About us – Meet the Fluvial flood protection team

Simon Phelps – Director & Founder

Simon developed the flood defence barrier, FLOODSTOP, during his final year at Bournemouth University. He became aware of the need for a rapidly deployable barrier after watching a TV programme recounting the Lewes & Uckfield floods of 2000. It astonished him that a large number of properties were devastated, all because the sandbags used as flood defences proved utterly ineffective. Simon is currently a Science & Engineering Ambassador for the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills.

Dr Phil Clare – Director Phil spent eight years at Bournemouth University, latterly as Research and Commercialisation Manager. Now he is Associate Director, Research Services at the University of Oxford, with particular responsibility for contracts, training and intellectual property.

Professor Nick Petford – Director Vice Chancellor at Northampton University, prior to that he was PVC at Bournemouth University, Nick has worked in industry (BP) and on academic and commercial research projects throughout the world. A former Royal Society University Research Fellow and Fellow of Churchill College, Cambridge, Nick has held visiting research appointments at the Universities of Michigan and Vermont (USA) and NASA and is currently Visiting Professor at Macquarie University (Australia) and the Open University.

Henry Warren – Director

After a career as a partner in Touche Ross & Co (now Deloitte) and more than 20 years as finance director of Devonport Management Limited, a £500 million turnover per annum marine engineering business, Henry is an investor and director in a portfolio of private companies.

Henry’s role in Fluvial Innovations is to support Simon in the development of the flood barrier business and to provide commercial advice.