Company Overview
Fort Hill Group was founded in 2011 to help clients identify and mitigate the risks associated with human performance in complex systems. We specialize in providing our clients with a clear understanding of how humans contribute both positively and negatively to an organization's overall risk picture. This empowers organizations to make informed, data-driven safety decisions.
Our team is composed of experts in human factors, systems engineering, data analytics, air traffic control, and commercial aviation. Fort Hill Group has delivered high-quality research to a variety of government and industry stakeholders, including the FAA, the Boeing Company, the National Institutes of Aerospace, and Volpe – The National Transportation Systems Center. Fort Hill Group's work has been featured in peer-reviewed journal articles, book chapters, industry magazines, and at international conferences. Associates at Fort Hill Group have worked to improve safety and mitigate human performance hazards in a variety of domains, including commercial and general aviation, air traffic control, mining, entertainment, and health care.
Fort Hill Group is a woman-owned small business based in Washington, DC.
Our Team
Katherine Berry, Ph.D.
Principal Human Factors Engineer
Partner
Katherine Berry is a Founding Partner and Principal Human Factors Engineer at Fort Hill Group. Dr. Berry leads Fort Hill Group's Operational Human Factors Research Team on a variety of projects for the Federal Aviation Administration. These projects focus on improving human performance and safety across the National Airspace System including all air traffic control domains and technical operations.
Previously, Dr. Berry has examined human factors safety issues for Air Canada, GE Energy, and GE Corporate. Dr. Berry holds a Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering from Clemson University where her dissertation developed human performance safety benchmarks and identified systemic contributing factor relationships present across multiple industries.
Michael Sawyer, Ph.D.
Principal Human Factors Engineer
Partner
Michael Sawyer is a Founding Partner and Principal Human Factors Engineer at Fort Hill Group in Washington, DC. Dr. Sawyer leads Fort Hill Group's NextGen Human Factors Research Team on a variety of projects for the Federal Aviation Administration. This work provides guidance and analysis to support the introduction of safe and usable NextGen technologies and procedures.
Dr. Sawyer has worked to analyze and mitigate the causes and impacts of human error in a variety of domains including mining, surface transportation, and commercial and general aviation. Prior to co-founding Fort Hill Group, Dr. Sawyer served as an Associate Technical Fellow for Human Systems Integration at TASC Inc. Dr. Sawyer holds a Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering from Clemson University.
Eddie Austrian, PMP
Director of Strategic Planning
Ed Bynum
Director of Machine Learning
Rebecca Collins
Air Traffic Control Analyst
Ryan Dlugash
Human Factors Engineer
Jordan Hinson
Director of Data Science
Tableau Certified Data Analyst
Amelia Kinsella, Ph.D.
Human Factors Engineer
Jason Kring, Ph.D.
Director of Training
Ruth Propper, Ph.D.
Fatigue Scientist
Antonio Puentes
Aviation Analyst
Richard Rohde
Air Traffic Control Analyst
Kevin Siragusa, PMP
Senior Systems Analyst
Lori Smith
Human Factors Engineer
Publications
At Fort Hill Group, we have a strong desire to share our knowledge and experience within the Human Factors community. As a result, members of the Fort Hill Group team have written over 60 journal articles, conference papers, and technical reports. Click below to view featured publications.
Contract Vehicles
Fort Hill Group has a Master Order Agreement on the Federal Aviation Administration's eFAST contract vehicle for the following Functional Areas:
Air Transportation Support (ATS)
Business Administration & Management (BAM)
Computer/Information Systems Development (CSD)
Documentation & Training (DT)
Engineering Services (ES)
Research & Development (R&D)
eFAST is the FAA's preferred acquisition vehicle for fulfilling the Agency's small business goals. For more information about the eFAST contract vehicle visit the FAA eFAST Website or contact us at [email protected].
