Dr. Robert C. Sugarman, PE, FHFES
Buffalo, NY 14221
Office: 716-634-8016
Personal injury analyst. BA, MS, SM, PhD in physics & psychology (including MIT); 45 yrs R&D, teaching, trial testimony, industrial training, 'in the trenches'. Perception, vision, warnings, equipment/product design, vehicle/industrial accidents.
Dr. Sugarman is a Fellow of the Human Factors & Ergonomics Society and a member of the American Psychological Association. He has held an appointment at SUNY at Buffalo.
Dr. Sugarman has conducted R & D in instructional system development, perceptual processes, vehicle driving, human-computer interaction, equipment design and evaluation, and physiological processes. He has authored over 60 papers and publications, numerous training programs, and five patent disclosures (one US patent awarded), and is a contributor to the Human Factors Engineering Guidelines and Preferred Practices for the Design of Medical Devices, ANSI/AAMI HE48-1993, Human Factors Design Process for Medical Devices, ANSI/AAMI HE74:2001, and current revisions.
Dr. Sugarman's projects include an evaluation of a system to prevent drunken driving, an investigation of factors contributing to decreased alertness during long-duration low-event driving, studies of camouflage, and programs requiring the design of operator-computer and operator/maintainer-machine interfaces. He was selected by the international Human Factors and Ergonomics Society to participate in a program to develop a comprehensive human factors plan for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Dr. Sugarman’s primary work has been the development of multimedia training programs for industrial operations, environmental health & safety, and maintenance for light to heavy industry. He also conducts classes on ergonomics for safety and ergonomics teams. He was employed to manage quality for the construction of the Buffalo Life Sciences Complex for Turner Construction Company. Dr. Sugarman is currently Chief Scientist for Stavatti Aerospace.
In 2003, he was an invited columnist on Human Factors for the Buffalo Law Journal. Dr. Sugarman provides expert testimony in criminal and personal injury trials (both defense and plaintiff) applying his unique combination of expertise in physics and human factors psychology to:
vehicle accidents,
industrial and construction accidents,
perception and vision,
warnings and labels,
product and equipment design induced errors,
medical equipment errors,
training,
instructions and procedures,
individual differences,
cognitive psychology,
situational awareness,
slip and fall,
ergonomics and workplace layout,
physics and optics
- Accident Investigation
- Accident Reconstruction
- Alcohol
- Automotive
- Commercial Real Estate
- Construction
- Construction Safety
- Consumer Products
- Disabled Access
- Driver Behavior
- Electrical
- Environmental
- Equipment & Machinery
- Ergonomics
- Fatigue
- Forensic Engineering
- Forklifts
- Hotel Security
- Human Factors
- Industrial Engineering
- Industrial Psychology
- Interior Design
- Labels & Warnings
- Ladders & Scaffolds
- Machine Guarding
- Medical Devices
- Multimedia
- Occupational Medicine
- OSHA
- Personal Injury
- Physics
- Power Tools
- Premises Liability
- Products Liability
- Professional Engineering
- Psychology
- Railroad
- Safety
- Safety Equipment
- Slip, Trip & Fall
- Technology
- Traffic/Highway Safety
- Visibility
- Walking & Working Surfaces
- Q: Please list your professional accreditations, degrees, licenses, and certificates granted:
- A: 1961 B.A., Physics (Math minor), University at Buffalo
1962 Graduate Studies, Solid State Physics and Math, Purdue University (elected to Sigma Pi Sigma, Physics Honorary Society)
1963 M.S., Experimental Psychology (Physics minor), Purdue University
1965 S.M., Experimental Psychology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
1967 Ph.D., Experimental Psychology, State University of New York at Buffalo (Departmental Honors)
Registered Professional Engineer (California Certificate Number QU2821)
- Q: Please list your affiliations or memberships in any professional and/or industry organizations:
- A: Fellow, Human Factors and Ergonomics Society. Technical Groups: Forensics Professional (past chair),Training (past chair), Healthcare Systems. Publications Board. Fellows selection criteria, special task force.
American Psychological Association , member Division 21, Applied Experimental & Engineering Psych.
Western New York Chapter of the Human Factors Society, 1982-83, 1984-85 President
Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation, Human Engineering Committee
Reserve Deputy, Sheriff of Erie County, Scientific Reserve Division (retired)
Western NY Science Congress, Inc., Board of Directors
SUNY at Buffalo, Research Assistant Professor; Industry/University Center for Biosurfaces, Human Factors Coordinator
Stavatti Corporation, Board of Directors, Director of Human Factors Engineering
- Q: Have any of your accreditations ever been investigated, suspended or removed? (if yes, explain)
- A: No.
- Q: On how many occasions have you been retained as an expert?
- A: approx. 300
- Q: For what area(s) of expertise have you been retained as an expert?
- A: human factors engineering/psychology; physicist
- Q: In what percentage of your cases were you retained by the plaintiff?
- A: approx. 60%
- Q: In what percentage of your cases were you retained by the defendant?
- A: approx. 40%
- Q: For how many years have you worked with the legal industry as an expert?
- A: approx. 30
- Q: What services do you offer? (E.g.: consulting, testing, reports, site inspections etc.)
- A: consultion, analysis, reports, site inspection, research & testing (scientific experimentation), testimony
References upon request.