Speakers

Andrew Lynch

IRISH MANUFACTURING RESEARCH (IMR)

Member of the EFFRA Made in Europe Partnership Board and serves as International Vice President of the EUREKA SMART Manufacturing Board. He sits on the ManuFuture High Level Group, chairing its State Aid Strategies Working Group, and chairs the EFFRA working group on productivity and flexible manufacturing. In Ireland, he serves on the AMTCE and ATiM partnership boards and co-founded national initiatives on collaborative robotics and digital manufacturing. He contributes to major manufacturing policy frameworks, including ManuFuture Vision 2030 and the ECS Strategic Research Agenda. Andrew holds degrees in Biochemistry, Environmental Analytical Chemistry, and a PhD in Engineering.

António Braz Costa

NATIONAL CTI NETWORK

He graduated in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Minho in 1989 and completed Advanced Public Management training at the National Institute of Administration (PT) in 2008. Currently holding the positions of General Director of CITEVE - Technological Center for the Textile and Clothing Industries of Portugal, President of CeNTI - Center for Nanotechnology and Smart Materials, President of TEXTRANET - European Network of Textile Research Organizations, Vice-President of Textile ETP - European Technology Platform for the Future of Textiles and Clothing, President of the Executive Committee of CTI Alliance - Network of Technology and Innovation Centers of Portugal, among many others.

António Pontes

UNIV. MINHO

Associate Professor with Tenure in the Polymer Engineering Department with a PhD in Polymer Science and Engineering from the University of Minho. He was Director of the Polymer Engineering Undergraduate Program and Departmental Coordinator for the Socrates/Erasmus program, Director of the Polymer Engineering Department at the School of Engineering, Deputy Director, and Deputy Director of the Institute of Polymers and Composites, and is currently Director of the Institute. He conducts research at the Institute of Polymers and Composites (IPC) of the FCT (FCT).

António Tomás

CADFLOW

Operations Manager in the field of digital transformation, uses digital twins to easily streamline the “ideation-test-improve-implement" philosophy, resulting in highly productive and efficient processes. With extensive experience in product development and industrialization, mainly in the mechatronic and automotive industries, he will share his vision on how Additive Manufacturing fits into process efficiency and operational excellence.

Blaž Nardin

FACULTY OF POLYMER TECHNOLOGY

Graduated at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, University of Ljubljana. After graduation, he was employed at TECOS as a researcher, head of CAE department, deputy director and finally as director. In 2006 he was employed at Gorenje Orodjarna, d.o.o. as director of the company. In 2017 he was promoted to Executive vice President at Gorenje d.d., responsible for dishwashing and for cooling program. His research areas are manufacturing technologies, which are linked plastics processing and to the production of tools and moulds. Since 2020 he is employed at the Faculty of Polymer Technology as dean.

Cláudia Novo

CENTIMFE / EROFIO GROUP

With a degree in Business Management and executive training from the PADE at AESE Business School, she is a leader committed to innovation, sustainability, and people development within Portugal’s mould-making industry. Member of the board and CFO of Erofio and Erofio Atlântico, President of Centimfe, and Vice-President of Cefamol.

Cornelia Amihalachioae

EFFRA

Cornelia AMIHALACHIOAE, Innovation Adviser & Programme Manager in EFFRA - the industry-driven European association promoting the development of innovative production technologies, and EU Commission’s private partner in the Made in Europe PPP.
Innovation and programme management practitioner with >20 years’ experience across the private, public and NGO sectors, Cornelia focuses on digital transformation, R&I, twin transition, human-centric innovation.

Cornelia Rojacher

FRAUNHOFER IPT

Cornelia Rojacher finished her Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering and Business Administration at the RWTH Aachen University. Since 2018, she has been working at the Fraunhofer IPT and led the business unit »Optics« for 3,5 years. Currently, she heads the Aachen Center for Optics Production (ACOP) as well as the department »Glass and Precision Manufacturing«.

Daniel Sánchez

AIJU - Energy & Advanced Manufacturing

PhD in Robotics from the University of Alicante, where he serves as an Associate Professor, with an industrial mention in collaboration with the Technological Institute AIJU, where he conducts his main activity as a researcher and robotics project engineer. His work focuses on the intelligent manipulation of deformable objects and flexible automation in industrial environments.

