Amusement Rides & Attractions - Theme Parks Expert Witnesses: 5

Michael C. Wright, PE, CSP, CPE is a Professional Engineer with over 35 years of academic, practical, and specialized knowledge of Engineering, Construction, Safety, Maintenance, Demolition and Training in general industry and construction activities. Mr. Wright's expertise is a definite plus in providing clients with leading edge information and insight. A licensed and practicing engineer, he rounds out his knowledge as a Certified Safety Professional (CSP) and Certified Plant Engineer to provide an insightful and accurate understanding of the issues involved in a case. 

Mr. Wright has completed over 600 hours of specialized safety training, serves on ANSI and ASTM Standards committees and provides a thorough knowledge of OSHA Regulations, Directives and Letters of Interpretation. A recognized author, presenter, and trainer, Mr. Wright communicates the issues clearly for all to understand. His expert witness experience is a balanced blend of defense, plaintiff and OSHA Solicitor cases. He is licensed in 46 states. 

Areas of Expertise:

Safety Programs Construction Product Liability Fall Protection Programs Suspended Loads Contractors Formwork Leading Edge Work Activities Machine Guarding Safety Concrete, Wood, Steel Ladder Safety

Aerial & Scissor Lifts Anchorage Points - Fall Arrest Programs Bleachers Scaffolding Multi-Employer Concrete Formwork Construction & Demolition Roofing Crane Design & Inspection Training Safety Programs (Customized Manuals)

View Mr. Wright's Curriculum Vitae

Dr. J. P. Purswell, PhD, PE, CPE has extensive experience in Human Factors, Ergonomics and Safety Engineering. He holds a doctorate in Industrial & Systems Engineering from Virginia Tech. A member of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society and the American Industrial Hygiene Association, Dr. Purswell served as the past Chair of the Industrial Engineers PE exam from 2005 to 2009. He continues to serve on the committee which is responsible for the preparation of the national professional engineering examination in industrial engineering.

Dr. Purswell is the author of more than 20 publications and presentations on Product Safety, Occupational Safety, Printed Warnings, and Auditory Warnings. Examples of products addressed include silica, asbestos, cleaning chemicals, gasoline containers, and recreational equipment. Dr. Purswell maintains NIST-calibrated equipment for the measurement of light, sound, force, and whole-body and hand-arm vibration in addition to standard photo and video equipment.

Dr. Purswell has been an Expert Witness in the legal industry since 1997. He has been qualified as an expert in state and federal courts across the nation in safety engineering, including safety analysis techniques such as Fault Tree Analysis and FMEA as well as product warnings / instructions and OSHA compliance issues. Dr. Purswell's services include site inspections, document review, drafting Rule 26-compliant reports, deposition, and trial testimony. He has been retained by attorneys for both Plaintiff (40%) and Defense (60%) more than 100 times, has been deposed approximately 50 times, and has testified at trial over 20 times.

Areas of Expertise:

Warning and Safety Instructions OSHA Compliance Chemical Accident Prevention Product Safety Lockout / Tagout & Machine Guarding Trucks and Forklift Accidents

Power Tools Safety Hazard Communication - Audible Alarms Employer Safety Training and Supervision Perception / Reaction Time Ergonomic Work Practices Working and Walking Surfaces - Slip, Trip and Fall

View Dr. Purswell's Consulting Profile.

Ellis Litigation Support (ELS) is headed by Dr. J. Nigel Ellis a leading authority on fall protection. Dr. Ellis has more than 40 years of safety engineering experience. Based upon his unsurpassed experience and knowledge, Dr. Ellis has performed fall hazard assessments in hundreds of facilities and construction sites and has been retained as an expert witness in approximately 1000 fall-related cases nationwide. Dr. Ellis’ participation has led to multi-million dollar settlements/awards in a number of cases and exoneration of defendants in others.

