Who We Are

IFSJ Leaders in Fire & Safety Conference 2023

Hosted by Centurian Media Ltd, IFSJ’s Leaders In Fire & Safety Conference will bring together leading figures from the Middle East fire and safety industry to deliver a high class business forum that focuses on business strategy, latest trends, regulations and innovations from the region.

Taking place at The Grosvenor Hotel, Dubai Marina, this in-person conference will focus on the most important topics and verticals from the commercial fire and safety sector, with expert commentary and views provided by a host of high profile influencers.

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Our Team

Meet our Advisory Panel

TerryJohnson

Terry Johnson

Conference Chair

Terry Johnson’s career began in the UKFRS and progressed to international development with the United Nations Development Program (UNIDO) as an ‘Technical Assistant Expert’ Fire Safety Training in the Oil & Gas sector. He spent some time at the Fire Service College UK looking at international development subsequently seconded to Dubai Civil Defence (DCD) UAE.

He represented DCD on various Emergency Crisis committees and working groups as a Senior Fire, Rescue & Emergency Services Professional, disciplined for All Operational requirements, including Major Emergency Incident planning and crisis liaison. Now, Johnson is currently engaged by Emirates National Oil Company ENOC, looking at sustainable and environmental solutions to match the resilience needed for asset and response team protection for ENOC assets.   

Eng. Salma

Engineer Salma Al Ali

Head of Engineering Section, Dubai Civil Defense

Engineer Salma Humaid Saeed AlAli is an accomplished fire safety engineer at Dubai Civil Defense. Her work plays a critical role in ensuring buildings and structures in Dubai meet the highest fire safety standards.

She has helped implement fire safety regulations and codes, delivered presentations at various conferences, and worked closely with architects, contractors, and engineers to promote fire safety education and training. Her contributions have been recognised numerous times, and she continues to make Dubai a safer place for residents through her expertise in fire safety engineering.

Mark Buckingham

Mark Buckingham

Head of Emergency Preparedness at Abu Dhabi Airports

Mark Buckingham is an industry professional of some 27 years, having started his career with Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service in the UK.  Progressing through the ranks to Station Officer, he took the opportunity to diversify his fire career by taking a role as Deputy Senior Officer at Luton Airport. 

Changes over the next few years saw him achieve approval to operate a Civil Aviation Fire Training College in the UK, before moving to the UAE, operating initially an Emergency Response contract in an Industrial mega project.  In July 2022, Mark accepted has been developing the Emergency Planning function within the 5 airports of the Abu Dhabi Airport Company.

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David Campbell

General Manager, Dubai Civil Defense’s Emirates Safety Laboratory

David Campbell is General Manager for Dubai Civil Defence’s Emirates Safety Laboratory, educated in Applied Sciences - Fire Technology, Fire Engineering and Environmental Sciences – Natural Resource Management and Digital Transformations with 33 years working in the sector of which the past 13 years supporting the Middle East region.

John Cowling

John Cowling

Security & Safety Specialist, Industry Influencer

John has been based in the Middle East region since 2005 with a career spanning over 30 years. He considers himself fortunate to be regularly deployed across the Middle East region and into Africa, Asia and Europe delivering practical security risk consulting solutions at strategic, tactical and operational levels for culturally diverse organisations typically across critical infrastructure, government and transportation sectors but with a wide experience also extending to construction, mega projects and management consulting.

He has qualifications in security and risk management, project management, investigations, aviation and maritime security which are included in his journey for continuous professional development. He regularly writes articles and hosts video interviews for International Security Journal.

Robert Davies

Robert Davies BSc (Hons) MSc CEng MIFireE CFPS

Operations Director at WSP in the Middle East

Robert Davies has over 20 years' experience in the field of fire safety engineering with expertise in fire engineering solutions, fire safety strategies, liaison with local authorities, fire risk assessments, fire safety management, fire testing, fire safety in large mixed use/high rise developments and industrial projects, 15+ years of experience of living and working in various countries within the Middle East region and liaising with local authorities. He is also a Chartered Fire Engineer with the Engineering Council UK, a Certified Fire Protection Specialist by NFPA.

In October 2010 Davies returned to the UAE and joined WSP as Head of Fire & Life Safety. He is now the Operations Director for Advisory Services within WSP in the Middle East.

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Sinclair Duffie

Chief Fire Officer, Nawah Energy Company

Sinclair Duffie joined the Scottish Fire Service in 1983 with Central Region Fire Brigade. In 1993, he moved into Fire Prevention as Station Officer in and remained there and promoted to Station Manager in 2004. Duffie spent the remaining nine years of service between operations, training, and community safety before retiring in early 2012 with 29 years’ service.

In 2012, Duffie joined ADNOC offshore operations on Das Island as Incident Command System Coordinator responsible for major incidents response planning and development. In 2017, he joined Nawah as a Team Leader. He was promoted to his current position which he has been held since 2018.  Duffie has been active on the Middle East conference circuit. He currently lives in Al Dhannah city in Abu Dhabi.