Inaugural Lecture: Professor Pete Culmer, School of Mechanical Engineering

Join us for an upcoming Inaugural Lecture on 27 November as we welcome Pete Culmer, Professor of Healthcare Engineering in the School of Mechanical Engineering.

An inaugural lecture is a significant milestone in any academic’s career, recognising their promotion to Professor. It also offers an opportunity for our new professorial colleagues to showcase their work and innovative research with a broad audience, including members of the public, family, friends, and colleagues.  

This lecture is part of a Faculty-wide series that celebrates those who have joined the University to offer ever greater teaching, research, and expertise across our eight Schools. 

About this lecture 

In his lecture, “Healthcare Engineering: a small (but vital) cog in a large machine”, Professor Culmer will look back over his academic career and how he has applied engineering to address global healthcare challenges, with a focus on how engineers can play a pivotal role in developing innovative solutions.  

Engineering plays a vital role in healthcare – it is a small but vital cog in the “healthcare machine”. Pete will discuss the process of developing and implementing new innovations to improve healthcare, and how this involves engineers working closely with a wide range of partners, from clinicians and patients to industry and government bodies.  

He will then consider how it is increasingly important for engineering to support innovation in healthcare to address global challenges including climate change, ageing populations, and making quality healthcare available to all. The talk will be illustrated with case studies from Professor Culmer’s academic career, recognising the varied collaborations that have made it all possible. 

About our speaker

Professor Peter Culmer is Professor of Healthcare Engineering and Director of Postgraduate Research in the School of Mechanical Engineering. His expertise is in multidisciplinary research on medical device technologies, particularly focusing on sustainability and global healthcare challenges.  

His current funding supports projects on sensors to identify diabetic foot ulcer risk, designing “frugal” MedTech equipment for low-resource settings in India and Africa, and engineering to support “circular” (reusable) medical devices.  

Pete is sustainability co-lead of the Leeds NIHR HealthTech Research Centre (HRC) for Accelerated Surgical Care, driving strategies to improve sustainability and reduce carbon emissions in the NHS sector. He is also a committee member of the Institute of Mechanical Engineering’s Biomedical Engineering Division (BmED). 

Book your place

The lecture will take place in the School of Electronic and Electrical Engineering at the University of Leeds, with arrival and registration from 3:45pm in the foyer, and the lecture commencing at 4pm in Rhodes Lecture Theatre (G.55). This will be followed by a drinks reception in the atrium of the Sir William Henry Bragg Building from 5pm.  

Booking is required to attend this event – you can do so at our dedicated ticket portal. Please book by Monday 25 November 2024.

If you have any questions please contact the EPS CPD, Conference and Events team via cpd@engineering.leeds.ac.uk