Rate My Professor Matthew Masonn

Associate Professor Matthew Mason is a prominent researcher in wind engineering within the School of Civil Engineering at the University of Queensland. He earned a Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Sydney and a Masters (Extended) of Civil Engineering from Texas Tech University. Mason commenced his position at the University of Queensland in late 2014, following academic roles at the University of Sydney and Queensland University of Technology. Prior to these appointments, he served as a catastrophe risk researcher at Risk Frontiers, an industry-focused research centre at Macquarie University.

Mason's research expertise encompasses wind engineering, stochastic modelling of hazards including convective storms and tropical cyclones, probabilistic modelling of structural and infrastructure vulnerability to wind, water, and hail, catastrophe loss modelling for natural hazards, modelling and observation of the atmospheric boundary layer, wind tunnel testing and analysis, and disaster insurance. He holds significant leadership positions as Chair of the Standards Australia wind loading sub-committee responsible for maintaining AS/NZS 1170.2 and as Chair of the Australasian Wind Engineering Society. His contributions extend to media expertise on topics such as cyclones, severe windstorm events, hail, and structural vulnerability to wind.

Key publications include the book Wind Loading Handbook for Australia and New Zealand (2022, co-authored with R.G.J. Flay et al.), the book chapter Cyclone Tracy and the road to improving wind-resistant design (2013), Comparative investigation of force coefficients for complex open frames (2025, Australian Journal of Structural Engineering), Insurance Options in a Climate Changed Future: The Way Forward for Urban Climate Policy and Practice (2025, Journal of City Climate Policy and Economy), Physics-based flood vulnerability assessment for steel portal framed industrial buildings (2024, Engineering Structures), The response of diagrid structures to fire (2023, Fire Safety Journal), An Australian convective wind gust climatology using Bayesian hierarchical modelling (2023, Natural Hazards), and Fragility assessment for new and deteriorated portal framed industrial buildings subjected to tropical cyclone winds (2023, Structural Safety). Mason's work has advanced understanding of wind hazards and structural resilience, influencing standards and policies for natural disaster mitigation in Australia.