By: Kristopher J. Seluga, PE
Tel: (203) 329-9909
Email: Technology Associates
An end user of a product expects that a given product will not only function as intended, but will be safe from non-obvious hazards. Based upon decades of experience with mishaps during use of common and specialized equipment, thousands of standards have been developed for many consumer products and industrial equipment. Numerous organizations exist, e.g., ANSI, ASTM, SAE, and ASME, that regularly review and update these standards.
We have extensive experience with many types of products including:
Through scientific analysis, we can help you answer pertinent questions such as:
Lawn Tractor Fire:
A lawn tractor tipped over trapping its rider under it. While on its side, gasoline trickled from an air hole in the gas cap onto the surrounding area. Eventually, the spilled gasoline fumes ignited, severely burning the operator's legs. We demonstrated how the addition of a simple gasoline supply shut off valve for the air hole when the tractor is rolled on its side would have avoided the fire. Afterwards the manufacturer offered a $1 million settlement.
Alleged Elevator Door Defect:
A woman exiting an elevator claimed that the door closed too forcibly on her knee as she was exiting the car, seriously injuring her. Our testing revealed that the elevator door closed with reasonable speed, energy and force levels, and that her injuries could not have been caused by the closing of the subject elevator door.
Kristopher J. Seluga, PE, is a Mechanical Engineering, Accident Reconstruction, Biomechanics, and Safety Expert with over 20 years of experience. He received his Bachelor's and Master's degrees from the Mechanical Engineering department at MIT where he worked on the development of novel three-dimensional printing technologies. Mr. Seluga is also a licensed Professional Engineer in New York and Connecticut, and has served as a member of the ANSI engineering committee for the Z130.1 and Z135 standards for golf cars and PTV's. His research interests and peer reviewed publications span the topics of Motor Vehicle Dynamics, Product Safety, and Biomechanics.
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3/4/2014· Accident Investigation & Reconstruction
Buses and Motorcoaches: Jayne Mansfield and Mythology
By: Ned Einstein
For those readers who remember Jayne Mansfield, or even know who she was, this is not a story about her Hollywood exploits or bedroom acrobatics. It is a story about a common type of accident - a rear-ender involving an automobile striking a truck or bus - often referred to, in accident reconstruction circles, as "the Jayne Mansfield syndrome."
10/24/2018· Accident Investigation & Reconstruction
By: Jeffrey Warren and Aron Olson
Welcome to the third and final post in our multipart series of blog posts about a young boy's fall and serious injury at a public playground. In our first post we gave a brief overview of the incident and our investigation. In the second post we discussed some of the safety standards applicable to public playgrounds. In this post, we will examine some of the impact-absorbing playground surfaces available to protect children at playgrounds from injury. If you would like to read the first two posts, they are available here and here.
8/7/2009· Accident Investigation & Reconstruction
Forensic Engineering Experts: Airbags
Airbags are credited with reducing numerous injuries and saving many lives during vehicle accidents. However, there have been incidents where they do not function as intended, and have even caused injuries such as explosive powder burns, detached eye retinas, child suffocation and impact deaths.
