Malcolm Simms | Director, MPA Asphalt
MPA Asphalt and Asphalt Industry Alliance

Malcolm was born and raised in Northern Ireland, before moving to Scotland for University, where he studied Civil Engineering at Dundee. This was where he developed his interest in construction materials (albeit more grey at that time), graduating in 1992 to work on projects both north and south of the border (including the Skye and Second Severn Crossings). In 1994 he located to Bristol, working as a site engineer but returned to the “materials world” as a lab technician in 1997, progressing through various grades and responsibilities within a number of MPA Member companies.   In 2000 he moved to the Home Counties having joined what was then Quarry Products Association in London, as Asphalt Engineer, and progressed via Asphalt Technical Manager to become the Director of what is now MPA Asphalt in 2011. He is involved in everything asphalt (and pavement)-related that passes through the Association and represents MPA and UK on various EAPA, BSI and CEN Standards Committees on technical, political and policy levels. He has co-authored a number of Award-winning Technical Papers (PIARC & WRA 2019) and research programmes (HE Awards 2019-20), and a frequent speaker at UK and International conferences, on webinars and podcasts. He can often be seen and heard on TV and radio as a Director/Spokesperson on behalf of the Asphalt Industry Alliance, making the case for Local Highways Authority maintenance funding, notably for ALARM Report media. Malcolm was awarded the European Asphalt Pavement Association’s “Asphalt Advocate Award” for 2020, and its “Technical Excellence Award” in 2022. He is a past-Chair of the East Midlands IAT Branch and was conferred IAT Honorary Fellowship in May 2024.   Malcolm returned to live in Bristol in 2012 (when not in, or travelling to and from, meetings somewhere else in the UK or Europe), as technology even enabled working from home “as normal” back then and pre-pandemic. In his ‘spare’ time he dreams of being able to play golf, both in terms of time and talent. He is historically a hockey goalkeeper (retired with dodgy knees but still able to “tour”). He is a fervent Ulster, Ireland and the British & Irish Lions rugby supporter but can now mostly be found on the terraces at Ashton Gate supporting the Bristol Bears .