Michael's career in forensic engineering began in 1982 with CAPCIS, a Consultancy organisation that was originally a subsidiary of UMIST in Manchester. During his 10 years at CAPCIS, Michael was primarily involved with engineering and corrosion related failures and was personally responsible for over 350 investigations. He also co-ordinated a £200,000 group sponsored research project.

As Legal and Insurance Co-ordinator he was responsible for developing links with the Insurance world and he gave numerous presentations demonstrating that effective investigations can lead to real savings for insurers.

In 1992 Michael resigned from CAPCIS as a Senior Project Officer and Deputy Manager of the Metallurgical Group to join Hawkins as an Associate in the Manchester Office. Michael now specialises in fire investigation. He has been responsible for over 800 forensic investigations ranging from multi-million pound fatal incidents to fires in shops, offices and factories, through to various forms of vehicle fires and small domestic claims.

Michael has travelled extensively and provided expert evidence to a variety of Courts including the High Court and Crown Court in the UK, the High Court in Venezuela and the European Court of First Instance in Luxembourg. He has also participated in Arbitrations and Mediations and is registered with the UK Register of Expert witnesses.

Michael is an Associate Director and the Regional Office Manager in the Manchester office.