Hello from a Forensic Crash Investigator

Rohan265 · 30th July 2021, 14:42

Hello everyone.
I would like to begin with a confession: I have never owned a vehicle in my life and neither do I intend to own one in the near future.
The thing is…I do not like to drive. It could be because I am really not good at it. This makes me a huge liability on the road. I do have a valid permanent license for both a car and a two-wheeler (obtained by passing a driving test too!). Personally, I am not sure if the reason I don’t like to drive is because I am bad at it or is it the other way around.

So, what am I doing on a forum for petrolheads? The reason I am here is because of my profession. I am an Automotive Engineer by qualification. I have always been fascinated by vehicles and how they work. However, currently my profession involves studying how and why vehicles get destroyed.
I work as a Forensic Crash Investigator. My job is to investigate road crashes and analyse the factors that led to the crashes. Based on the factors, I provide solutions to the respective decision-makers. I have been doing this for over 7 years now. During this period I have investigated over 500 crashes and have also authored some research papers. Alas, while studying crashes I have also come face-to-face with the grim reality of road safety in India. That is why I have decided to make it a personal goal to share all that I have learned with all those who can benefit. This is the primary reason I have joined this forum. Another reason for me to become a Team-BHP member is to learn about the experiences all the members have in regards to road safety during their travels across the country. I believe that the experiences will help me in my profession.
I hope I will be able to contribute meaningfully to this forum.

P.S: I also hope that I have not broken any Team-BHP code by mentioning my dislike for driving and owning a vehicle

am1m · 30th July 2021, 15:31

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rohan265

Alas, while studying crashes I have also come face-to-face with the grim reality of road safety in India. That is why I have decided to make it a personal goal to share all that I have learned with all those who can benefit.

Welcome to the forum! REALLY looking forward to reading your contributions. Thank you for being willing to share your knowledge.

mandarpotdar · 30th July 2021, 15:51

Welcome to the forum! Being a safety paranoid person myself, I will be eagerly looking for posts from you.

dbs09 · 30th July 2021, 17:16

Welcome to the forum!

I am also interested (and relived) to know and learn that such a platform / entity / organization does exist in India that looks into studying crashes and learning from them.

If it's not confidential, possible to share more details on this? You work as a consultant / employed with some organization (such as NTSB)?

Once again, welcome and looking forward to interesting insights from you - especially on the "Accidents in India" thread

racer_ash · 30th July 2021, 17:18

Wow. Welcome to the form.

I am always fascinated by crash investigations. I am a die hard fan of Aircrash Investigations.

And while working in NZ, I would also watch a TV show on road accidents and how the crash investigators recreate scenes to find the cause and make modifications to road/vehicle design (think it was Serious Crash Unit or something).

I never knew we had a similar profession in India. Kudos!!

rahi · 30th July 2021, 17:32

OT: I had my heart in my mouth when I read "FORENSIC" because I thought you are cyber forensics/computer forensics investigator.

This is the field I am aspiring to work in after putting in 23 years govt. service and yet to meet someone for guidance who's doing it.

By the way, which organization do you work for, if you don't mind telling and how to get into your field of specialization.

Holyghost · 30th July 2021, 17:49

Welcome to the forum. Interesting job, I am really looking forward to your views and knowledge on this field. We have a really popular Accidents in India thread where you can provide your valuable insights.

moralfibre · 30th July 2021, 17:52

Welcome aboard Rohan. Great to have you onboard. Must say that you've got a unique skillset.

Do you work for any automotive OEM or manage research work for any consultancy company? Wondering who makes use of this data and how?

It would be great to hear your experiences. Cannot think of a better addition to our Road Safety section - https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/road-safety/

You haven't broken any rules by not owning or driving a car. It's perfectly ok to do so. We have bhpians who prefer to be in the backseat as well. Cheers and welcome aboard.

