FPC2026 Steering Group Committee
Dr Umut Genc
Tech Leader @ Eatron Technologies
Dr Umut Genc
Tech Leader @ Eatron Technologies
Dr. Umut Genç brings over 25 years of experience in the automotive and powertrain engineering sectors. He holds an honours degree in Electrical & Electronics Engineering and earned his PhD in automotive software & controls from the University of Cambridge, England.
As the founding Managing Director of AVL Turkey, Dr. Genç steered the company to national prominence, earning a place among the “Top 100 Fastest Growing Companies in Turkey.” In 2018, he co-founded Eatron Technologies, a UK-based deep tech company pioneering AI-powered Battery Management Systems (BMS) and battery optimisation software for li-ion batteries. Eatron’s solutions enhance safety, extend battery life, and improve performance across automotive, light mobility, off-highway, and energy applications.
Anna Wise
Head of Strategic Programmes @ Nyobolt Ltd
Anna Wise
Head of Strategic Programmes @ Nyobolt Ltd
Anna is Head of Strategic Programmes at Nyobolt Ltd. Prior to joining Nyobolt, Anna held the role of Head of Battery Technology at Innovate UK where she led the innovation programme and technical direction of the UK Government’s £330m Faraday Battery Challenge. Anna has a background in battery research and was based in the USA at Stanford University and SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory. Anna holds a Ph.D. in electrochemistry from the University of Southampton.
Dr Francesca Iudicello
Group Leader - National Physical Laboratory
Dr Francesca Iudicello
Group Leader - National Physical Laboratory
Francesca is leading the Surface Technology Group at the National Physical Laboratory.
She has worked in R&D for over 25 years with a wide range of organizations, including Dana, IHS, Ford and Innovate UK. Before joining NPL, Francesca worked as Head of Engineering at Aeristech and Group Manager at Ceres Power, on the development of e-compressors for fuel cell installations, and hydrogen fuel cells and electrolysers, respectively.
As Programme Manager for Zero Emission Vehicles at Innovate UK, Francesca led the on-vehicle technology programmes (including the IDP Programme) on a significant number of highly-innovative R&D projects that use hydrogen to propel low/zero emission vehicles, whether by means of hydrogen fuel cells or internal combustion engines.
Bernhard H. Biermann
Senior Vice President Region Europe and North Africa @ FEV Europe GmbH
Bernhard H. Biermann
Senior Vice President Region Europe and North Africa @ FEV Europe GmbH
Bernhard Biermann is Senior Vice President Region Europe and North Africa of FEV Europe GmbH and is responsible for the business development of the entire FEV portfolio in these regions.
Bernhard graduated in Mechanical Engineering from RWTH Aachen University in 1987.
He has been with FEV for over 34 years, starting in 1990 as a project engineer in the field of gasoline engine combustion development. Throughout his career, he has held various positions of responsibility including gasoline thermodynamics, benchmarking, project management, production and business development.
He has been instrumental in the growth of several European subsidiaries over the last sixteen years.
In 2022 he was promoted to his current position and today he is also Managing Director of FEV Sweden AB, Chairman of FEV UK Ltd and has been appointed Visiting Professor at Coventry University.
Michael Hurwitz
Partner: Energy, Mobility & Innovation; PA Consulting
Michael Hurwitz
Partner: Energy, Mobility & Innovation; PA Consulting
Michael is an internationally recognised leader in the future of mobility, energy and corporate innovation. He brings a rare mix of experience in national government, city leadership, commercial innovation and the cutting edge of rapidly scaling tech. For the UK Government he created and led the UK’s national programmes on low carbon transport, electromobility and autonomous vehicles. At Transport for London he led future mobility policy and operations, a ground-breaking commercial innovation programme, and work on resilience during COVID. Following a period at EV startup Arrival, pursuing a radical mission to deliver sustainable manufacturing and zero-emission solutions for cities, he is now Partner and PA Consulting, specialising in the transition to clean energy and sustainable mobility. He is also a Fellow at LocalGlobe venture capital, providing support and advice to some of Europe’s most exciting tech companies; and was previously Policy Fellow at the Energy Futures Lab, Imperial College London.
Dr Ben Walsh
Deputy Challenge Director @ Innovate UK
Dr Ben Walsh
Deputy Challenge Director @ Innovate UK
Ben is the Deputy Director of the Battery Innovation Programme, a £452m programme to accelerate battery research and innovation. The programme focuses on developing a UK battery technology industry that is high tech, high value and high skill. It aims to make the UK a science superpower for batteries by supporting the UK’s world-class battery facilities. It is also growing innovative businesses that are developing the battery supply chains.
The programme comprises three core elements:
• Business-led innovation delivered through Innovate UK
• Academic focused research and capability development at the Faraday Institution,
• Manufacturing scale-up and skills development at the UK Battery Industrialisation Centre.
His responsibilities include supporting the Faraday Institution, programme delivery and development of the next phase of the programme.
He originally trained as a chemist and has 20 years’ experience in sustainability, innovation and policy making.
Philippa Oldham
Stakeholder Engagement Director @ Advanced Propulsion Centre
Philippa Oldham
Stakeholder Engagement Director @ Advanced Propulsion Centre
A Chartered Engineer with a wealth of experience gain from motorsport, defence, aerospace and policy development. Philippa thrives on working with a wide range of stakeholders from government, industry and academia to create visionary solutions, with the ability to challenge existing silos across the sectors. Her experience allows her to offer oversight into the challenges faced both locally and internationally within the manufacturing and transport realms.
