Emergency World Summit - Automotive Safety Analysis

Some Keynote Speakers
Professor E. Clive Chirwa, PhD
Engineering and Design Department, The University of Bolton - United Kingdom
Chair of Automotive & Aerospace Structures
Head of Bolton Automotive & Aerospace Research Group (BAARG)
Editor-in-Chief of The International Journal of Crashworthiness
Recent Paper: Flaws in Malibu I and II interpretations of test results
that have influenced many poor rollover roof designs
Joan Claybrook
President of Public Citizen
Washington, DC U.S.A.
Donald Friedman
Expert Engineer
Santa Barbara, California U.S.A.
Founder of the Center For Injury Research and Xprts, LLC
Developed the JRS (Jordan Rollover System) - repeatable rollover test device
Recent Paper: Reducing Occupant Injuries: How And How Soon
Ralph Nader founded Public Citizen in 1971 which attracted people who believed deeply in citizen
participation in government and who were willing to battle against great odds to enact reforms on
behalf of the American people. Joan Claybrook joined Nader in 1972 establishing its Congress
Watch division. In 1977, President Jimmy Carter named her administrator of the National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration, where she vigorously upgraded the agency’s testing, vehicle safety
standards and outreach programs. Nader left Public Citizen in 1980, and Joan Claybrook took the
reins in 1982. She has been president ever since.
Clarence Ditlow
Executive Director of the Center for Auto Safety, a consumer
group founded by Consumers Union and Ralph Nader
Washington, DC U.S.A.
Mr. Ditlow joined the Center for Auto Safety in 1975. He directs the Center
to improve auto safety, reliability and efficiency. He led consumer efforts
to get “lemon laws” passed in all 50 states. Mr. Ditlow has testified over 25
times before Congressional Committees on auto safety issues.
Ben C. Parr
Former General Motors Engineer - Career at GM 1947-1981
Director of Automotive Research - State Farm Insurance from 1981-1998
Heyworth, Illinois U.S.A.
Expertise: More than 40 years of hands on contribution both in automotive engineering, product
development and production phases as well as evaluation of the automobile design
and performance characteristics in the hands of the consumer.
Claudette Phillips
Complete Quadriplegic Roof Crush Survivor
Memphis, Tennessee U.S.A.
Background: In 1981 Claudette graduated from Central High School in
Memphis, Tennessee where she was an active member of student government.
She got a scholarship to Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts and
served as President of her freshman class. Claudette studied English Literature
and Ancient History. She studied at the Sorbonne in Paris for a year as part of
the Smith exchange program and graduated from Smith in 1985. She worked
as a fundraiser for charitable organizations including the Red Cross, Children’s
Fund and American Bible Society. On July 14, 2002 Claudette was wearing her
seat belt while driving her 1993 Jeep Grand Cherokee when the vehicle rolled
over and the roof of the vehicle crushed excessively into Claudette’s survival
space and rendered her a quadriplegic. Claudette is a single mother.
Ben Hogan
Trial Lawyer - Birmingham, Alabama U.S.A.
Ben Hogan played an important role in “opening up the roof crush docket for comments.” NHTSA’s October 22, 2001
Request for Comments took particular notice of the petition for rulemaking from Hogan’s law firm that requested
dynamic testing be used to validate the strength of vehicle roof structures, instead of the current quasi-static
procedure - in particular the inverted drop test J996 evaluating different drop angles and drop heights.