David Afonso

NORTECH.AI PORTUGAL

He leads Nortech's Portuguese operations, focused on Research and Development. He ensures the effective operation of the local team, driving the company's strategic growth in the Iberian Peninsula and into new markets. With a PhD in Biomedical Engineering from Instituto Superior Técnico, with a thesis on Artificial Intelligence applied to the medical context, David has over 15 years of experience in operational management, business development, and technological innovation. During his career, he worked at Siemens Healthcare, where he implemented project management processes, and at Arthur D. Little, as a data and machine learning specialist. He stands out for his strategic vision, practical skills in software, UX/UI, digital transformation, and his ability to lead teams and manage complex projects, promoting industrial competitiveness.

Denis Rodrigue

UNIVERSITÉ LAVAL

He obtained a B.Sc. and a Ph.D. in chemical engineering from Université de Sherbrooke (Canada), with a specialization in non-Newtonian fluid mechanics. In 1996 he moved to Université Laval (Canada), where he is now full professor. Since then, he has been an invited professor at the University of Guadalajara (Mexico), the Technical Institute of Karlsruhe (Germany), the University of Castilla-La Mancha (Spain), the University of Arts and Sciences of Hunan (China), the Technical University of Lodz (Poland), Polytech Tours (France) and Cracow University of Technology (Poland). His main research areas are in the characterization and the modelling of the morphological / mechanical / thermal / rheological properties of polymer foams and composites based on thermoplastics and elastomers. His main focus is related to polymer recycling and rheology. He is the co-editor and a member of the editorial board of multiple international scientific journals.

Elsa Henriques

TÉCNICO DE LISBOA

Engineer with a PhD in mechanical engineering. She is a professor at the Instituto Superior Técnico, where she teaches and researches. For over 30 years, she has participated in and coordinated numerous research projects involving graduate students and has authored over 100 peer-reviewed scientific publications. She has also recently published relevant work in the field of data-driven prognostics. For the past six years, she has served as executive director of the Luso-American Foundation and the Fulbright Commission Portugal.

Enric Fontdecaba

EURECAT

Telecommunications Engineer from the Polytechnic University of Catalonia and Diploma in Business Sciences from the Open University of Catalonia. His education is completed with a Doctorate in Computer Architecture from the Polytechnic University of Catalonia, with a thesis on numerical optimization methods on massively parallel platforms for the design of complex optical surfaces. With a career spanning over 20 years in the optics sector, he has combined research and innovation with operations management, holding two patents on lens design and light phase modulators. Since 2016, he has directed the Polymer & Composite Processes (PCP) technology unit at EURECAT, where he coordinates research lines in sustainable materials, recycling, and advanced transformation processes. Furthermore, he has been involved in the development of In Mold Technology technology since 2017, participating in design, industrialization, and prototyping projects.

Fábio Fernandes

UNIVERSITY OF AVEIRO

Assistant Professor at the Department of Mechanical Engineering of the University of Aveiro and researcher at TEM. He is the national coordinator of the DIGI3D project. His research focuses on numerical simulation, advanced design of materials and products, and manufacturing processes, particularly joining processes.

Gabriel Ribeiro

EDILÁSIO

Gabriel Ribeiro is currently Director at EDILÁSIO. He holds a degree in Mechanical Engineering, a Master’s in Electrical Discharge Machining (EDM), and a PhD in Electrochemical Machining (ECM). He has conducted research at LAETA (Associated Laboratory for Energy, Transports and Aeronautics), with several scientific publications. He actively participates in national and international R&D projects, serving as Principal Investigator in some of them.

Gonçalo Tomé

CENTIMFE / CIE PLASFIL

With a degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Coimbra, he holds management positions in the automotive components industry, managing CIE Plasfil and CIE Stratis, which specialize in high-performance injection molding and aesthetic finishing.
He is a member of the governing bodies of CENTIMFE (Technological Center for the Mouldmaking, Special Tooling and Plastics Industries), PIEP, APIP, and Pool-net.

José Carlos Caldeira

INESC TEC

He is advisor of the Presidency of INESC TEC, member of the MANUFUTURE High Level Group and Chairman of its Implementation Support Group. He is also member of the Board of EFFRA – European Factories of the Future Research Association.
He is invited professor at Porto Faculty of Economics, on Innovation Policies.
Between October 2014 and January 2018, he was the President of ANI – the Portuguese National Innovation Agency.

Luís Santos

EROFIO GROUP

Is the Head of the Additive Manufacturing Department at Erofio Group since 2011.
He and his team are focused in developing and building parts in metal alloys, steel and light alloys, for different industries, by L-PBF and LP-DED technologies.
His experience is related to Erofio's expertise in developing solutions for the Mould and Plastic industries.
He holds a Ph.D in Mechanical Engineering from University of Coimbra, deepening his knowledge in Master's Product Design Engineering and in Mechanical Engineering, both attributed by ESTG Leiria.

