PhD student Genora joins A1

A1 Flue Systems has appointed PhD student Genora Joseph through the Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTP) programme in a joint venture with the University of Nottingham.

The KTP programme is funded nationally by Innovate UK, a government body that supports business innovation. It uses the knowledge and technology of universities to help businesses to improve their competitiveness, productivity and performance and meet core strategic needs to fuel growth.

Genora’s appointment is a strategic one to enable us to stay one step ahead of ever more stringent air quality standards by increasing our capabilities in modelling the dispersion of gases from commercial flue systems – particularly on challenging engineering projects such as The Shard in London.

Director John Hamnett said A1 turned to the University of Nottingham’s KTP programme to identify very specific support.

“Modelling the way that gas emissions disperse from commercial chimneys is still in its infancy in our industry, but we can see that it has huge potential and is going to become an important part of the overall design and specification of flue systems, which is why we are keen to develop this within our business,” said John.

“This is obviously a very specialist area, which is why we approached the University of Nottingham. KTP is already paying dividends, as Genora is a real asset to A1 Flue Systems.”

Genora, who is originally from Dominica in the Caribbean, is a qualified environmental engineer who moved to Nottingham to study for a Master’s degree and then her PhD at the university.

“Dispersion studies will become more prevalent, especially as the air quality objectives for the UK are likely to become more stringent. Dispersion modelling will give A1 a big advantage in securing contracts on a range of construction projects,” said Genora.

“KTP has been a great platform for me to apply the research that I’m conducting in my PhD and for me to become part of a Nottinghamshire company that is looking to push the boundaries in this area and establish itself as the leading authority on flue gas dispersion modelling in the commercial sector.”

David Hargreaves, Associate Professor in Environmental Fluids at the University of Nottingham’s Department of Civil Engineering, said: “My research, in common with many colleagues in the Faculty of Engineering at Nottingham, has always sat at the interface between academia and industry, and the KTP provides a great opportunity to pass on my experience of modelling pollutant dispersion across that interface.

“Of course, it’s a two-way street, and we as academics can learn a lot about the day-to-day realities that are faced by A1’s technical team and designers, giving us a better perspective on where to direct our future research. Also, it’s a chance to continue working with Genora, whose PhD I helped supervise!”