Noy to Succeed Leamon as Chief of Liberty Mutual Safety Institute

Liberty Mutual Group in Boston announced that Tom Leamon, director of its Research Institute for Safety since 1991, will retire in late 2006. Liberty Mutual has appointed Dr. Y. Ian Noy vice president and director to succeed Leamon.

Built in 1954 on a farm in Hopkinton, Mass. the original 1,000 square-foot Liberty Mutual Research Institute for Safety is today an internationally recognized, state-of-the-art 91,000 square foot enterprise that Liberty says is the only occupational health and safety research facility owned and operated by an insurance company.

At any given time, there are approximately 70 research projects underway in the institute’s 11 laboratories.

Over his 15-year tenure, Leamon has overseen two major reconstructions, the publication of nearly 400 peer-reviewed, scientific publications and a restructuring that formed two separate research entities – the Center for Safety Research and the Center for Disability Research. He expanded the scope of research, initiated the Visiting Scholar Program and established research alliances with universities and institutions around the world including Tsinghua University, Fudan University, Harvard University, the British Health & Safety Laboratory and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.

“The Institute is a one-of-a-kind, uniquely rewarding place to work,” said Leamon. “The work we do to identify, understand and reduce the effects of occupational risk factors on workers is extremely satisfying. And I have always taken great pride in Liberty Mutual’s commitment to share our results with anyone in the world, including our competitors. The past 15 years have been an exciting chapter in my career.”

Dr. Noy has 30 years of professional experience in ergonomics, human factors and motor vehicle safety. He most recently served as director of Standards Research and Development in Transport Canada’s Road Safety Directorate. Noy earned his Ph.D. at the University of Toronto in Industrial Engineering and Human Factors, is a Certified Professional Ergonomist and a Canadian Professional Engineer.

Noy’s applied research experience spans applications of human performance and operating systems in the air, on the ground and underwater, including military research and development. He has published more than 100 scientific and technical reports, and conference and journal articles.