Joining the Advanced Propulsion Centre in January 2018 she uses her experience and knowledge of the UK’s transport modes and infrastructure to support the development of strategies that incubate collaborations. This joining of the dots will help ensure that the UK can develop solutions, and attract the right investment to create, develop and sustain UK supply chains that drive both job creation and exportable products and services to enable the UK to fulfill its net-zero ambition.
Isobel Sheldon OBE
Honorary Chair Professor Battery and Sustainable Technology @ Global CEO – Western CAM Inc
Isobel Sheldon OBE
Honorary Chair Professor Battery and Sustainable Technology @ Global CEO – Western CAM Inc
• 20 year veteran of the Lithium Ion battery industry.
• Awarded an OBE (2020) from HM the Queen for long service to EV batteries and their development
• Multiple world firsts:
• World's first commercially available PHEV (2004)
• Highest power density battery in automotive on two occasions (Infiniti e-merge and McLaren P1)
• World's first 12 meter EV bus battery
Career History
• Multiple Senior Director positions in battery development:
• Engineering and Technology Director, Johnson Matthey Battery systems
• Engineering and Technology Director, Cummins Electrified Power
• Development Director UK Battery Industrialisation Centre
• Global battery specialist Ricardo Plc Hybrid and Electric Division
• 10 years running own start up business, battery system development
• Board of trustees, The Faraday Institution
• Chair of funding Faraday Institution review panels for UK academic research (battery research)
• Advisory board member, UK National Physical Laboratory on LCA metrology
• UK Automotive Council working group member that established the need for battery eco-systems in 2016
Thomas Middleditch MEng ACGI CEng MIMechE
Head of Energy & Sustainability Solutions @ BAE Systems, Maritime & Land
Thomas Middleditch MEng ACGI CEng MIMechE
Head of Energy & Sustainability Solutions @ BAE Systems, Maritime & Land
Thomas Middleditch brings over 20 years of experience in the defence & engineering sectors. He holds a Masters of Engineering degree in Mechanical Engineering from Imperial College & has been a Chartered Engineer for over 10 years.
Thomas spent the first half of his career in the Royal Navy as a Chief Engineer serving on Frigates, Survey Ships & Aircraft Carriers; the second half of his career has been spent in BAE Systems. This has included leading a team of up to 70 engineers supporting the delivery of maintenance & upgrades to RN vessels in Portsmouth Naval Base and internationally; more recently he has been exploring pioneering technology collaborations across BAE Systems including hybrid propulsion for boats and leading a specialist team tasked with guiding BAE to Net Zero across our infrastructure and products.
Prof Sam Akehurst
Research Director of IAAPS and Professor of Advanced Powertrain Systems @ The University of Bath
Prof Sam Akehurst
Research Director of IAAPS and Professor of Advanced Powertrain Systems @ The University of Bath
Sam Akehurst is Research Director of IAAPS - The Institute for Advanced Automotive Propulsion Systems and Professor of Advanced Powertrain Systems at the University of Bath. He has over 25 years of powertrain research experience. He currently leads EPSRC, Innovate UK an APC funded collaborative research programmes on activities ranging from Hydrogen fuelled IC engines to fully electric powertrain systems. He has published more than 130 peer reviewed publications and is also theme lead for Digital Systems, Optimisation and Integration within the EPSRC funded Centre for Doctoral Training in Advanced Propulsion Systems.
James Eaton
CEO & Founder @ IONETIC
James Eaton
CEO & Founder @ IONETIC
James has spent the last 6 years working in the battery sector helping academia and industry develop better battery solutions to accelerate electrification. He has a wide array of experience across simulation, design, testing, and manufacturing. He holds a master’s degree in mechanical engineering from Imperial College London specialising in battery system design and is now the CEO & Co-Founder at IONETIC.
IONETIC has developed a new approach to battery pack development, using its proprietary Arc system of software, hardware, and manufacturing technologies which allows them to develop tailored battery systems at a significantly lower cost, time, and risk versus the existing solutions today.
Dr Bernadette Longridge
Engineering Centre Manager @ AVL Powertrain UK
Dr Bernadette Longridge
Engineering Centre Manager @ AVL Powertrain UK
Bernadette Longridge has over two decades of experience in powertrain design, development, and integration. She currently serves as Engineering Centre Manager at AVL’s Basildon office, where she leads a multidisciplinary team delivering customer projects across a range of propulsion technologies and market sectors through both local expertise and AVL’s global network.
Bernadette began her career as a Design Engineer at Perkins Engines (Caterpillar Group) in Peterborough. She later joined Ford Motor Company as a System Integration Engineer and in 2005, joined AVL. Her team’s capabilities span internal combustion engines, electrified powertrains, vehicle integration, systems engineering, calibration, simulation, design, data analytics, and data science.
Bernadette holds a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from University College London (UCL), sponsored by Ford Motor Company, where her research focused on developing a new fuelling system for stratified charge gasoline engines. She also earned a First Class Honours Bachelor's Degree in Mechanical Engineering from UCL, sponsored by Rolls-Royce and Associates.
