SENIOR CONSULTING ENGINEER AND ERGONOMIST

Bill Contoyannis is a qualified mechanical and biomedical engineer and ergonomist with extensive experience in rehabilitation engineering, human biomechanics and ergonomics. He is a skilled incident investigator specialising in risk identification and injury prevention.

He has been involved in a broad range of rehabilitation, assistive technology and more specifically prosthetics and has made a significant contribution to these fields including, incident investigation, education, research, advice and clinical support.

His vast experience has led him to be a highly sought after consultant on matters including the design of products used in both the disability and general sphere. This has included the ergonomic and engineering design and assessment of wheelchairs, artificial limbs (and the components included in these) and patient lifting devices such as overhead support systems and portable patient hoists.

Some examples of his work include:

  • Investigation of medical technology involving failure incidents and injury to patients (Various Australian government departments of health, coroner’s department and private health service)
  • Ergonomics assessments of product designs for safety and compliance (beds, mattresses, office chairs, desks, as well as the built environment)
  • Manual handling risk assessments (retail, warehouses, manufacturing production lines)
  • Assessment of hand-held card readers for use with public transport smart card (State government)

Bill applies biomechanical principles to analyse and determine body forces, risk levels and causation of musculoskeletal injuries, as well as to determine the likely causes of a given incident. He provides expert opinion and regularly gives evidence at court on injuries pertaining to slips, trips, falls, lifting, manual handling and forces, and as a seasoned forensic engineer, Bill is well qualified to advise on systems of work, remedial measures and risk prevention.

Some examples of court cases where Bill has provided expert opinion:

An esteemed speaker and trainer, Bill is often invited to present and lecture at a number of national and international forums and is an adviser to health departments, professional organisations and support associations throughout Australia.

Bill holds a Bachelor of Engineering (Mechanical) and a Master of Engineering Science (Biomedical Engineering), as well as a Graduate Certificate in Public Sector Management.

In his spare time, Bill enjoys travel, going to sporting events and restoration of old cars.

Awards & Achievements

  • 2003 – 2006: Chair of the National Committee of Rehabilitation Engineers, (Engineers Australia)
  • 1993 – present: Instrumental in setting up REHAB TECH , a technology service, consulting and research unit originally at Melbourne’s Monash University’s Centre for Biomedical Engineering, and now a private entity.

Memberships, Societies and Associations

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Tel: (03) 9376 1844
Email: info@ergonomics.com.au