Lalvaz · 30th July 2021, 18:03

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rohan265

So, what am I doing on a forum for petrolheads? The reason I am here is because of my profession. I am an Automotive Engineer by qualification. I have always been fascinated by vehicles and how they work. However, currently my profession involves studying how and why vehicles get destroyed.
I work as a Forensic Crash Investigator. My job is to investigate road crashes and analyse the factors that led to the crashes. Based on the factors, I provide solutions to the respective decision-makers. That is why I have decided to make it a personal goal to share all that I have learned with all those who can benefit.

Welcome to the forum Rohan. Great to have more people with professional expertise in car safety. It will be very informative for all of us to hear your experiences. Investigating over 500 crashes in the past 7 years is a lot of work and I wonder if there are any published metrics/ studies where we can study the causes behind these accidents and the follow up actions taken.

Wish you all the best on this forum, and hope you dont have too many grisly accidents to investigate in the future, although I know thats not gonna happen.

Rohan265 · 30th July 2021, 23:40

Quote:

Originally Posted by dbs09

Welcome to the forum!

I am also interested (and relived) to know and learn that such a platform / entity / organization does exist in India that looks into studying crashes and learning from them.

If it's not confidential, possible to share more details on this? You work as a consultant / employed with some organization (such as NTSB)?

Once again, welcome and looking forward to interesting insights from you - especially on the "Accidents in India" thread

Thank you for the warm welcome.

I am employed at an organisation. I wish there was something at the level of NTSB in India. Unfortunately, in India there are only a handful of organizations who investigate crashes in detail. Otherwise the data is mostly collected by the police. Some crash studies are done by IIT-D or IIT-M, but those studies are done fregionally.
I will go through the Accidents in India thread. Thanks for the suggestion.

Quote:

Originally Posted by moralfibre

Welcome aboard Rohan. Great to have you onboard. Must say that you've got a unique skillset.

Do you work for any automotive OEM or manage research work for any consultancy company? Wondering who makes use of this data and how?

It would be great to hear your experiences. Cannot think of a better addition to our Road Safety section - https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/road-safety/

You haven't broken any rules by not owning or driving a car. It's perfectly ok to do so. We have bhpians who prefer to be in the backseat as well. Cheers and welcome aboard.

Thank you for the warm welcome. I work for a research company that shares the data and findings with automotive OEMs and government organizations.

Thank you for providing the link for the Road safety section. I will go through the section and see if I can contribute.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lalvaz

Welcome to the forum Rohan. Great to have more people with professional expertise in car safety. It will be very informative for all of us to hear your experiences. Investigating over 500 crashes in the past 7 years is a lot of work and I wonder if there are any published metrics/ studies where we can study the causes behind these accidents and the follow up actions taken.

Wish you all the best on this forum, and hope you dont have too many grisly accidents to investigate in the future, although I know thats not gonna happen.

Thank you for the warm welcome. Regarding your question on availability of published studies, the thing is that considering the diverse geography of our country, contributing causes for crashes change from region to region. However, there are some country-wide reports published by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH), IIT Delhi, and IIT Madras that you can consider.

Quote:

Originally Posted by rahi

OT: I had my heart in my mouth when I read "FORENSIC" because I thought you are cyber forensics/computer forensics investigator.

This is the field I am aspiring to work in after putting in 23 years govt. service and yet to meet someone for guidance who's doing it.

By the way, which organization do you work for, if you don't mind telling and how to get into your field of specialization.

I got into this field immediately after my graduation. At that time it came as a shock to me too that such a field existed in India.
I apologize but I cannot name the organization I work for as this may create a problem for me in the future and I wont be able to speak my mind freely

V.Narayan · 31st July 2021, 07:36

Welcome to Team BHP. I look forward to learning more about car safety from your posts. Great to have serious technical experts on the forum.

shancz · 31st July 2021, 10:19

Welcome aboard.
Waiting eagerly for your road safety inputs and posts.

svsantosh · 31st July 2021, 10:36

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rohan265

.......my profession involves studying how and why vehicles get destroyed.....make it a personal goal to share all that I have learned with all those who can benefit

Dear Rohan,

You are like the new girl whose dad got a job transfer in the month of Aug and you move to a new city and join a new school and walk into your new 10th std classroom and see a bunch of boys going all rowdy and throwing dusters and chalk piece at each other...

