Ahmed Swidan

Dr. Ahmed Swidan is an Adjunct Senior Lecturer in the School of Engineering and Technology at UNSW Canberra, University of New South Wales. A marine engineer with over two decades of experience across the navy, ship industry, and academia, he focuses on maritime engineering. He earned his PhD in Maritime Engineering-Mechanical from the University of Tasmania in 2016, MEngSc in Maritime Engineering and Naval Architecture from the Arab Academy for Science, Technology, and Maritime Transport in 2012, and BEngSc (Hons) in Mechanical Engineering from the Military Technical College in 2000. His career trajectory includes roles as Marine Engineer Officer and Chief Engineer in the Egyptian Navy from 2000 to 2009, Project Manager from 2007 to 2009, Superintendent Engineer at Al-Kahera Company for Fast Ferries from 2009 to 2010, Lecturer at AASTMT from 2010 to 2016, Lecturer and Research Fellow at the University of Tasmania from 2012 to 2018, Senior Lecturer at UNSW from 2018 to 2021, and his current adjunct position since 2021. He is also Vice Dean for Maritime Research at AASTMT since 2021 and founder of the Naval Architecture program at UNSW Canberra.

Swidan's research specializations include the design of mechanical systems on ships, high-speed marine craft, autonomous underwater vehicles, and offshore design. He utilizes CFD simulations and experimental approaches to study hydrodynamics, such as slamming loads on catamaran wetdecks and wave interactions with hulls. Notable publications are "Experimental drop test investigation into wetdeck slamming loads on a generic catamaran hullform" published in Ocean Engineering in 2016 (65 citations), "Wetdeck slamming loads on a developed catamaran hullform—experimental investigation" in Ships and Offshore Structures in 2017 (32 citations), "Numerical prediction of symmetric water impact loads on wedge shaped hull form using CFD" (University of Tasmania, 2013, 30 citations), and "Important trends and junctures in warship design-Redux" in The NAVY Journal of the Navy League of Australia in 2020 (7 citations). Among his honors, he received the Walter Atkinson Award for Best Written Paper in 2018-19 for “A New Centrebow Design to Enhance the Performance of High-Speed Catamarans in Rough Seas.” Professional affiliations include Fellow of the Institution of Engineers Australia (FIEAust), Fellow and Chartered Marine Engineer of the Institute of Marine Engineering, Science and Technology (FIMarEST, CMarEng), Member of the Royal Institution of Naval Architects (MRINA), and Chartered Engineer (CEng, UK). Additionally, he holds Marine Chief Engineer Class 1 Certificate of Competency and Project Management Professional certification.

Professional Email: a.swidan@unsw.edu.au