TUTORS
The British Gear Association (BGA) are the leading providers of gear related training in the UK and Europe. All BGA training is developed and delivered by Gear experts from Academia and Industry. Meet out expert BGA Tutors below.
If you would like to register for any of our essential gear training please click here or contact the BGA office admin@bga.org.uk.
Denis Sexton
Principal Consultant at DGS Quality Assurance
DGS Quality Assurance
Denis Sexton is a Chartered Engineer and former council member with the Institution of Mechanical Engineers in the UK.
His expertise includes world class manufacturing, process development, metrology, product validation, quality assurance, and process excellence at world leading blue chip companies in various countries. Notable industrial projects include leading and providing technical competence in the development of products such as automotive hydraulic steering systems in Australia and the USA, and military gas turbine programs in the UK. Denis has worked for both national measurement institutions, and with academic institutions. He developed two of the four modules for a major postgraduate metrology program for Swinburne University (IRIS) in Melbourne, Australia. This program was awarded the Metrology Society of Australia National Award for Excellence in Metrology in 2001.
Denis is currently in the final year of a metrology-based PhD at the University of Nottingham where he is researching the application of designed experiments to explore the sources of error and uncertainty in the optical measurement of gears.
Denis teches the BGA course Design of Experiments
Dr Michael Platten
Senior Product Manager
Hexagon MI
Michael is an expert in gearbox and powertrain noise and vibration. With a BEng and PhD in acoustics and vibration he has over 25 years experience of measurement, analysis and simulation in this area. of innovative simulation tools for noise and vibration.
Michael’s current role is as Senior Product Manager, responsible for all aspects of powertrain noise and vibration simulation products at Hexagon.
In his spare time, Michael is a keen wildlife and landscape photographer and he enjoys singing in the same choir where he has been a member for more than 40 years.
Michael teaches the in person BGA Course Gear Noise and Transmission Error
Kevin Delehanty
Senior Applications Engineer
SKF
Kevin Delehanty is a Senior Application Engineer at SKF UK Ltd and has held this position since 2022.
Since graduating in Mechanical Engineering in 1999, Kevin has worked as an application engineer for Glacier Bearings and NSK UK Ltd., giving him a depth of experience in both plain and rolling element bearings across a wide range of industries and sectors.
Kevin has many years of experience in specifying and designing bearings for new industrial gearbox designs, as well as troubleshooting and failure analysis on existing designs.
Kevin teaches the BGA course Introduction to Rolling Element Bearings
Philip Clarke
Retired
Retired General Manager David Brown Heatech
1968 – 1974: Thick Sandwich Apprenticeship at Rolls-Royce Derby
1969 – 1972: Undergraduate at Cambridge University 2.2 Degree in Natural Sciences
1977 – 2012 : Employed by David Brown Gear Industries
1977 – 1990: Research and Development Metallurgist
1990 – 1996: Technical Manager DB Heatech.
1996 – 2012: General Manager DB Heatech
2012 to Present Independent Metallurgical Consultant
Achievements:
Troubleshooting Metallurgical Issues at DB Australia 1981 and 1986
Modelling transformations of gear steels Program AC3 marketed 1987.
Developing distortion control standard 1986
Tooth Bending Fatigue Testing of Production size gears 1985 – 1988!
Subcontract of DB Heat Treatment Services : 1991 – 2012
Computer Program Shape to calculate all gear distortions and grinding allowances 2001 - 2012.
Philip is married with 2 Children and 4 Grandchildren
Philip presents the BGA course Heat Treatment of Gear Steels
Robert Frazer
Senior Engineer
Newcastle University
Rob Frazer is a senior engineer and worked for Design Unit at Newcastle University for 35 years. That has proved more than enough time for his mistakes to catch up with him.
Rob leads the UK’s National Gear Metrology Laboratory (NGML), is chair of BSI’s gear committee MCE/5 and a member of the ISO gear accuracy committee (ISO TC60 WG2).
He provides technical support to the British Gear Association’s Technical and Research Management Committee (TRMC) and helps deliver the BGA’s Knowledge Transfer programme.
Rob presents the BGA Courses: Gear Measurement, Gear Geometry and Gear Stress Analysis.
Tom Reavie
Engineer
Newcastle University
Tom Reavie is an engineer at Design Unit, Newcastle University since starting in 2017 after achieving his masters in Mechanical Engineering.
He first worked on gear design and analysis and has since moved into the National Gear Metrology Laboratory where he leads gear research. The current focus of research is characterisation of gear flank surfaces with both tactile and optical methods, this is also the topic of his PhD which is due to complete in 2025.
He also teaches on the Design for Mechanical Power Transmissions (MEC8029) undergraduate course at Newcastle University.
Tom presents the BGA courses: Gear Geometry