Prof. Xiaoqi Chen

Fellow of Royal Society of New Zealand, Fellow of Engineering New Zealand

South China University of Technology, China

Experience: Prof. Xiaoqi Chen, Ph.D. (Liverpool, 1989), is the Dean at the Shien-Ming Wu School of Intelligent Engineering, South China University of Technology (SCUT). Prior to joining SCUT, he was Deputy Director of Manufacturing Futures Research Institute, Swinburne University of Technology till (2019-2022); Professor, Founding Director of Mechatronics Engineering, University of Canterbury (2006-2019); Senior Scientist and Technical Manager, Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology (1992-2006); Research Fellow at Brunel University and Durham University (1989-1992). His research focuses on robotics, advanced materials processing and autonomous systems. His team received Singapore National Technology Award (1999) for their work on robotic re-manufacturing of aeroengine components. He was awarded New Zealand Forest Owners Association Award (2015) for the development of forest harvest robot. His novel work on untethered wall climbing robot span off Invert Robotics Ltd that won New Zealand Hi-Tech Start-Up Excellence Award (2012). He has published 400+ scientific papers and 4 books; and has delivered over 100 invited speeches. He has been elected to Fellow of Royal Society of New Zealand, Fellow of Engineering New Zealand, F.SME and F.ASME.

Prof. Weidong Li

Fellow of IMechE, Fellow of IET

University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, China

Experience: He is the dean, professor, doctoral supervisor of the School of Mechanical Engineering, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Special Professor of Changjiang Scholars, Shanghai innovation leader, Fellow of the British Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE), Fellow of the International Institute of Engineering and Technology (IET), and scholar of the European Union's Maligurie Program. He has presided over more than 30 scientific research projects of EU Framework Programme (EU FP7, EU Horizon), UK Engineering and Physics Foundation (EP SRC), UK Innovation Agency (IUK) and European industry (Airbus, Rolls-Royce, Jaguar Land Rover). He has been the director of the European Union International cooperation project for three times, won the European Union "Success Case Award" twice, and presided over the National Natural Science Foundation of China, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Shanghai Science and Technology Commission, the Shanghai Municipal Education Commission, and the horizontal scientific research projects of enterprises.

Prof. Yanguo Jing

PFHEA, FBCS, MIEEE, CITP

Leeds Trinity University, UK

Experience: Professor Yanguo Jing is the incoming Dean of Institute of Business, Industry and Leadership at University Cumbria, UK. He is a Professor of Artificial Intelligence, a Principal Fellow of the Advance HE (PFHEA), a Fellow of the British Computer Society, a Certified IT Professional and a member of IEEE. His prime research interests are applied Artificial Intelligence. His recent research work focuses on the use of machine-learning to capture interaction and user behaviour patterns that can be used to develop intelligent applications. His research has been applied in Manufacturing, HR, business, sports science, and assisted living settings. He have led significant research and secured funding from the likes of the UK government, Cadent Gas, Speedo International, Pfizer, Welsh Government, KPIT, UK’s Comic Relief charity and JISC.

Prof. Yongsheng Ma

Southern University of Science and Technology, China

Experience: Professor Yongsheng Ma is a full professor at Southern University of Science and Technology, China, since 2021. Before that, Dr. Ma had been a full professor with the University of Alberta since 2007. He was an associate professor with Nanyang Technological University, Singapore during 2000-2007. Dr. Ma started his career as a polytechnic lecturer in Singapore (1993-1996); and then a research fellow, senior research fellow and group manager (1996-2000) at Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology. Prof. Ma earned his B.Eng. from Tsinghua University and both his M.Sc. and Ph.D. from the University of Manchester. His research focuses on CAD/CAE information integration, multi-scale topology optimization, advanced manufacturing methods, and complex surface modeling. He has published over 200 papers and holds editorial roles in journals such as Advanced Engineering Informatics and ASME Journal of Computer Information Science and Engineering (JCISE), and Scientific Reports (Springer Nature), and IEEE Transactions on Automation Science and Engineering. Prof. Ma had been a registered Professional Engineer (P.Eng.) in Alberta, Canada, since 2009. His industrial contributions include leading the development of an intelligent injection mold design software package, i.e.QuickMold, which was acquired by UGS (now Siemens PLM) and further commercialized as MouldWizard.

Prof. Wei Liu

Southern University of Science and Technology, China

Experience: WeiLiu, Ph.D., Doctoral Supervisor, Researcher. Research Professor, Department of Mechanical and Energy Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen high-level overseas talents, member of the special Committee of the Chinese Society of Automation, Shenzhen science and technology project evaluation expert. Research interests include machine vision, artificial intelligence, robot automation, etc. In recent years, he has presided over and participated in more than 20 projects, including the National Natural Science Foundation, industry-university-research projects of the Ministry of Education, key funds of Guangdong Province, science and technology research and development projects of Shenzhen and enterprise horizontal projects.

Prof. Dong Lu

Southern University of Science and Technology, China

Experience: Dr. LU Dong is a Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Energy Engineering at Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech). She received her Ph.D. degree in Mechanical Engineering from Shandong University, China, in 2007. Her research interests include precision and high-efficiency machining of aerospace hard-to-process materials, intelligent manufacturing, digital manufacturing (CAD/CAM), and machining process quality control.Dr. Dong has over 18 years of academic and industrial research experience, leading or contributing to projects funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(NSFC), Shenzhen Key Basic Research Program, and Jiangxi Provincial Natural Science Foundation. She has presided over critical initiatives such as precision machining of aerospace materials and digital manufacturing systems. She has authored more than forty peer-reviewed scientific publications, including International Journal of Machine Tools and Manufacture.

Asst. Prof. Jiangzhuo Ren

Chang' an University, China

Experience: Dr. Jiangzhuo Ren is an assistant professor at Chang'an University in China since 2022. He is a recipient of the National Plan for the Recruitment of Overseas Talent (Postdoctoral recruitment Project, First Batch) and the high-level innovation and entrepreneurship talent via the Qinchuangyuan Platform. Dr. Ren earned his Ph.D. from the University of Alberta, Canada, in 2021, and conducted postdoctoral research there in 2022. His research focuses on intelligent manufacturing and surface engineering technology. He has published 18 journal papers, including 14 as the first or corresponding author, with publications in Robotics and Computer-Integrated Manufacturing, Advanced Engineering Informatics, and Journal of Manufacturing Processes. He has received multiple research projects, including Natural Science Basic Research Program of Shaanxi, the Postdoctoral Research Project Funding of Shaanxi Province, and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities.