Expertise

My interests and expertise are in forest engineering and structural wood engineering.   I teach and conduct research mainly in the areas of modeling the properties and performance of engineered wood components, developing innovative timber bridge designs, developing portable timber bridge systems,  reducing environmental impacts from forest roads and stream crossings, and using Global Positioning Systems (GPS) in forest operations.

Program Areas at Auburn University

  • Structural Wood Engineering Research
    • Timber Bridge Research
    • Portable Bridge Systems Research
  • Forest Engineering Research
    • Quantifying water quality impacts from forest road stream crossings
    • Precision forestry  -  Using GPS and other sensors to study the performance and productivity of forest machine systems
    • Testing forest machine operator protective structures
    • Optimizing forestry site preparation
  • Educational Activities in Forest Engineering/Wood Engineering
    • Engineered Wood Structure Design (FOEN-6230)
    • Introduction to Spatial Technologies for Biosystems (BSEN-6220)
    • Forest Ecology Preserve Bridge - Faculty/Student Project
    • Solar Decathlon

Dr. Taylor's research interests and expertise are in the areas of wood structure design and modeling, timber bridges, portable bridge systems, structural reliability, stochastic modeling, alternative stream crossings for forest roads, and using GPS for forest operations planning and evaluation.  


Interest areas:

  • Production & Process Engineering
  • Off-Highway Vehicle Engineering
  • Ecological Engineering
Past Affiliations

Assistant Professor, Forest Engineering
1989 - 1995

USDA Doctoral Fellow, Agricultural Engineering, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Texas A&M University (past)
1985 - 1988

Graduate Research Assistant, Agricultural Engineering, College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, University of Florida (past)
1984 - 1985

Department Head, Biosystems Engineering Department, Samuel Ginn College of Engineering, Auburn University

Director, Biosystems Engineering Department, Samuel Ginn College of Engineering, Auburn University

Oregon College of Art & Craft

Associate Professor, Forest Engineering, Biosystems Engineering Department, College of Agriculture, Auburn University
1996 - current

Communities
Engineering
Degrees
PhD, Texas A&M University, Agricultural Engineering, 1988
ME, University of Florida, Agricultural Engineering, 1985
BS, University of Florida, Agricultural Engineering, 1983
Keywords
agricultural engineering forest engineering gps bridges water quality stochastic processes
Languages
French
Associations
Alberta Medical Association
Alpha Zeta Omega
American Forest and Paper Association
American Institute of Timber Construction
American Society of Agricultural Engineers
American Society of Civil Engineers
Epsilon Lambda Chi
Forest Products Society
Gamma Sigma Delta
National Society of Professional Engineers
Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Society
Society of Wood Science and Technology
Tau Beta Pi