Marco Ruivo

SIGMASOFT

He is a plastics industry professional specializing in process simulation and production optimization.
With 25 years of solid industry experience, he combines technical knowledge and strategic vision to drive industrial efficiency and innovation.

Mariana Maia

HYPERMETAL

Holds a Master’s in Metallurgical and Materials Engineering from FEUP and leads operations at Hypermetal, specializing in metal additive manufacturing for aerospace applications. Her expertise includes LPBF process qualification, industrialization, and EN 9100 implementation, with a focus on optimizing production efficiency and ensuring compliance in critical manufacturing environments.

Nuno Ferreira

ESSS

He holds degrees in Accounting and Business Administration from ISCAP and Psychology from FPCEUP, and completed a master's degree in Motivation and Personality in 2008. He has a professional career spanning nearly 25 years in sales across various sectors - real estate, pharmaceuticals, and IT. Since 2014, he has dedicated himself to software development and marketing, a field in which he has been consolidating his experience and interest in technological innovation within the Portuguese industrial context.

Olli Hatakka

KARELIA UNIVERSITY

Olli Hatakka is a Senior Lecturer at Karelia University of Applied Sciences in Joensuu, Finland, where he teaches Finnish and international students in business, leadership, management, marketing, ICT, and entrepreneurship. He recently served as Project Manager in the Quantum Karelia – Quantum Computing Services: Future Technology for Business and Service Applications initiative, exploring how quantum computing can transform data-intensive business and service environments. He also contributes as one of the administrators and experts of “Quantum Finland”, a national special interest FB-group, promoting collaboration and dialogue on quantum technologies. At the Moulds Event 2025, Hatakka will share his vision on how emergent quantum computing may reshape computational design, optimization, and predictive modelling, linking future computing capabilities with industrial and business innovation.

Pedro Alberto

UNIV. COIMBRA

Physics Professor at the University of Coimbra. For 25 years, he has been involved in High Performance Computing (HPC) activities in Portugal and Europe, including 13 European projects and two industrial projects with Centimfe. He is a member of the External Advisory Board of the European EPICURE project and the EuroHPC Infrastructure Advisory Group. He coordinates the Advanced Computing Laboratory at the University of Coimbra, an infrastructure of the FCT's NREN.

Pedro Costa

NORCAM

Works in the field of technology and industrial innovation, leading the operations of Norcam and 3DZ in Portugal. With a master's degree in metallurgical and Materials Engineering from FEUP, he has been promoting the adoption of additive manufacturing as a strategic tool to enhance efficiency and industrial competitiveness.

Pedro Dinis Gaspar

UNIVERTSITY BEIRA INTERIOR

PhD in Mechanical Engineering and Associate Professor with Habilitation at UBI. Integrated researcher at R&D Unit C-MAST. Director of the Master’s in Industrial Engineering and Management. Coordinator of LITecS and PARKURBIS Labs, and collaborator at Food4Sustainability Colab. Teaching Climatization and Industrial Refrigeration, Industrial Robotics, and Automation. Coordinator and member of several national and European projects. Research interests: energy efficiency, sustainability, and ICT and robotics for agriculture and agroindustry.

Pedro Dominguinhos

National Monitoring Comitte of Portuguese Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR)

He holds a PhD in Management from the Higher Institute of Economics and Management (ISEG/UL), a Master's in International Economics (ISEG/UL), and a Bachelor's in Economics (U Lusíada).
He has been a Coordinating Professor at the School of Business Sciences of the Polytechnic Institute of Setúbal (ESCE/IPS) since 2009, specializing in Management. He has been a professor at ESCE/IPS since 1995.
He is the author or co-author of dozens of publications and articles at international conferences on internationalization, born-globals, and entrepreneurship.

Pedro Lourenço

EROFIO Group

Executive Director at EROFIO GROUP since 2020 and Director of the INOV.AM innovation agenda. Graduated in Business Management from the University of Coimbra, he has over 20 years of experience in industrial innovation and technology management. Previously at CENTIMFE, he led R&D and innovation projects and advised companies on investment and innovation strategy. EROFIO GROUP operates in moldmaking, plastic injection, and additive manufacturing for the automotive, home appliances, and industrial sectors.

Rui Marcelino

ALMADESIGN

Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Master's degree in Transportation Design, and PhD in Design. Founder and CEO of Almadesign, a studio dedicated to Mobility, Product, and Interior Design with over 900 projects and several international awards. Associate Professor and Coordinator of the Master's in Product Design at FAUL, Lisbon. Co-founder of AED (Portuguese Aeronautics, Space, and Defense Cluster) and PFP (Portuguese Railway Platform Cluster). Member of the Board of Directors of AED, PFP, and COTEC, the Portuguese Association for Innovation.

