John Douglas Perkins (born 18 March 1950) is a retired academic, engineering scientist, and government adviser.
He held professorships at Imperial College London and the University of Sydney, served as President of the Institution of Chemical Engineers and was Chief Scientific Adviser to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.
Born on 18 March 1950, Perkins was educated at Imperial College London, graduating with a first-class Bachelor of Science degree in chemical engineering in 1971; he was awarded the Hinchley Memorial Medal.
He then spent two years studying for a PhD at Imperial, supported by a studentship from Salters' Institute of Industrial Chemistry, before becoming a demonstrator in chemical engineering at the University of Cambridge.
He was promoted to a senior lectureship in 1983 and then moved to the University of Sydney in 1985, where for three years he was ICI Professor of Systems Engineering.