I am a Lecturer in Construction within the Applied Management Department at the University of Westminster, bringing over 25 years of combined academic, scientific and industry experience across the built environment, geosciences and heritage sectors. My career spans universities, research institutes, cultural heritage organisations and consultancy roles in the UK, Europe and North America.
Alongside my academic role, I've been working as an energy and retrofit assessor and consultant, specialising in damp and mould diagnostics, indoor environmental performance, and retrofit solutions for residential buildings. My work has supported housing associations, local authorities and industry partners to improve building performance, reduce risk and strengthen asset management strategies.
I am driven by a commitment to improving the health, sustainability and resilience of buildings through evidence-based practice. I have published widely, collaborated on international research and innovation projects, and supervised postgraduate researchers working on building materials, compatibility and durability, environmental diagnostics and sustainable interventions. This blend of academic and applied experience shapes how I contribute to teaching, research and industry engagement at Westminster.
My research has been exploring how environmental conditions, moisture, salts and pollutants influence the durability and performance of building materials, and how these processes affect residential, historic and retrofitted buildings. I work across diagnostic methods, environmental monitoring, material characterisation, moisture risk, ventilation performance, insulation strategies and retrofit decision-making.
Much of my recent work has focused on innovation for the housing sector, including sensor-based diagnostic systems and methods developed through collaborations with University College London, Wolverhampton University, National House Building Council (NHBC) and many other academic and industry partners.
Earlier research includes international projects on stone conservation, nanoparticles for material consolidation, desalination methods, and the behaviour of geomaterials under changing environmental conditions. I have authored more than 60 peer-reviewed publications and act as a reviewer, evaluator and advisor for international funding agencies.
I welcome collaboration with researchers, practitioners and social housing providers, and I supervise postgraduate students interested in construction management, building surveying, building performance, diagnostics, heritage materials, sustainability and retrofit innovation.
You can find some of my research and professional outcomes in the following links:
1- https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Paula-Lopez-Arce
2- https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3728-947X
3- https://westminster.academia.edu/PaulaLopezArce
4- https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=on5TX3EAAAAJ