Simon obtained his BSc (Hons) in Pure and Applied Chemistry in 1992 and his PhD in Organic Synthetic Chemistry in 1996 from Queen's University Belfast. From 1996-1997 he was employed by the School of Chemistry at Queen's University Belfast researching and developing new methods for the synthesis of novel chiral organosulfur compounds, funded by an award obtained from the BBSRC under the direction of Prof. Derek Boyd. From 1997 to 2000 he was employed as a post-doctoral research fellow by Queen's University based at the Veterinary Sciences Division at Stormont to research and develop applications in the area of veterinary drug residue detection by SPR biosensors, sponsored by Biacore AB, Sweden, under direction of Prof. Chris Elliott. From 2000-2009, he was involved with the setup of a university spin out company, Xenosense Ltd, as a Senior Research Scientist/ Deputy Manager/ Health and Safety Officer. His role included development of novel sensor chip chemistries, kit development for vitamins, veterinary drugs and pathogens and mentoring and training staff.

At Xensoense he was also involved in the following EU research projects:

• SPIQ- European funded EUREKA project, addressing 3 major health hazards in pork production: Salmonella, Trichinella and Mycobacterium Avium spp. Avium
• EU 6th Framework Project - BioCop: New Technologies to Screen Multiple Chemical Contaminants in Foods
• EU 6th Framework Project - Detectox: Development of an SPR-based biosensor for the detection of lipophilic phycotoxins in shellfish residues

Simon joined IGFS (formerly IAFLU) on May 1st 2009 as a Research Fellow under the direction of Prof. Chris Elliott. He worked as part of the ASSET group (sub strand 1, biosensor technology) looking at applications of biosensor technologies to monitor food safety and quality and also continuing work within the BioCop project. With over 12 years’ experience in the field of biosensors, Simon has gained expertise in sensor surface chemistries, assay validation, kit development and production, and technology transfer in the area of food quality and safety. He won an Innovators 2009 Award from Perkin Elmer to investigate the use of Raman Spectroscopy in the Animal Feed Industry.

Simon became a Senior Research Fellow and ASSET Technology Centre Manager in June 2011. His roles include project manager of the following projects: (i) EU FP7 project QSAFFE (www.qsaffe.eu); (ii) Invest NI funded FeedCheck project; (iii) FSA project (Development of the FoodRisk Alert Database and piloting Food Fingerprinting); (iv) DARD RCF MycoMetal project and (v) HGCA project on the safety of Distillers Dried Grains. He is also leader of ASSET substrand 3, Spectroscopic and Isotopic Techniques.  He leads a team developing methods using Raman and Near Infrared Technologies for quality, safety and authentication applications for the food and animal feed sectors.

Simon is also a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry (MRSC) where he has attained Chartered Chemist (CChem) status.