Dr David Pumfrey
Research and Teaching Fellow in System Safety Engineering
 

I am particularly interested in identifying fundamental rules of existing analysis techniques which can be applied and adapted for computer system and software analysis. In this area, I have worked on variants of both HAZOP and Fault Trees for computer systems.

I have also developed new techniques, based on the identification and analysis of resources (such as memory locations, device registers and timing events such as interrupts) for studying the safety implications of the software / hardware interface in complex systems.
 

I only supervise Safety Critical Systems MSc projects; if you are taking the MSc course and are looking for a project supervisor, have a look at my list of project suggestions for 2011 - or approach me with your own ideas.

As well as the teaching at York, the HISE group also presents system safety courses on-site for a range of industrial and defence clients. There is a full timetable of courses booked through to mid-2012, with numerous other enquiries outstanding. The Department's CPD web pages contain more information.

My specialist teaching areas include:

• Hazard analysis, including HAZOP
• System safety analysis, especially Fault Trees
• Systematic failure
• Zonal Hazard Analysis and Particular Risk Assessment 

• McDermid, J.A. & Pumfrey, D.J., (1994), A Development of Hazard Analysis to aid Software Design, COMPASS '94: Proceedings of the Ninth Annual Conference on Computer Assurance, Gaithersburg, MD, pp. 17-25, IEEE, ISBN 0-7803-1855-2. [zip]
• Fenelon, P., McDermid, J.A., Nicholson, M. & Pumfrey, D.J., (1994), Towards Integrated Safety Analysis and Design, ACM Computing Reviews, Vol. 2, No. 1, p. 21-32. [zip]
• McDermid, J.A., Nicholson, M., Pumfrey, D.J. & Fenelon, P., (1995), Experience with the application of HAZOP to computer-based systems, COMPASS '95: Proceedings of the Tenth Annual Conference on Computer Assurance, Gaithersburg, MD, pp. 37-48, IEEE, ISBN 0-7803-2680-2. [zip]
• McDermid, J.A. & Pumfrey, D.J., (1998), Safety Analysis of Hardware / Software Interactions in Complex Systems, Proceedings of the 16th International System Safety Conference, Seattle, WA, pp. 232-241, System Safety Society, P.O. Box 70, Unionville, VA 22567-0070, USA. [zip]
• Dawkins, S, McDermid, J.A., Murdoch, J & Pumfrey, D.J., (1999), Issues in the Conduct of PSSA, Proceedings of the 17th International System Safety Conference, Orlando, FL, pp. 77-86, System Safety Society, P.O.Box 70, Unionville, VA 22567-0070, USA. [zip]
• Pumfrey, D.J., (1999), The Principled Design of Computer System Safety Analyses, DPhil Thesis, University of York. [zip]
• McDermid, J.A. & Pumfrey, D.J., (2000), Assessing the Safety of Integrity Level Partitioning in Software, Lessons in System Safety: Proceedings of the Eighth Safety-critical Systems Symposium, Southampton, UK, Ed. Redmill, F. & Anderson, T., pp. 134-152, Springer, ISBN 1-85233-249-2. [zip]
• McDermid, J.A. & Pumfrey, D.J., (2001), Software Safety: Why is there no Consensus?, Proceedings of the 19th International System Safety Conference, Huntsville, AL, System Safety Society, P.O.Box 70, Unionville, VA 22567-0070, USA. [zip]
• Galloway, A., McDermid, J.A., Murdoch, J. & Pumfrey, D.J., (2002), Automation of System Safety Analysis: Possibilities and Pitfalls, Proceedings of the 20th International System Safety Conference, Denver, CO, System Safety Society, P.O.Box 70, Unionville, VA 22567-0070, USA. [zip]
• Chinneck, P., Pumfrey, D.J. & Kelly, T.P., (2004), Turning up the HEAT on Safety Case Construction, Practical Elements of Safety: Proceedings of the Twelfth Safety-critical Systems Symposium, Birmingham, UK, Ed. Redmill, F. & Anderson, T., pp. 223-240, Springer, ISBN 1-85233-800-8.
• Lisagor, O., Pumfrey, D.J. & McDermid, J.A., (2004), Safety Analysis of Software Architectures - "Lightweight PSSA", Proceedings of the 22nd International System Safety Conference, Providence, RI, System Safety Society, P.O.Box 70, Unionville, VA 22567-0070, USA.
• Chinneck, P., Pumfrey, D.J. & McDermid, J.A., (2004), The HEAT/ACT Preliminary Safety Case: A Case Study in the use of Goal Structuring Notation, Conferences in Research and Practice in Information Technology, Vol 38: Proceedings of the 9th Australian Workshop on Safety Critical Systems, Brisbane. Ed. Cant, T.