Research Day Speakers

Gavin Campbell - 'Aerospace Research in Ireland'

Gavin Campbell is Director Engineering at Bombardier Aerospace, Belfast. He has worked at Short Brothers PLC and Bombardier Aerospace since graduating with a BSc in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Ulster in 1985. He has studied in Europe and was assigned to Bombardier Aerospace in Montreal from 1997-1999 as Director Engineering.

Gavin is responsible for Engineering and Technology Development at Bombardier in Belfast. He is currently a member of MATRIX, the Northern Ireland Science-Industry panel and was a contributor to the MATRIX Horizon panels on Advanced Engineering and Advanced Materials. Other roles include chairing and participating in a number of technology panels and boards in aeronautics, advanced engineering and high value manufacturing in the UK, Ireland and Europe.

Gavin is a visiting Professor in the Faculty of Computing and Engineering at the University of Ulster, a Fellow of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers and a Fellow of the Irish Academy of Engineering.

Martin Hynes - 'European Research Funding'

Martin Hynes BE, MBA, C.Eng., F.I.E.I., was appointed as Chief Executive of the European Science Foundation in 2011. Prior to this, he was Executive Director at The Irish Research Council for Science, Engineering and Technology (IRCSET), which operates The Embark Initiative, a major national research funding initiative. Martin has a long standing association with the ESF, having previously occupied the position of Chair of Finance and Audit Committee. 

With a strong international profile and reputation, Hynes was formerly Senior Science Advisor with the Science Foundation Ireland and a Senior Policy Analyst with Forfás, the national policy and advisory board for enterprise, trade, science, technology and innovation. His experience lies in policy formulation and he has an excellent record of innovatively executing policy decisions. He has been instrumental in the formulation of major national funding initiatives supporting research in the ICT and biotechnology sectors. He also contributed to the formulation of first National Framework of Research Needs and won funding for the development of the National Metrology Laboratory. 

An Engineering and MBA Graduate, he has considerable commercial experience having mentored private sector start-ups during a three year period. He also worked for several years in product line management with Westinghouse Electric.

Professor Deniz Tasdemir - 'Marine Discovery Research'

Professor Deniz Tasdemir holds BSc (in Pharmacy, Highest Hons) and MSc (Hons, in Pharmacognosy) from Hacettepe University, Ankara, Turkey. She completed her PhD on plant natural products at Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) Zurich, Department of Pharmacy in 1997, which was awarded with an ETH-Zurich medal (distinction).

She became Assistant Professor at Hacettepe University in 1998 and then went to Salt Lake City, University of Utah to receive post-doctoral training in anticancer marine drug discovery with Prof. Chris Ireland (College of Pharmacy, Department of Medicinal Chemistry). Between 2002-2006 she worked as Project leader and Dr. Helmut Legerlotz Fellow at University of Zurich, Institute of Organic Chemistry. In 2006 she moved to University of London, School of Pharmacy as Senior Lecturer in natural products chemistry before taking up Established Professor position in Marine Biodiscovery in NUI Galway (mid November 2011).

Heinrich Anhold - 'From University Research to Spinout Company'

Heinrich Anhold is CEO of StableLab Ltd (previously Epona Ltd.), and has been developing blood test cartridges for horses since 2008. Currently equine blood samples are sent to a laboratory for analysis and the cartridges will allow for instant blood diagnostics at the horse's side.

Heinrich founded StableLab in 2008 after finishing his PhD. He started from his bedroom with money he had raised from selling a Grand Prix showjumper that he had bred and produced. In 2010 after signing a technology licensing deal with Philips Electronics, Heinrich raised the first round of Angel investment and started to hire staff. StableLab was awarded Ireland's Best Emerging Company of 2010 and Heinrich was listed in a couple of business magazines as one of Ireland's Top 40 Under 40 entrepreneurs. StableLab raised its second round of Angel investment in late 2012 in anticipation of its upcoming market launch.

Ray McCarthy - 'Medical Device Research and Development'

Ray McCarthy is a Senior R&D Engineer with Boston Scientific where he has worked since 2004.  He has 11 years of progressively responsible experience in the pharmaceutical and medical device industry in various roles.  He also delivers a short course at NUI Galway sharing his experience in medical device development.

Ray obtained his undergraduate Science degree at NUI Galway.  He holds an MSc in Analytical and Pharmaceutical Chemistry from University College Cork. Currently he is working towards a PhD at the School of Chemistry, NUI Galway which he began in 2008.


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