Cranfield Institute
Encyclopedia
The Cranfield Institute for Safety, Risk and Reliability (commonly referred to simply as The Cranfield Institute) is a part of Cranfield University
Cranfield University
Cranfield University is a British postgraduate university based on two campuses, with a research-oriented focus. The main campus is at Cranfield, Bedfordshire and the second is the Defence Academy of the United Kingdom based at Shrivenham, Oxfordshire. The main campus is unique in the United...

 in the UK. It is primarily a teaching and research facility, but also offers safety-related consultancy to businesses.

Facilities

The Cranfield Institute has several simulators designed for risk and hazard assessment and research. They have two aircraft cabin simulators (the Large Cabin Evacuation Simulator and Boeing 737
Boeing 737
The Boeing 737 is a short- to medium-range, twin-engine narrow-body jet airliner. Originally developed as a shorter, lower-cost twin-engine airliner derived from Boeing's 707 and 727, the 737 has developed into a family of nine passenger models with a capacity of 85 to 215 passengers...

 Cabin Simulator). They also have a driving simulator and the Cranfield Impact Centre Laborotories, which provides both static and dynamic impact testing.

Cranfield and the Aviation Industry

Following the Kegworth Air Disaster
Kegworth air disaster
The Kegworth Air Disaster occurred on 8 January 1989, when British Midland Flight 92, a Boeing 737–400, crashed onto the embankment of the M1 motorway near Kegworth, Leicestershire, in England. The aircraft was attempting to conduct an emergency landing at East Midlands Airport...

 the United Kingdom Civil Aviation Authority
United Kingdom Civil Aviation Authority
The Civil Aviation Authority is the public corporation which oversees and regulates all aspects of aviation in the United Kingdom. The CAA head office is located in the CAA House on Kingsway in Holborn, London Borough of Camden...

 (CAA) commissioned the Cranfield Institute to research a best brace position for passengers in an air crash. This research was conducted by the Cranfield Impact Centre Laboratories using both their impact sled and computer modelling.

Cranfield also conducted research on behalf of the CAA after the Manchester Air Disaster to assess why so many passengers were unable to make it to the emergency exits safely. This research prompted changes to cabin layouts in the UK, including making overwing exits more accessible in an emergency by improving seat layout, forcing the installation of emergency floor lighting to assist in a smoke-filled cabin and widening of bulkhead passageways to prevent bottle-necking of evacuating passengers.

External links

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