Through his work with OSHA and as an ANSI and ASTM committee member, including providing comments and testimony before OSHA hearings, Dr. Ellis has been instrumental in the development of various OSHA regulations and ANSI standards. Dr. Ellis has written the seminal textbook, Introduction to Fall Protection currently in its fourth edition and published by the American Society of Safety Engineers and available for purchase on the ELS web site www.FallSafety.com.

Dr. Ellis is a founder and board member of the International Society for Fall Protection and is a frequent speaker at the national conventions of the American Society of Safety Engineers and the National Safety Council. Dr. Ellis also is a published member of the National Academy of Forensic Engineers and is a regular contributor to Compliance Magazine the Greyhouse Safet Directory.

ELS also draws upon its sister company, Ellis Fall Safety Solutions (EFSS), to offer expertise in a wide range of engineering related matters.

ELS Areas of Expertise:

Fall Protection – all areas where fall hazards exist

OSHA, ANSI and related building codes, standards and regulations

Ergonomics/Human Factors

Structural Engineering

Slips, trips, friction co-efficients

Hunter’s Tree Stand Cases

Confined Space Rescue

View Consulting Profile.

Alpine Engineering & Design, Inc. has 6 consulting mechanical engineers. We have a total of nearly 100 years of experience designing mechanical equipment. We have been retained on over 600 lawsuits, both intellectual property along with product liability. Our engineers have over 80 U.S. patents on products we have designed. 

We have testified regarding patent IPRs, patent infringement/non-infringement, and patent validity/invalidity, product liability, mechanical design, human factors, industrial safety, accident reconstruction, failure analysis, DOT compliance, compliance with OSHA and other standards (i.e. ANSI, ISO ASTM, etc), hydraulic systems. With all of our experience, you will find us a joy to work with.

Our services include a testing and prototype lab, model shop, computer graphics and animations, the ability to create full-size prototypes.   There is nothing better than a good model or animation to get our points across.  Often we come up with arguments that were not previously considered. We give honest, understandable opinions with the underpinning required to help attorneys, judges, and jurors make good decisions.

Expert Witness Services Professional Expert Reports Testing Forensic/Failure Analysis Accident Reconstruction Demonstratives Inspections/Measurements Compliance with Standards Expert Testimony Patent & Patent Related Issues Patent Searches Provisional Patent Complete with Illustrations Patent Infringement Review

Product Development Innovative Concept Multi-Industry Experience Powerful Design Tools Full Service Fabricating Materials Design Analysis Finite Element Analysis (FEA) Hydraulics, Pneumatics, Electrical Structural Integrity Tests Value Analysis

 Fred P. Smith, PE, CSP,

I have been retained over 500 times as an expert in intellectual property, and product liability cases where I have testified regarding claim construction, infringement, invalidity, breach of warranty, negligent misrepresentation.  Testified in court over 40 times in multiple state courts, Federal Court, before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB), the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and the International Trade Commission (ITC).  I have over 70 patents on such products with a number of patent applications still pending. Received the Utah Genius Award for being one of Utah’s top inventors.

Directed the development and improvement of a wide variety of products including trucking equipment, refuse equipment, hydraulically operated mobile equipment, cranes, manlifts, specialty axles and suspensions, zip lines, amusement rides, exercise equipment, radiofrequency and magnetically shielded enclosures, rotomolded containers, aerial lifts and a variety of consumer products.

Dr. C.J. Abraham, P.E. is a Licensed Professional Safety Engineer with over thirty five years of international experience consulting to insurance companies, municipalities, government agencies, and the legal profession. He provides consultation to International corporations in the areas of New Product Development, Manufacturing, Packaging, Warnings and Instructions. 

Dr Abraham's services include Expert Witness Testimony for both Plaintiff and Defense in matters involving Personal Injury and Product Liability. 

Areas of Expertise:

Construction Accidents OSHA ADA Labor Law Human Factors Household / Industrial Products Safety Engineering

Retail Store Safety Industrial Hygiene Textiles Fires / Explosions / Flammable Fabrics Slips / Falls Recreational / Sports Accidents Toxic Exposures