Academic Credentials
  • Ph.D., Natural Sciences, Heidelberg University, 2020
Additional Education & Training
  • German Postgraduate Degree Program in Ecotoxicology (SETAC GLB and GDCh); incl. courses in Environmental Chemistry, Alternative Methods, Regulatory Ecotoxicology, Biomonitoring and Strategies for Retrospective Assessment, Molecular Mechanisms of Action and Impacts on the Cell, Aquatic Ecotoxicology, Terrestrial Ecotoxicology, Statistics in Ecotoxicology.
Languages
  • German
  • English

Dr. Florin Marcu is a mechanical engineer and forensic investigator with expertise in mechanical failures, personal injury incidents, property damage claims, construction defects, fires and explosions, and building mechanical systems.

His investigations frequently involve root cause analysis of plumbing, HVAC, and fire suppression systems serving commercial, residential, and high-rise buildings, heavy construction and mining equipment, commercial vehicles, industrial machinery, and other safety-critical mechanical equipment.

He provides technical consulting, litigation support, expert witness services, and engineering leadership for complex investigations involving mechanical equipment and building systems.

Dr. Marcu regularly conducts site inspections, field testing, laboratory evaluations, and engineering analyses of failed equipment and mechanical systems. His work frequently involves instrumentation, data acquisition, failure analysis, and engineering reconstruction of incidents.

Dr. Marcu has more than 20 years of engineering experience, including engineering and technical leadership positions at Caterpillar and Kenworth Trucks, spanning product development, laboratory and field testing, research, and forensic investigations.

Dr. Marcu's expertise includes:

Building Mechanical Systems

  • HVAC systems
  • Plumbing systems
  • Fire suppression systems
  • Hydronic systems
  • Refrigeration systems
  • High-rise building mechanical systems
  • Building mechanical equipment failures

Safety and Accident Reconstruction

  • Personal injury investigations
  • Equipment incidents
  • Operator behavior and equipment interaction
  • Product safety
  • Machine guarding and industrial safety

Equipment and Vehicle Investigations

  • Construction and mining equipment
  • Commercial trucks and trailers
  • Material handling equipment
  • Industrial machinery
  • Automotive systems
  • Agricultural equipment

Mechanical Failure Analysis

  • Hydraulic and pneumatic systems
  • Rotating equipment
  • Bearings, shafts, and power transmission systems
  • Mechanical integrity and reliability
  • Root cause analysis
  • Fatigue
  • Corrosion
  • Manufacturing and installation defects
  • Maintenance and operational issues

Testing and Instrumentation

  • Laboratory and field testing
  • Data acquisition systems
  • Pressure testing
  • Shake and vibration table testing for durability and performance, including human vibration testing
  • Immersive, interactive vehicle simulators and motion/simulator sickness
  • Strain and vibration measurement
  • Custom test fixture development

Vehicle Dynamics, Vibration and Noise

  • Human vibration exposure
  • Vehicle ride dynamics
  • Vibration and its effect on structures, occupants, and equipment performance
  • Seats and seat belts
  • Suspension systems (passive and active)

Data Analysis:

  • Noise and vibration data analysis
  • Digital signal processing in both time and frequency domain
  • Fatigue damage spectrum analysis

Fire and Explosion Investigations

  • Mechanical-origin fires
  • Fire suppression systems
  • Equipment fire investigations
  • Combustible and flammable liquid systems

Before joining Exponent, Dr. Marcu led Kenworth Trucks' noise and vibration engineering activities and previously spent nine years at Caterpillar developing suspension systems, conducting human vibration research, and leading advanced vehicle dynamics testing programs. 

He led Caterpillar's ride simulator laboratory and conducted testing on human-rated six-degree-of-freedom motion systems, semiactive seat suspensions, and cab suspension technologies for construction and mining equipment.

Dr. Marcu's mechanical engineering experience has consistently straddled the divide between theory and hands-on application. This started during his doctoral work at Virginia Tech, where he developed a dynamic model of a semitruck from first principles which he used to design a semiactive cab suspension and its control algorithm. He then modified a semi truck, installed the new cab suspension, implemented the real-time controller, and conducted all the lab and field tuning of the system. His dissertation work culminated in the delivery of a truck with a working prototype of a novel, semiactive cab suspension.

While completing the Ph.D. work, Dr. Marcu built up a machine shop and developed the IT infrastructure in the research lab. He also performed maintenance on the facility's lab and IT equipment.

During his undergraduate years, he was an active leader and member of the Tennessee Tech Baja SAE team (then Mini Baja). Post graduation he was involved in the organization, racecourse design, and design judging at several Baja SAE races.

Dr. Marcu served in the Swedish Air Force where he performed turnaround crew work on the Saab J-35 Draken jet fighter, facility maintenance, and fire fighter duties. As part of his military training, he received and maintained a Commercial Driver's License in Sweden from 1998-2020.