Rui Ruben

POLYTECHNIC OF LEIRIA

He has a BS.C (5 years), a BS.C and also a Ph.D degree in Mechanical Engineering, all three in Instituto Superior Técnico. Rui Ruben is Professor at Polytechnic of Leiria since 2001. He was Mechanical Engineering Department director from 2014 to 2016. Nowadays he is Director of Centre for Rapid and Sustainable Product Development (CDRSP), and President of Portuguese Society on Biomechanics.

Rui Soares

CENTIMFE

Senior researcher at CENTIMFE in the area of Business Innovation, with extensive experience in industry, academia and as a consultant, he has led several national and European R&D projects and is the author of several publications in different areas of Engineering.

Rui Tocha

CENTIMFE

Economist with a Master's in International Economics (ISEG).
General Director of CENTIMFE, POOL-NET, and the EUROPEAN TOOLING PLATFORM.

Saltanat Seitzhan

UNIV. SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA (USC)

Saltanat Seitzhan received her B.Sc. and M.Sc. degrees in robotics from Nazarbayev University, Kazakhstan, in 2022 and 2024. She was a Research Assistant at the Tactile Robotics Lab and the Institute of Smart Systems and AI. Currently, she is a Predoctoral Researcher for the ROBOTA-SUDOE project at the University of Santiago de Compostela, Spain.

Sebastian Zaje

DASSAULT SYSTÈMES

Graduated in Industrial Design / Master in Science and Technology Policy Management at the University of Buenos Aires, currently Sales Expert for SIMULIA solutions.
Worked across several countries in LATAM and Europe for more than 25 years, to maximize technological adoption approach for customers and government within different technologies, platforms, and industries.
From Manufacturing, product and process to infrastructure and construction.

Sotiris Makris

UNIVERSITY OF PATRAS

Associate Professor at the University of Patras and a senior researcher at the Laboratory for Manufacturing Systems and Automation (LMS), where he leads cutting-edge research in artificial intelligence and robotics for industrial transformation. His work focuses on deploying AI-driven automation, human-robot collaboration, and intelligent decision-making systems to revolutionize modern manufacturing. Chair of AIM-NET, he shapes generative AI and the industrial metaverse. He has coordinated and participated in numerous EU-funded projects that drive digital transformation across sectors, helping industries to adopt smart, adaptive, and sustainable production systems. He also contributes to EFFRA, ADRA, euRobotics, MANUFUTURE and drives EU projects on smart, sustainable manufacturing.

Torsten Urban

KUNSTSTOFF-INSTITUT LÜDENSCHEID

Torsten Urban is a mechanical engineer specialized in industrial plastics technology. Before joining the Kunststoff-Institut, he worked as a plant manager for a medical device manufacturer of hose systems for hemodialysis technology. Since 2004 he has been an employee of the Kunststoff-Institut Lüdenscheid, where he is responsible for quality management, medical technology, international networks and cluster management.
In his cluster manager function, he has supervised numerous international technology and knowledge transfer projects with the aim of showing medium-sized companies the way into new markets.
Demonstrators and prototype production play a central role in new product development, particularly within the innovation networks he manages.

Vitor Neto

UNIVERSITY OF AVEIRO

He is a researcher and professor working in the fields of Product Development, Manufacturing Technologies, and Eco-design. His research focuses on plastic-based meta-structures.

Speakers

Andrew Lynch

António Braz Costa

António Pontes

António Tomás

Blaž Nardin

Cláudia Novo

CENTIMFE / EROFIO GROUP

Cornelia Amihalachioae

Cornelia Rojacher

Daniel Sánchez

AIJU - Energy & Advanced Manufacturing

David Afonso

Denis Rodrigue

Elsa Henriques

Enric Fontdecaba

Fábio Fernandes

Gabriel Ribeiro

Gonçalo Tomé

CENTIMFE / CIE PLASFIL

José Carlos Caldeira

Luís Santos

Marco Ruivo

Mariana Maia

Nuno Ferreira

Olli Hatakka

Pedro Alberto

Pedro Costa

Pedro Dinis Gaspar

Pedro Dominguinhos

Pedro Lourenço

Rui Marcelino

Rui Ruben

POLYTECHNIC OF LEIRIA

Rui Soares

Rui Tocha

Saltanat Seitzhan

Sebastian Zaje

Sotiris Makris

Torsten Urban

Vitor Neto

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