George Vicatos

Engineer and designer with experience ranging from marine ship design to bioengineering applications Obtained a PhD in thermodynamics with application to absorption refrigeration. Collaborated with scientists and product development engineers at Wits, SAIRAC, and GRASSO in South Africa, at ELECTROLUX and ADDPOWER in Sweden, Alconbury Weston in the UK and Government organisations for the rural development in Botswana Research focuses on absorption refrigeration and its applications/benefits, expanding from deep refrigeration to air-conditioning. Typical projects include rural refrigeration, transport refrigeration and absorbent/refrigerant combinations Life-long passion for medicine has combined Mechanical Engineering skills with Bioengineering. Having studied Anatomy at UCT, the skeleton and the soft tissues provided the foundation to designing and developing implants for bone-tumour suffering patients. The focus is on implants for limb-sparing surgery and on implants that require complex surface development, in particular the pelvis involving regions I, II and III. The implants are designed for anatomical reconstruction of the skeleton, not only for the smooth transmission of forces, but also to help the patient aesthetically. Modular implant systems for both the upper and lower limbs have been developed and refined to a state of the art. Collaborative research at UCT has developed a device for maxillofacial reconstruction by distraction osteogenesis, for patients who have had maxillectomy due to tumour. The writer holds 4 patents Research focuses on improving the manufacturing processes for the implants and identifying new technologies, choice of materials, treatment of articulating surfaces and osseo-integration techniques. Research links academic institutions in South Africa, UK and India Collaboration with surgeons is invaluable. A request for a skeletal part or a surgical tool, or a theatre instrument, forms the basis for a new design challenge.