Prof. Ben Young

Professor Ben Young is Vice President (Student and Global Affairs) and Chair Professor of Steel Structures of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, overseeing the institutional policies and plans related to student development and promotion of culture, as well as the global engagement endeavors in educational initiatives involving the establishment of partnership with leading universities and strategic partners worldwide. Professor Young is well acquainted with academic research and actively serves on academic panels for various government agencies and non-governmental organizations. He is an Advisory Member of the American Institute of Steel Construction for the Committee on Structural Stainless Steel. Professor Young is currently a Co-Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Constructional Steel Research, published by Elsevier. He has published over 700 international journal and conference papers, of which over 400 are SCI-indexed journal papers. He has an h-index of 73 in Scopus. Professor Young has been elected as a Member of the European Academy of Sciences and Arts (EASA). He also received the Shortridge Hardesty Award for his research contributions to the stability design of cold-formed steel and stainless steel structures, given by the American Society of Civil Engineers in 2020.

Prof. Bernardo Almada-Lobo

Full Professor of Industrial Engineering and Management at the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto

Full Professor of Industrial Engineering and Management at the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto (FEUP), and at Porto Business School. Co-founder and partner of LTPlabs, an AI & advanced analytics company. Member of the Board of Trustees of the Belmiro de Azevedo Foundation. Member of the Academy of Engineering. Former director of INESC TEC and researcher at the Sloan School of Management at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Degree, Doctorate and Aggregate in Industrial Engineering and Management from FEUP. Advanced Management Program at INSEAD. Certified Analytics Professional by INFORMS.

Dr. Filip Ljubincović

Assistant Researcher in Steel and Composite Structures at the University of Coimbra

Dr. Filip Ljubinković is an Assistant Researcher in Steel and Composite Structures at the University of Coimbra and a member of the ISISE Research Unit. Holding a Ph.D. in Steel and Composite Structures, his research focuses on the stability of steel plates and curved panels in bridge applications, as well as on steel connections-combining structural engineering expertise with digitalization and advanced computational methods. He has participated in over 10 national and European research projects and holds 3 international patents in modular construction. His contributions have been recognized with the prestigious John Henry Garrod King Medal from the British Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE). Dr. Ljubinković is the convenor of the CEN/TC250/SC3 Ad-hoc Group on AI Design of Steel Structures, leading European standardization efforts in this emerging field. He teaches courses on steel structures and is a member of several technical committees, including CEN/TC250/SC3 WG5, CEN/TC250/SC3 WG22, ECCS/TWG8.3, and the Portuguese Technical Committee for Steel Structures (CT115/SC3). He is also a member of the Portuguese Steelwork Association (CMM) and a member of the Scientific Committee of the XV Conference on Steel and Composite Construction.

Eng. Jennifer Pazdon

As the Vice President and UK Office Leader at CAST CONNEX, Jennifer Pazdon leverages over 15 years of experience in design and construction to support engineers, architects, and contractors in the use of cast steel connections to optimize performance, economy, aesthetics, and constructability. Pazdon is a licensed structural engineer in New York State. She holds a Master of Science in Engineering from Princeton University and a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering with a Minor in Architecture from Carnegie Mellon University. Pazdon has practiced as a structural engineering consultant based in New York City, Africa, and Southeast Asia on new construction and renovation and retrofits for an array of structural typologies including: steel, concrete, wood, mass timber, tall buildings, bridges, single family homes, art installations, and strengthening of low-tech vernacular buildings in developing nations. Pazdon is Chair of the AASHTO/NSBA Collaboration Task Group 17: Steel Castings, and a Director of the Board of the Structural Engineers Association of New York and a Member of the CTBUH EDI Committee. She was Teaching Fellow in Mechanics, Materials and Sciences at Princeton University, Adjunct Professor of Architecture at The Cooper Union, and she has lectured extensively on applications for steel castings in buildings, bridges, and other structures.

Prof. Luciano Lima

Full Professor Department of Structural Engineering Rio de Janeiro State University

Professor Luciano Lima (PhD) teaches at both undergraduate and graduate levels at the College of Engineering. He is deeply engaged in research on steel and composite structures. In the last 20 years, he has been working on activities related to laboratory testing, numerical modelling, advanced analyses, and structural design. He has been awarded the Anísio Teixeira Prize as the Best Professor elected by the students from UERJ Science and Technology Center (2013 and 2015). His mentored students (undergraduate, MSc and PhD) have received many Awards from the Rio de Janeiro Engineering Council (CREA-RJ) for their developed works in steel and composite structures, mainly regarding stainless steel structures. He is the co-author of three books about steel structures. Furthermore, he was chair of three international conferences held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: SDSS (2010), ISTS15 (2015) and ^10th ICSAS (2024). Since last year, he has been working as Associate Editor at Structures and as Guest Editor for a Special Issue in Thin-Walled Structures (Elsevier Journals). He has been funded by National Brazilian Agencies such as FAPERJ, CNPq and CAPES.

Prof. Luís Simões da Silva

Professor of Steel Construction, Department of Civil Engineering, University of Coimbra. Head of Steel Construction Group of ISISE – Institute for Sustainability and Innovation in Structural Engineering, Research Center financed by FCT (Portuguese Science Foundation). Co-Editor-in-Chief Journal of Constructional Steel Research. President of CMM (Portuguese Steelwork Association). President of Seapower. Awarded with an Honoris Causa Doctorate by the University of Liege in 2018.

Eng. Miguel Correia

Main Principal Lead – Structural & Marine Technology at Wood

Miguel Correia is today the Main Principal Lead in Wood PLC Norway where he leads the structural and Marine Technology department for the last 4 years. Wood offers engineering of new onshore, offshore, and subsea construction and modification projects, as well as new build and modifications of ships. His international experience also includes the management of the Structural Integrity department at Force Technology Norway, for 7 years, and before that Greenland group and Agility Group as Senior Structural Engineer and Structural Discipline lead. His national experience between 2000 and 2011 was developed in IDOM Consulting Engineering Architecture, Lisbon office, where he worked manly on onshore industrial projects, initially as senior structural engineer and later as lead the Structural Department. His educational background was built on two MSc Degrees, the^1st in Civil Engineering – Structural Engineering Profile and the second in Steel and Composite Structures, respectively in ISEL – Instituto Superior de Engenharia de Lisboa and Coimbra University here the defended his thesis – Robustness, redundancy of offshore structures – Jacket Platforms. He is also a member of the Portuguese Steelwork Association (CMM)

Prof. Pierre Engel

Pierre Engel is an expert in construction and structural engineering, with experience in research, development, studies, consulting, and project management in France and internationally. Specializing in steel structures, rehabilitation, and major construction projects. With a Ph.D. and Master’s in Civil Engineering from the University of Salford; he has directed major works such as the Olympic Rings for Paris 2024, the Orbit Tower for London 2012, and the Luxembourg Pavilion at the Shanghai Expo, held executive roles in international real estate and construction firms, developed innovative low-carbon building solutions, taught at leading French engineering and architecture schools, received two silver medals from the French Academy of Architecture, and is an active member of several renowned scientific organizations, demonstrating strong skills in international project management, teaching, research, and technological innovation in construction