Structural Adhesive Consultant and Expert Witness

Expertise

• Structural adhesives applications for marine adhesives, naval architectural adhesives, automotive assembly, waterproof construction adhesives, aerospace adhesives, composite repair adhesive, vulcanized rubber to rubber and metals.
• Research and formulation of structural adhesives of several polymer types for many different applications.
• Adhesive selection expert for specific application requirements and locating specialized adhesives products for specific situations.
• Hot melt adhesives formulations using: Block copolymer styrene/butadiene/styrene (SBS) polymers, styrene/isoprene/styrene polymers (SIS), polyester resins, polyolefin hot melts, acrylic hot melt, thermoplastic polyurethane hot melt, ethylene vinyl acetate EVA hot melt, APAO hot melt, polyamide alloy polymer hot melt and reactive hot melt.
• Adhesive failure evaluation and expert witness experience.
• Bio-adhesives and renewable resource adhesives: The use of natural products, biomaterials, and renewable resources in industrial adhesives formulated from dimerized oil fatty acids and amines.
• Bio-adhesives formulated with synthetic polymer adhesives, such bio-adhesive polyamides materials formulated with thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) material. Two-part reactive polyamides were formulated as natural adhesives.
• Pressure sensitive adhesives (PSA): Research, development and formulation of PSA materials for the automotive and aerospace industries. Other experience includes: Self-adhesive labels and tapes, packaging adhesives, industrial assembly adhesives, polyolefin PSA, polyurethane PSA and acrylic thermoset PSA.
• Experience with interpenetrating network (IPN) adhesives. Worked with SBR rubber solvent PSA, UV cure PSA and EB cure PSA and water borne PSA.
• Experienced with surface preparation and conditioning to enhance adhesion on metal using cleaning agents, etchants, conversion coatings and primers.
• Experienced with adhesion to films, plastics and composites, experienced with corona, flame, and coupling agent surface treatment to promote adhesion.

Expert Witness Experience and Litigation Support

• Technical support for both plaintiff and defense in adhesive failure cases.
• Technical support in wood adhesive failure cases.
• To individuals in manufacturing industries, presented seminars explaining fundamental concepts of adhesives, adhesive data collection, statistical data interpretation data significance and error margins.
• Experienced examining patents and publications to define prior art or practice that can affect patent value.
• Laboratory facilities and access to university affiliate laboratory facilities for adhesive identification, physical testing and chemical analysis.

Experience

Independent Consultant, 1999 - 2009

• Green and energy efficient adhesives formulation development, product testing, purchase sourcing, codes and standards, litigation and expert witness.
• Examples of work areas are: Glued wood products, PSAs, flooring adhesives, hot melt adhesives for applications such as structural metals, laminates and FRP composites.

Weldwood of Canada (International Paper Corp.), Quality/Research Manager, 1987 - 1998

• Technical Service and Quality management in the softwood products and processes group.
• Technical support and quality audits provided for 5 Canadian plywood mills, 2 orientated strand board (OSB) mills, 2 pulp mills and 8 lumber operations.
• Delivered training manuals, procedures, quality studies, and conducted seminars in chemical, enviornment, and safety.
• Assisted in the investigation, defense and negotiations of $15 million of product performance claims for adhesive failure and wood biodegradation in plywood and panel board.
• Projects included biocide antisapstain evaluations, coating methods and efficacy tests.

I.E.C Beak Environmental Consultants Ltd., Environmental Laboratory Manager, 1982 - 1985

• Management was provided at a private corporate environmental laboratory.
• Environmental analytical chemistry conducted for interests and firms in materials science, soils, foods, drugs, mining, and forestry.
• Methods were mobilized from protocols or specially developed, such as ICP analysis and EDX methods used to characterize biocide coatings and antisapstain agents.

Canadian Electrical Association, Vancouver, B.C., Research Contractor, 1980 - 1982

• Wood-cement composite contracts were executed in wood technology for utility poles.
• Developed a spinning disk adhesive blender design for the oriented strand board (particleboard) industry.

Borden Chemical Ltd. Vancouver, B.C., Technical Service, 1979 - 1980

• Laboratory services in phenolic adhesives resin research, developing new polymerization processes for optimizing resin level, droplet size and distribution in oriented strand board (OSB).
• Field technical representative for adhesive issues to customers manufacturing plywood, particleboard, OSB and laminated wood.

Seafoam Products Ltd, Urethane Formulation Chemist, 1972 - 1980

• Developed a broad background in urethane polymer processing based on experience at the firm.
• As Technical Director, designed and built facility which poured 2 to 3 million lbs., per year of MDI slab flexible open cell urethane foam 60 feet long and 6 feet wide. Urethane foams were used as carpet underlayment.
• Developed products for solid and micro-cellular urethane two part systems, and quality standards, for plywood face patching.
• Developed rigid and flexible urethane foam systems for clients.

Honors & Publications

Credentials

• Inter-disciplinary course work focused on pulp and paper, polymer chemistry and instrumental analytical chemistry.
• Chemical engineering courses in pulp/paper science, wood chemistry, wood composites, experimental design, statistics and statistical process control.
• Polymer science course work and polymeric adhesives focused studies were completed.
• Thesis: Fiber orientation descriptive statistics and their predictive effects on properties of adhesively bonded strand wood products, (U.B.C.).
• Focused studies: Polymeric adhesives and coatings, timber engineering, lumber drying, and wood preservation.
• Directed studies were in wood adhesives, wood chemistry, polymeric composites, microscopy, and instrumental chemical analysis.

Publications and Patents

• Author of papers for peer review journals and workshop literature.

Education

Ph.D. Wood Chemistry, Forestry, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, B.C.

M.S. College of Environmental Science - Forestry, Syracuse University, NY

B.Sc. Physics and Chemistry, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, B.C.