A recently retired Waterloo Engineering professor has won the most prestigious career award in fire protection engineering, recognizing decades of research into how fire behaves and what it does to people, buildings and the environment.
Dr. Beth Weckman (BASc ’79, MASc ’82, PhD ’87) received the Arthur B. Guise Medal at the Society of Fire Protection Engineers (SFPE) annual conference earlier this month. Presented by the SFPE Foundation as its most prestigious research award, the medal recognizes eminent achievement in advancing the science and technology of fire protection engineering.
At the same conference, SFPE also presented Weckman with the John L. Bryan Mentoring Award, which honours engineers who have devoted themselves to educating, training and advising the next generation of the profession.
“I am truly honoured to join the group of phenomenal researchers who have previously received this award,” said Weckman of the Guise Medal. “The recognition belongs not just to me but to my family, students, mentors and colleagues who have supported me in my career.”
Dr. Beth Weckman (second from left) accepts the Arthur B. Guise Medal at a ceremony earlier this month.
Weckman, formerly a professor in the Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering and a member of Waterloo’s Fire Research Group, is known for developing improved diagnostic techniques for studying fire and its impacts. Her research has ranged from pool fires to burning furniture and its effects on people, and from the fire safety of mass timber buildings to wildland fires.
She helped found the UWaterloo Fire Research Facility, which is associated with the Waterloo Region Emergency Services Training and Research Complex, and remains active there in retirement. Over her career, she has published more than 50 peer-reviewed journal articles and attracted more than $10 million in research funding as principal investigator, including $5.6 million from the Canada Foundation for Innovation to establish the facility. Her findings have informed fire safety standards used by industry and regulators.
The SFPE honours cap a busy year for Weckman. This summer, the International Association for Fire Safety Science presented her with the Dougal Drysdale Award for extraordinary service to the organization, and she delivered a keynote lecture at the association’s conference in France in June.
Learn more about the work of the Fire Research Group at the University of Waterloo.