Francesco Luke Siena

Dr Luke Siena is a Senior Lecturer in Product Design within the School of Architecture, Design & the Built Environment at Nottingham Trent University. He teaches across undergraduate and postgraduate programmes including BA/BSc and MA/MSc Product Design and supervises students at undergraduate, master’s and doctoral levels. Alongside teaching, he actively supports research projects and the development of early career researchers.

Dr Siena’s research spans product design, sustainability and design education, with a strong focus on design for health and wellbeing and medical device deisgn. He conducts applied and translational research in medical device and medical product design, working closely with engineers, clinicians and industry partners. He is a member of the Medical Engineering Design Research Group and the Product Innovation Centre at NTU, contributing to interdisciplinary research with real-world impact.

Dr Siena's expertise includes medical device engineering, smart materials and technologies, additive manufacturing and 3D printing, emerging design technologies, and the assessment and measurement of health outcomes. Dr Siena completed his PhD in 2019, which focused on the use of smart materials and technologies in emergency airway access devices for critical care.

Dr Siena has been involved in externally funded research supported by organisations such as Innovate UK and the National Institute for Health and Care Research and continue to look for future collaboration opportunities. Dr Siena currently supervises PhD projects across product design and engineering topics, including AI–human collaboration, medical technologies, sustainable product systems and design education/design practice.

Since completing his PhD in 2019, Dr Siena has continued to develop an academic career through interdisciplinary research, industry engagement, and doctoral supervision. Following his role as a Research Fellow in Medical Product Design, Dr Siena transitioned into the role as a Senior Lecturer in Product Design at Nottingham Trent University. In this role, Dr Siena has expanded his responsibilities beyond undergraduate supervision to include postgraduate and doctoral supervision, externally funded research, and cross-school collaboration within NTU. Dr Siena has attained a Postgraduate Certificate in Learning and Teaching in HE (PGLTHE) and Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy (FHEA) (2022).

Dr Siena is an active member of the Medical Engineering Design Research Group and also contributes to research activity within the Product Innovation Centre, working closely with clinicians, engineers, and industrial partners on translational research projects in healthcare and product innovation. His research activity has attracted external funding from organisations including Innovate UK and the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), supporting projects with demonstrable clinical and industrial impact. More recently, Dr Siena has been involved in the supervision of funded PhD projects addressing medical device design, AI–human collaboration in design, emerging digital design practices, sustainable design and intelligent product systems.

Dr Siena's research interests include medical device design and engineering, 3D printing, emerging technologies and materials, product development, smart systems, sustainable design, design education and the accurate assessment and measurement of health outcomes.

Dr Siena has received research funding for the following projects in collaboration with numerous partners both at NTU and externally: Medical Technologies & Advanced Materials Research Theme - Nottingham Trent University Springboard/Pump Priming Fund - Co-Investigator - A Novel Steerable Bougie: Design, Manufacture and Testing of An Advanced Prototype - February 2021 - July 2021. National Institute for Health and Care Research - i4i Product Development Awards (PDA) - Breakaway Chest Drain Valve (Reference: NIHR204562). - Co-Investigator - April 2023 - September 2025. Ataxia – Telangiectasia Pump Priming Funding - University Of Nottingham / Action For A-T - Virtual Reality Based Therapy For Ataxia – Telangiectasia Patients - Co-Investigator - July 2023 - December 2023. British Council - Springboard Programme for UK-Germany ECR Partnerships - September 2024. Knowledge Transfer Partnership: Nottingham Trent University & Stormsaver Limited (2025-26 Round 2). Biotechnology & Biological Sciences Research Council FTMA - Biofilm Risk Mapping & Microbial Safety Assessment of the Breakaway Chest Drain Valve (May 2026).

Dr Siena currently supervises PhD students across a range of interdisciplinary research areas ranging from product/industrial design, engineering, sustainability, and MedTech/healthcare. His doctoral supervision in medical device design focuses on the design and development of innovative medical and healthcare technologies, often involving close collaboration with clinicians, engineers, and industry partners to address real-world clinical needs and regulatory constraints.

Dr Siena has supported numerous PhD students in with their studies ranging from self funded, fully funded and match funded doctoral research. Recent examples include PhD research exploring closed loop pressure system monitoring to alleviate the effects of pressure related Injuries within the perioperative environment; PhD research exploring how product design, user behaviour, and service-based systems can contribute to more sustainable forms of consumption. This includes research into circular design strategies, shared ownership models, product–service systems, and the role of design in enabling behavioural change and reducing environmental impact. Support has also been provided in relation to doctoral research into novel heat pump systems and energy consumption, with projects examining the design, user interaction, and performance of low‑carbon energy technologies. This work combines product and systems design, engineering analysis, and user‑centred research methods to improve efficiency, user adoption, and real‑world energy outcomes. More recently Dr Siena supports PhD research that focusses on artificial intelligence to investigate the effects of urban environments and building design on outdoor air quality, integrating computational methods with design‑led and environmental analysis to address key sustainability and public health challenges.

Dr Siena will shortly commence supervision of new doctoral projects focused on augmenting design and speculative processes for AI–human collaboration; the design and development of next‑generation intelligent rainwater harvesting systems; and an exploration of human factors and design-led assessment in operating theatre environments. Across all PhD projects, Dr Siena actively promotes applied, practice‑led, and interdisciplinary research approaches that seek to deliver both academic impact and value for industry, healthcare practice, and society.