New engineering head appointed at Uni of Adelaide

Professor John Beynon

Professor John Beynon
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Friday, 23 March 2012

The University of Adelaide today announced the appointment of Professor John Beynon as Executive Dean, Faculty of Engineering, Computer and Mathematical Sciences.

Professor Beynon will take over the position from Professor Peter Dowd who has led the Faculty since July 2004 and retires this July.

University of Adelaide Vice-Chancellor and President Professor James McWha said that the appointment of Professor Beynon came as the Faculty sought to expand its diverse research portfolio and build on its recent growth.

"The Faculty has enjoyed strong growth in recent years under the leadership of current Executive Dean, Professor Dowd. With the mining expansion in South Australia and demand for engineers across Australia far outstripping supply, we can expect to see great interest from both students and industry," Professor McWha said.

"Professor Beynon is very well-regarded for his capacity to build partnerships in both academic and industry settings. His vision and sense of collaboration aligns perfectly with the University of Adelaide's commitment to delivering an outstanding student experience in a research-rich environment.

"He has wide-ranging international experience and has made a significant contribution to the enhancement of relevant learning outcomes in Engineering within Australia and responding to the changing needs of today's students."

Professor Beynon is currently President, Australian Council of Engineering Deans and Principal Investigator, Australian Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre with Boeing (AusAMRC). He has been Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Industrial Sciences at Swinburne University of Technology in Melbourne since 2005.

Professor Beynon said he was looking forward to helping further develop an exciting Faculty that has much to offer both students and industry.

"I'm keen to see the Faculty expand its work with the South Australian community as well as nationally and internationally," Professor Beynon said. "For each of these areas of engagement, the Faculty should and can offer world-class capability."

In 2009 Swinburne appointed Professor Beynon as the Principal Investigator for the Australian Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AusAMRC), a collaborative research initiative between the University and multinational aerospace company Boeing. This is one of only a dozen such centres around the world.

In 2011, he was listed by Engineers Australia as one of Australia's 100 most influential engineers.

His research interests include the interaction of materials science (principally physical metallurgy) and applied mechanics to solve engineering problems, using computer-based modelling, experiment and industrial input.
Professor Beynon has a PhD and a Bachelor of Metallurgy (First Class Honours) from the University of Sheffield, UK.

 

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