healthcare solutions for both national and international markets.

Safah is passionate about advancing the role of AI and automation in biomedical engineering to improve clinical outcomes and drive the next generation of personalised care. Safah also serves on the Industry Advisory Board at Aston University for the Biomedical, Mechanical and Design Engineering School, supporting academic–industry partnerships in med-tech. Safah is an advocate for women in STEM, and is committed to mentorship, diversity, and empowering future engineers to drive innovation in biomedical engineering.

Dean of the Francis College of Engineering, University of Massachusetts Lowell and Professor of Mechanical Engineering

He earned his B.S. in Engineering Science, M.S. in Applied Mechanics, and Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering and Engineering Mechanics from the University of Cincinnati (Ohio, USA).

He has over 40 years of experience using the finite element method for completing structural analyses and the simulation of composites forming. He has an international reputation for his research in composites manufacturing and sports engineering. He is the Co-Director of the Advanced Composite Materials & Textile Research Lab (ACMTRL) at UMass Lowell. He founded the UMass Lowell Baseball Research Center (UMLBRC) in 1998 with sponsorship from Major League Baseball and Rawlings Sporting Goods and is the Director of the UMLBRC. His Composite Materials research is directed at making the link between the composite manufacturing process and the in-service structural performance. This research has been applied in the automotive, defense, sports and wind turbine industries.

His Sports Engineering research has included the development of test standards for baseballs and bats, the certification of baseball bats for collegiate and high-school baseball, the development and application of test protocols for the durability of wood baseball bats, and on-field sensors for biometrics and bats. In 2009, Sherwood worked with a team of wood experts to understand why the number of wood bats breaking into multiple pieces in Major League Baseball (MLB) games was increasing. The team proposed a set of action items that resulted in a 70% reduction in the breakage rate.

His research has been sponsored by the US Air Force Office of Scientific Research, US Army Research Lab, US Department of Energy, Institute for Advanced Composite Manufacturing and Innovation, the Mass Clean Energy Center, MLB, National Science Foundation, NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association), National Federation of High Schools, and sporting goods manufacturers.

Bonfield Professor of Biomedical Materials, Queen Mary University of London, QMUL

Liz Tanner did her undergraduate degree in Engineering Science at University of Oxford and stayed on for a DPhil based in the Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre,. Liz joined Queen Mary College, University of London as a post doc, eventually becoming Professor of Biomedical Materials.

After QMUL Liz then spent 11 years at the University of Glasgow, where she continued her research and developed and ran the first BEng and MEng degrees in Biomedical Engineering in Scotland. She returned to QMUL in 2018. In parallel she was a Visiting Professor of Biomechanics and Biomaterials at Lund University, Sweden from 1998-2017 working with the Department of Orthopaedics.

Her research concentrates on developing materials to replace or to augment bone. One of such materials is HAPEX™, which has been used in over 1 million middle ear implants. Her other research area is the failure mechanisms in bone and the effect of pathology on the mechanical properties of bone from diseases through to spinal cord injury.

Liz Tanner was elected Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering in 2006 and Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 2015. She was a member of the Executive Committee of the European Society for Biomaterials 2001-2009 and Secretary 2005-2009. She was a Trustee of the Royal Academy of Engineering 2016-2020. She become Editor in Chief of Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers: Journal of Engineering in Medicine in 2021. Liz is on the Editorial Boards of range of other journals in the Materials and Biomaterials area including International Materials Reviews and Journal of Materials Science: Materials in Medicine.

She was awarded a PhD(Hon Caus) by Lund University in June 2017. She was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2016. 

Biomechanical Engineer Research Fellow at Guy’s and St Thomas NHS Foundation Trust

Professor of Neurotechnology and Rehabilitation Engineering

Aleksandra holds an MEng in Engineering Physics and an MSc in Control Systems from the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, University of Belgrade, Serbia, as well as a PhD in Healthcare Technologies from Aalborg University, Denmark. In Serbia, she worked as an industrial process control designer before moving into the field of biomedical engineering.

Her research interests focus on improving the lives of people with neurological injuries through technology-supported rehabilitation, particularly neurotechnology. She is the research co-director of the Scottish Centre for Innovation in Spinal Cord Injury. She also has a strong interest in Brain–Computer Interface (BCI) technology and serves on the BSI panel responsible for standardising this technology and its applications.

As an educator, she aims to strengthen the connection between industry and academia.