...and then they take a pause and look at you. Steady their tucked out shirts and do their hair and blushes all around. You know the rest.

Welcome aboard and bring some fresh perspective to this accident investigation classroom

PS - A gist of the boys who will take notice of you.

Quote:

The structure looks rather stable and has taken the hit rather well

Quote:

...am not aware of the conditions in which this accident happened, the pics make me revisit Tata Harrier's safety standard.

Quote:

I don't understand. Could you please elaborate more as to how from these pictures you arrived at the conclusion that Harrier is unsafe?

Quote:

Judging a car's safety by looking at some accident pics without even knowing the conditions in which it happened is something that should be best left to FB groups

Quote:

I don't understand why the pictures make you revisit the safety standards?

Quote:

...Youtubers will pick up these images and prepare a video out of it, by performing 'expert' analysis on the mangled metal panels....Hyundai & Tata Fans will go on war, criticizing each other's metal panel thicknesses and body structures

Quote:

....If anything, the pictures say that the Harrier is quite safe in the event of a roll-over.

Quote:

There should be a law, especially for enlightened Youtubers and "influencers", which says if you are going to speak of car safety, you must also speak of crumple zones, their meaning and why the exist

Ps boys, no offence. I am also part of your gang. Lets welcome the new, err. Rohan.

commonman · 31st July 2021, 11:01

Rohan , Welcome to the forum.
Happy to see such a professional here. You can get lots of feedback from this group regarding the roads and car security . Hope you will take it constructively.

Latheesh · 31st July 2021, 11:06

I think this thread should be moved from introduction sub-forum to road safety sub.
Welcome and you are the center of attraction now, pour upon us the nectar of knowledge

.

30th July 2021, 14:42	#1
Rohan265 BHPian Join Date: Jul 2021 Location: Mumbai Posts: 101 Thanked: 715 Times	Hello from a Forensic Crash Investigator Hello everyone. I would like to begin with a confession: I have never owned a vehicle in my life and neither do I intend to own one in the near future. The thing is…I do not like to drive. It could be because I am really not good at it. This makes me a huge liability on the road. I do have a valid permanent license for both a car and a two-wheeler (obtained by passing a driving test too!). Personally, I am not sure if the reason I don’t like to drive is because I am bad at it or is it the other way around. So, what am I doing on a forum for petrolheads? The reason I am here is because of my profession. I am an Automotive Engineer by qualification. I have always been fascinated by vehicles and how they work. However, currently my profession involves studying how and why vehicles get destroyed. I work as a Forensic Crash Investigator. My job is to investigate road crashes and analyse the factors that led to the crashes. Based on the factors, I provide solutions to the respective decision-makers. I have been doing this for over 7 years now. During this period I have investigated over 500 crashes and have also authored some research papers. Alas, while studying crashes I have also come face-to-face with the grim reality of road safety in India. That is why I have decided to make it a personal goal to share all that I have learned with all those who can benefit. This is the primary reason I have joined this forum. Another reason for me to become a Team-BHP member is to learn about the experiences all the members have in regards to road safety during their travels across the country. I believe that the experiences will help me in my profession. I hope I will be able to contribute meaningfully to this forum. P.S: I also hope that I have not broken any Team-BHP code by mentioning my dislike for driving and owning a vehicle
	(165) Thanks

30th July 2021, 15:51	#3
mandarpotdar BHPian Join Date: Jul 2021 Location: Pune Posts: 25 Thanked: 101 Times	Re: Hello from a Forensic Crash Investigator Welcome to the forum! Being a safety paranoid person myself, I will be eagerly looking for posts from you.
	(1) Thanks

