Profile
Dr Tessa Gordelier
Honorary Senior Research Fellow
Research
Tessa’s research interests lie in the development of the marine renewable energy sector. Her research has a particular focus on component reliability assessment and the development of novel solutions for the sector. Much of her work has revolved around mooring systems for highly dynamic floating MRE devices, with her PhD Thesis entitled "Enhancing Wave Energy Developments through Mooring System Reliability Assessment". This work involved a significant amount of physical testing utilising both the Dynamic Marine Component Test Facility (DMaC) and the South West Mooring Test Facility (SWMTF), in addition to collaboration with IFREMER through the Marinet Programme.
Tessa’s background is in Mechanical Engineering; she holds a MEng, is a Chartered Engineer and a Chartered Energy Engineer. Prior to joining the Renewable Energy Team, Tessa’s professional experience includes four years as Energy Manager at the University of the West of England, Bristol; work as a Design and Commissioning Engineer for Engineering Consultancy CYNA Ltd; and a Trainee Engineer position in the Reliability and Mechatronics Research department of TRW Conekt. Her practical energy management expertise makes an insightful contribution to the undergraduate Energy Management Module.
Projects
Tessa has worked on the following projects:
- Marine-i: A £9.3 million collaborative project set up to support SMEs in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly with innovation in the marine sector. This work is funded by the Europan Regional Development Fund.
- SUPERGEN 3+: Investigating the use of polymer optical fibres (POFs) for the condition monitoring of synthetic mooring ropes. This work is funded by the EPSRC through the SUPERGEN Marine program.
- Horizon 2020 project, OPERA: This collaborative European project aimed to reduce the cost of wave energy by trialling several marine innovations through a 24 month program of sea trials in the Bay of Biscay, Spain.
- Interim FaB Test Manager: Responsible for managing this nursery marine renewable test facility including updating the operational framework and providing support and due diligence assessments for ongoing deployments.
Academic and Professional Qualifications
- PhD Renewable Energy, 2016.
- Associate Fellow of the HEA, 2014 – Present.
- University of Exeter ASPIRE Assoicate Fellowship, 2014 - Present.
- Certificate in Advanced Study: Learning and Teaching in Higher Education, 2014.
- Member of the Energy Institute, 2012 – Present.
- Chartered Engineer, 2012 – Present.
- Chartered Energy Engineer, 2012 – Present.
- European Energy Manger Qualification, 2011.
- PRINCE 2 Practitioner, 2010 – 2015.
- MEng Mechanical Engineering, Bristol University, 2006.
Awards
- Presenter and Co-Author: OPERA Consortium awarded te Yoshio Masuda Prize, EWTEC,Cork, Ireland, 2017.
- Engineering and Physical Sciences PhD Studentship under the SuperGen Marine Consortium. 2012 – 2016.
- Best Poster Prize (Co-author). SuperGen UKCMER Annual Assembly. November 27, 2015. Edinburgh, UK.
- 3rd Prize for Oral Presentation. Postgraduate Research Conference. March 21, 2014. Cornwall, UK.
- Best Poster Prize. SuperGen UKCMER Annual Assembly. November 28, 2014. Edinburgh, UK.
- Awarded MARINET funding through the EU’s FP7 framework. This provided financial support to enable 2 weeks of test work at the IFREMER Materials in a Marine Environment Laboratory, Brest, France. 2014.
- Yoshia Masuda Memorial Award for Best Young Researcher. 10th European Wave and Tidal Energy Conference, September 2-5, 2013. Aalborg, Germany.