Declan Nolan

Declan Nolan is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Queen's University Belfast. He holds a PhD (2013) on 'Defining Simulation Intent,' focusing on automating simulation workflows. Before academia, he worked at Michelin, Williams F1 (as a Stress Engineer), and B/E Aerospace (Senior Structural Engineer), specializing in composite structures and structural integrity. He currently serves as Postgraduate Research Director (since 2022) and is a member of the EPSRC Early Career Forum in Manufacturing and the Circular Economy, and UKACM board member.

His research spans design-to-simulation automation, bio-inspired design, and structural impact analysis. Key projects include PROTEUS (reimagining engineering design), COLIBRI (composite research), and Biohaviour (biological development analogies). He teaches Mechanics of Materials and Computer-Aided Engineering courses.

• Education: PhD in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (2013)
• Affiliations: Chartered Engineer, IMechE Member
• Grants/Projects: 4 active research grants, including EPSRC-funded initiatives

Research outputs include 45+ publications, with recent focus on propulsion system integration, parametric nacelle modeling, and CAD-based machine learning. He has received two Best Paper Awards (2019) for manufacturing research contributions.