John William Melvin (May 15, 1938 – July 17, 2014) was a research engineer in the field of the biomechanics[1] of automobile crashes and a safety consultant in the field of automotive racing safety.
[5][6] He retired from General Motors in 1998 and became an independent consultant for the automotive industry and for organizations such as the Indy Racing League, the FIA / Formula 1, and NASA.
[8][9] John Melvin held four patents in the field of automotive safety: Melvin was an elected fellow of AIMBE (2002), the SAE (2002), and the FIA Institute for Motorsports Safety (2004).
[10] His work in transportation and motorsports safety was recognized by the US Department of Transportation with their Award for Safety Engineering Excellence and the SAE Louis Schwitzer Award for Innovation and Engineering Excellence in the Field of Race Car Design, both in 1998.
[11] In 2016, the SAE Motorsports Council created the SAE International Award for Motorsport Safety Honoring John Melvin, which was endowed through funding from NASCAR.