The conference will host following keynote speakers:
Benjamin Philips (NASA): "Transforming MDAO: How We Can Bridge the Gap Between Academic Development and Industry Adoption"
Dr. Ben Phillips is a systems analyst in the Aeronautics Systems Analysis Branch (ASAB) within the Systems Analysis and Concepts Directorate (SACD) at NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. He currently serves as the Transformative Tools and Technologies (TTT) Project’s Multidisciplinary Design Analysis and Optimization (MDAO) Technical Lead. He also serves as the group lead for the tools and methods team in ASAB. His research is focused on system-level uncertainty quantification, MDAO methods and applications, verification and validation as well as statistical best practices for data gathering and reporting. Ben has been involved with a number of projects within NASA aeronautics, most recently supporting the Commercial Supersonic Technology Project and the Advanced Air Transport Technology Project. Ben started his career at NASA as an intern at the Goddard Space Flight Center in 2010. In 2012, Ben came to NASA Langley while attending graduate school and has been at Langley since. He has a B.S. from the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (2011) and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from Old Dominion University (2014, 2016).
Laura Mainini (Imperial College): "Multidisciplinary design optimization for sustainable futures in aeronautics"
Professor Laura Mainini holds the Chair in Aerospace Computational Design at the Department of Aeronautics and is Associate Director of the Brahmal Vasudevan Institute for Sustainable Aviation, where she is responsible for sealing Industry engagement and collaborations, deputising for the Director and supporting the Institute's vision and strategy. Before joining Imperial College, Dr. Mainini was Chief Technologist at Collins Aerospace, where she led programs on multidisciplinary and AI-enhanced modelling, design, and integration of aerospace systems. Dr. Mainini has professional experience in industry and academia across Europe, the United States and Singapore. Her academic career comprises appointments at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Politecnico di Torino and the Singapore University of Technology and Design. Prof. Mainini is passionate about developing solutions for the sustainable development of air transportation and space exploration, with focus on advanced computational and mathematical methods that permit to safely unlock novel designs. Prof. Mainini is Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society and Associate Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA). She serves with leadership roles on the AIAA Multidisciplinary Design Optimization Technical Committee, the AIAA Digital Engineering Integration and Outreach Committee, and a number of international task groups.
