The Adhesion & Adhesives Group (formerly the Society for Adhesion and Adhesives) provides a forum for professionals to gain information, knowledge and an understanding of all aspects of adhesion and adhesive technologies and processes. The group also provides a means to discuss and compare and contrast other joining technologies, such as but not limited to, brazing and soldering, welding as well as fasteners to provide the optimal joining solution.
Meet the Adhesion & Adhesives Leadership Team
Ambrose Taylor
Ambrose Taylor is Professor of Materials Engineering at Imperial College London and Chair of the IOM3 Adhesion & Adhesives Group (formerly the Society for Adhesion and Adhesives). He studied for a degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Bristol, and a PhD at Imperial College London. He then undertook post-doctoral research on high-temperature resistant adhesive and composite materials. He was awarded a prestigious Royal Academy of Engineering Post-doctoral Research Fellowship and a Royal Society Mercer Award for Innovation. He specialises in the characterisation and modelling of polymers, including for use as coatings, adhesives and fibre composites. He also works with polymer recycling and the use of bio-based resins for formulating polymers. He has a special interest in the fracture processes and toughness of these materials. Applications include the construction, aerospace and automotive industries, as well as for the conservation of cultural heritage such as paintings and furniture.
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Laura Hardy
Laura Hardy is a Development Chemist working at F Ball and Co Ltd in the Staffordshire Moorlands. Laura has nearly 19 years of experience developing products for the flooring industry, with a speciality in water-based adhesives and sealants. This includes polymer chemistry, working with various substrates and testing of adhesive joints.
Laura obtained a master’s degree in Chemistry from the Manchester Metropolitan University in 2011 and holds a Higher National Diploma in Business and Management from the University of Derby. In her spare time, Laura trains in Shotokan Karate and is currently working towards her 1st Dan black belt.
Stephen Millington
Steve has nearly 40 years’ experience of working with a broad range of materials, including adhesives, sealants, textiles, rubbers, paper and board, fibre reinforcements, and composite materials. He began his career with the Ministry of Defence at Woolwich Arsenal before moving to DERA at Farnborough and, eventually, to QinetiQ. Steve joined ARTIS in 2011 where he has primary responsibility for coordinating support to development projects within Avon Protection (ARTIS’ parent company), covering both product and rubber compound development. He also supplies in-service product support to Avon across a range of non-metallic materials and processes, as well as to external customers from a variety of industry sectors. In addition, Steve is responsible for ARTIS’ quality management system and its compliance to ISO 9001.
Steve is a Fellow of the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining (FIMMM) and, as well as being a board member, and immediate past-Chair, of the IOM3 Adhesion and Adhesives Group, he is also a board member of the IOM3 Elastomers Group, and a member of the NPL Industrial Advisory Group for composites, adhesives and polymers.
Tony Kinloch
Professor Tony Kinloch, FIMMM, FRSC, FIMechE, FCGI, FREng, FRS holds a personal chair as ‘Professor of Adhesion’ in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Imperial College London. He has published over three hundred and fifty patents and refereed papers in the areas of adhesion and adhesives, fatigue failure and repair of aircraft structures, toughened polymers and the fracture of polymers, fibre-composites and nano-composites; and written and edited seven books in these areas. Over sixty students have obtained their PhD degree under his supervision. He has been awarded the ‘Armourer’s and Braziers Prize for Materials Science’ from The Royal Society, the ‘Le Prix Dédale de la Sociéte Française d’Adhesion’ from the French Adhesion Society, the ‘Hawksley Gold Medal’ of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, ‘The Griffith Medal’ from the Institute of Materials and the US Adhesion Society 3M Award for ‘Outstanding Excellence in Adhesion Research’. He is a Visiting Professor at the University of Sydney and of New South Wales, Australia. In 2016 he was elected a ‘Fellow of the European Structural Integrity Society’ and in 2017 a ‘Fellow of the International Congress of Fracture’. In 2022 he was presented with ‘The President’s Award’ of the US Adhesion Society. In 1997 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering (FREng) and in 2007 was elected a Fellow of The Royal Society (FRS).
Joseph Keddie
Joseph Keddie is a Professor of Soft Matter Physics and Fellow of the Institute for Sustainability at the University of Surrey. He is also a Royal Society Industry Fellow with Pulpex Ltd. His research interests include sustainable materials for packaging and adhesives and their physical characterisation.
Robin Chivers
Robin Chivers is a physicist who has been employed predominantly in Industrial R&D. His work on adhesion and adhesives includes pressure sensitive adhesives for use on skin, and novel adhesives and sealants aimed at applications inside the body. He also has an interest in biological adhesion and adhesives derived from biological sources
Rowan Carstensen
For two and a half years Rowan has been the Operations Manager at Prodrive Composites. Here he has led productivity and cultural turn-arounds and investment into automation to continue driving sustainable products. He has recently completed a part-time MBA at Imperial College London to broaden his knowledge and position himself to make tangible, strategic impacts in the transport sector.
Talking about why he applied for the role, Rowan said, ‘The UK’s sustainability ambitions and drive for an increasingly productive economy will require a synchronised approach in the transport sector. The role IOM3 can play is significant. I look forward to understanding the demands, challenges and opportunities of each Technical Community, combining their knowledge base and guiding them toward a holistic and advantageous position to grow the UK transport sector’.
Rowan oversees the IOM3 Adhesion & Adhesives Group, Composites Group, and Elastomer Group.
