Staff Directory

Professor John Kinuthia [BSc (Hons (Nairobi)), MSc (Birmingham, UK), PhD (Glamorgan, UK), CEng, FICE, MCIHT, MIAT, SFHEA.]

Professor John Kinuthia has worked in industry and in academia. He is currently the Manager of the Advanced Materials Testing Centre (AMTeC), within the School of Engineering at the University of South Wales (USW), where he is also a Lead Consultant in the testing of materials mainly soil- and cement-based materials. AMTeC is accredited by the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS), which has helped embed John’s research work in industry. Engagement with industry and associated enthusing of teaching and research enhances overall academic satisfaction and student experience. This is evidenced by high scores in National Student Surveys (NSS) in Civil Engineering, where John teaches modules on Highway Design, Transportation, Construction Materials, Geo-Environment and on Low-Carbon Technologies and Sustainability among others.

John’s research is into the development of sustainable building and construction materials by utilising natural, industrial, and agricultural waste and by-product materials. Special expertise is in soil and cement-based cementitious systems, incorporating emergent concepts and technologies such 3D printing, smart concrete, as well as nano- and geo-polymer materials. His research output is evidenced by about 110 publications of which over 70% is peer reviewed, with a Google scholar rating of h-index of 28, i10-index of 48, and 2684 citations in civil engineering (by March 2021 - See research outputs.

John has been awarded the Royal Society Brian Mercer Award for Innovation on unfired clay systems, raising the profile of soil-technology and Civil Engineering in general at USW to the international stage. Further recognition has accrued from: engagement with, and service to, industry by offering accredited materials testing at AMTeC; the deployment of the novel materials into Africa with support by UNESCO, to provide new homes at lower cost; and by funding by the prestigious Academy of Medical Sciences on the Global Challenges Research Funding (GCRF) funding scheme on a project on construction materials an energy management, with a case study of Kenya.