Industry Panel Discussions – Ventilation, IAQ and wellbeing

Simon Jones

Simon Jones is the Commercial Director for Aereco ltd UK and Ireland. He is currently one of Ireland’s representatives and Board Member for Annex 5, Air infiltration and Ventilation centre (AIVC) part of the IEA, Energy in Buildings and Communities (EBC). He is on the advisory board for the UK centre for moisture in buildings (UKCMB), the expert group on ventilation advising NPHET and Government. And is involved in many other related organisations and activities. Simon has been in building services and the built environment for nearly two decades and has consistently been a voice for better standards and approaches in the industry.

Professor John Wenger

John Wenger is Professor of Chemistry at University College Cork (UCC), where he is also director of the Centre for Research into Atmospheric Chemistry (CRAC Lab) and Principal Investigator at the Environmental Research Institute (ERI). He has over 25 years research experience in atmospheric chemistry and air pollution, producing over 100 publications in internationally renowned journals. His main research interests are in the atmospheric degradation of volatile organic compounds and the chemical composition and sources of atmospheric aerosols.

Drawing on his knowledge of airborne particles, Wenger has become a strong advocate for greater recognition of the important role that aerosols play in the transmission of COVID-19. Over the last 18 months, he has made many media contributions on the role of aerosols in the spread of coronavirus and the importance of ventilation and other mitigating measures in reducing transmission. In February 2021, he was appointed Chair of the Expert Group on Ventilation and its role in the prevention of COVID-19, which has published two reports and continues to inform the national response to the pandemic.

Dr Marie Coggins

Dr Marie Coggins is an Exposure Scientist and Senior Lecturer in the School of Physics, NUI Galway. Following her PhD she worked in the Pharmaceutical sector as an Occupational Hygiene Professional, before commencing a lecturing post in the School of Physics in 2003. She is Programme Director of the professional accredited BSc Environmental Health & Safety programme. She leads the NUI Galway Exposure Science research team, where her research focuses on characterizing the magnitude of human exposure and exposure pathways for a range of pollutants across multiple microenvironments as well as evaluating the impact of human exposure or exposure interventions on health. She is an Irish representative on the International Energy Agency’s, Technology collaboration Programme – Annex 5, Air Infiltration and Ventilation Centre (AIVC).  Since the start of the COVID-19 Pandemic she has been a member of the NSAI Expert committee on requirements and methods of testing for community face coverings. She currently serves on the National Expert Group on the Role of Ventilation in Reducing Transmission of COVID-19, this group works with the Irish Governments Senior Official’s Group to further inform sectoral guidance and public information regarding ventilation.

Dr Kim Roberts

Dr Kim Roberts is Ussher Assistant Professor of Virology in the School of Genetics and Microbiology at Trinity College Dublin. As a postdoctoral research fellow at Imperial College London she investigated Influenza virus host adaptation and transmission, asking the question “Why do some Influenza viruses transmit better than others?” In 2012 she moved to Ireland to begin her own respiratory virus research group. Currently, her research focuses on developing novel ways of interrupting respiratory virus transmission. She has contributed to the media discussion of SARS-CoV-2, is a member of the Expert Group on the Role of Ventilation in Reducing Transmission of COVID-19 and an advocate for the use of ventilation to reduce respiratory virus transmission.