Douglas Thomas is a research economist for the Engineering Laboratory's Applied Economics Office at the National Institute of Standards and Technology. Currently, his activities are focused in two areas of research: 1) smart manufacturing and construction and 2) disaster-resilient buildings, infrastructure, and communities. The first area includes examining spatial and temporal variations in the quality and quantity of industry activity in relation to the domestic and international economy. It utilizes industry data combined with various methods of analysis to understand production industries and their supply chains. Work in this area also examines microeconomic issues such as examining the life-cycle cost of buildings and building components in order to identify the most efficient products and practices. The second area of research involves examining issues related to natural and man-made disasters, including wildland and structure fires. His work in this area aims to reduce the cost and loss associated with these adverse events and has, more specifically, focused on understanding the occurrence and spatio-temporal patterns of fire incidents.
Applied Economics Office
Western Michigan University