30th July 2021, 17:16	#4
dbs09 Newbie Join Date: May 2020 Location: Mumbai Posts: 14 Thanked: 11 Times	Re: Hello from a Forensic Crash Investigator Welcome to the forum! I am also interested (and relived) to know and learn that such a platform / entity / organization does exist in India that looks into studying crashes and learning from them. If it's not confidential, possible to share more details on this? You work as a consultant / employed with some organization (such as NTSB)? Once again, welcome and looking forward to interesting insights from you - especially on the "Accidents in India" thread
	(1) Thanks

30th July 2021, 17:18	#5
racer_ash BHPian Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: Hyderabad Posts: 592 Thanked: 1,384 Times	Re: Hello from a Forensic Crash Investigator Wow. Welcome to the form. I am always fascinated by crash investigations. I am a die hard fan of Aircrash Investigations. And while working in NZ, I would also watch a TV show on road accidents and how the crash investigators recreate scenes to find the cause and make modifications to road/vehicle design (think it was Serious Crash Unit or something). I never knew we had a similar profession in India. Kudos!!
	(3) Thanks

30th July 2021, 17:32	#6
rahi Newbie Join Date: May 2021 Location: Ambala City Posts: 6 Thanked: 9 Times	Re: Hello from a Forensic Crash Investigator OT: I had my heart in my mouth when I read "FORENSIC" because I thought you are cyber forensics/computer forensics investigator. This is the field I am aspiring to work in after putting in 23 years govt. service and yet to meet someone for guidance who's doing it. By the way, which organization do you work for, if you don't mind telling and how to get into your field of specialization.
	() Thanks

30th July 2021, 17:49	#7
Holyghost BHPian Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Bangalore Posts: 594 Thanked: 1,130 Times	Re: Hello from a Forensic Crash Investigator Welcome to the forum. Interesting job, I am really looking forward to your views and knowledge on this field. We have a really popular Accidents in India thread where you can provide your valuable insights.
	(1) Thanks

30th July 2021, 17:52	#8
moralfibre Team-BHP Support Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: MH-12 Posts: 8,562 Thanked: 14,448 Times	Re: Hello from a Forensic Crash Investigator Welcome aboard Rohan. Great to have you onboard. Must say that you've got a unique skillset. Do you work for any automotive OEM or manage research work for any consultancy company? Wondering who makes use of this data and how? It would be great to hear your experiences. Cannot think of a better addition to our Road Safety section - https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/road-safety/ You haven't broken any rules by not owning or driving a car. It's perfectly ok to do so. We have bhpians who prefer to be in the backseat as well. Cheers and welcome aboard.
	(1) Thanks

31st July 2021, 07:36	#11
V.Narayan Distinguished - BHPian Join Date: Aug 2014 Location: Delhi-NCR Posts: 4,330 Thanked: 72,360 Times	Re: Hello from a Forensic Crash Investigator Welcome to Team BHP. I look forward to learning more about car safety from your posts. Great to have serious technical experts on the forum.
	(1) Thanks

31st July 2021, 10:19	#12
shancz Senior - BHPian Join Date: Oct 2020 Location: BH Posts: 1,988 Thanked: 5,497 Times	Re: Hello from a Forensic Crash Investigator Welcome aboard. Waiting eagerly for your road safety inputs and posts.
	(1) Thanks

31st July 2021, 11:01	#14
commonman BHPian Join Date: Mar 2014 Location: Bangalore Posts: 215 Thanked: 271 Times	Re: Hello from a Forensic Crash Investigator Rohan , Welcome to the forum. Happy to see such a professional here. You can get lots of feedback from this group regarding the roads and car security . Hope you will take it constructively.
	() Thanks

31st July 2021, 11:06	#15
Latheesh Senior - BHPian Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: CNN/BLR Posts: 4,337 Thanked: 10,626 Times	Re: Hello from a Forensic Crash Investigator I think this thread should be moved from introduction sub-forum to road safety sub. Welcome and you are the center of attraction now, pour upon us the nectar of knowledge.
	(1) Thanks