Speakers

Mike Adelstein is the President and CEO of Potomac Photonics, a leader in digital microfabrication technologies. With over 27 years at the helm, Mike has guided Potomac Photonics to the forefront of micromanufacturing, enabling clients in the medical, biotech, aerospace, automotive, and electronics industries to develop and bring innovative devices to market.

Mike holds a Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC), and a Master of Science in Technology Management from the University of Maryland University College. He was named UMBC’s Outstanding Alumnus of the Year in 2014 for his professional achievements and contributions to the field of engineering.

Bio coming soon…

Bio coming soon…

Ivan Buckley is the Director, Business Development for Graphene@Manchester, which includes the National Graphene Institute (NGI) and the Graphene Engineering Innovation Centre (GEIC).

Previously, he was the Project Manager for the Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC), the largest centre of its type within the UK national High Value Manufacturing Catapult Network. Originally from an industry background, he has championed the need for high value manufacturing and the role that advanced materials can play in its recovery, playing a prominent role in the development and implementation of both regional and national strategies for High Value Manufacturing and Advanced Materials.

Christian has built a diverse career at the forefront of multi-disciplinary innovation, drawing on expertise from a range of fields to deliver impactful solutions. For the past five years at the Compound Semiconductor Applications Catapult, he has played a key role within cross-functional teams to scope, specify, and deliver next-generation applications across quantum technologies, power electronics, RF, and photonic engineering. His work spans both research and product development, with a strong focus on integrating ideas and capabilities from different domains to accelerate innovation into a deployable format. Working with the Catapult’s network of partners enable Christian and the teams he works with to help drive advances in sectors such as transport, energy, telecoms, and intelligent sensing, contributing to the UK’s leadership in Compound Semiconductor Applications

Agnieszka Corley-Wiciak is a Business Developer at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF), one of the world’s most powerful X-ray sources, dedicated to advanced materials research. She connects industrial innovators in semiconductors, quantum technologies, energy and advanced materials with cutting-edge synchrotron-based characterization tools. A peer-reviewed author with hands-on experience in synchrotron and laboratory experiments research. She is actively involved in the EU-funded Add More Power project which focuses on novel X-ray and electron probe methods for next-generation power electronics. With academic and professional experience across Poland, Germany, and France, she is well-versed in multinational scientific projects and cross-sector collaboration. Her mission is to bridge the gap between fundamental research and industrial innovation, making powerful scientific tools more accessible, usable, and impactful for companies. With a background in material physics and engineering management, she is passionate about enabling faster, smarter R&D through collaboration, insight, and technology transfer.

Bio coming soon…

Sumitesh’s (SD) ambition is to develop economically viable and environmentally friendly technologies through integrated research.

SD holds a post graduate degree in Manufacturing Science from IIT Kanpur and a doctoral degree from the University of Sheffield, UK. His research interests include – manufacturing technologies, computational materials and nano materials. Over the years, he has led diverse teams to deploy multi-site modelling and simulation tools for concurrent technology development.  He was instrumental in leading Tata Steel’s forays into (a) affordable housing through the NEST-IN brand (b) nanofluids technology for accelerated cooling (c) Carbon Nano Tubes and Graphene. SD has more than 30 papers and close to 20 patents to his credit.

SD has been instrumental in developing competent human resources required to work on advanced technologies. In particular, through the “Mind Over Matter” initiative and establishment of two Centers of Excellence in Advanced Materials at IIT Chennai and CeNS, Bengaluru. SD also played a pivotal role in the setting up of the Tata Steel Centers Of Innovation at Imperial College London and the Royce Institute Manchester.

SD is the recipient of the INAE Young Engineers Award from the Institute of Engineers, the AICTE-INAE Distinguished Visiting Professorship at IIT Guwahati, the Brunton Medal & Eshelby Bursary from The University of Sheffield and the Rolls-Royce Chevening Fellowship for studies at the Said Business School, Oxford. SD has led teams who have been recognised for excellence in Innovation through the prestigious Tata Group level Innovista Awards.

SD is currently Director, Research & Development at Tata Steel UK Limited.

Dr Conor O’Brien is a Senior Technology Analyst at IDTechEx, predominantly concerned with the topic of advanced materials. Having previously studied at Trinity College Dublin, Conor obtained a PhD from the University of Manchester, working at the National Graphene Institute.

Conor’s work at IDTechEx covers advanced materials research, including markets and technologies, with particular expertise in nanocarbons such as graphene and carbon nanotubes. Beyond 2D materials, Conor also holds an interest in the advanced materials that are underpinning the energy and decarbonisation sector, with a focus on the fuel cell industry.

Richard is Head of Innovation Policy in the Semiconductor Unit at the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT). He was one of the authors of the UK’s National Semiconductor Strategy and leads the Department’s work to support semiconductor research, innovation and start up growth as well as it’s approach to engaging the UK and global semiconductor industry. This has included working with Silicon Valley accelerator Silicon Catalyst to establish the ChipStart UK semiconductor startup incubator and setting up the UK’s Semiconductor Advisory Panel to enable the UK government to collaborate with industry on development and delivery of semiconductor policy.

Richard is a science and technology policy professional with extensive experience across a broad range of technology sectors and policy issues. His previous roles have included managing the strategy and evaluation of the UK government’s Science Capability Review programme at the Government Office for Science, developing innovation programmes at charitable foundation Nesta, and leading the Strategy Development Team at the Wellcome Trust, one of the world’s largest research foundations that aims to address the greatest global challenges in health and life sciences.

He holds an MCHEM Master of Chemistry from the University of Oxford and an MSc in Science & Technology Policy from the Science Policy Research Unit at the University of Sussex.

Prof Bala Vaidhyanathan (BV) is a Professor of Advanced Materials and Processing and was the Associate Dean for Enterprise (for 9 years) at the School of Aeronautical, Automotive, Chemical and Materials Engineering at Loughborough University (LU). He leads the very active Advanced Ceramics Research Group in the Materials Department and has over 200 peer reviewed publications, named inventor on 17 patents, delivered >60 Plenary/keynote/invited presentations in international and national conferences and written six book chapters.

He has won many national and international awards:
Awarded K.P. Abraham Gold Medal for Best Doctoral Thesis from Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore,1998. Twice the recipient of the Inventor Incentive Award by the Penn State Research Foundation, 2000 & 2002. Bronze Medal for Innovation from GE Global Research Corporation, 2006. Glory of India Award from The India International Friendship Society for contributions in the field of Science, Technology and Education for the year 2010.Verulam Medal and prize from IOM3, for distinguished contributions to ceramic materials, 2015. Pfeil Award for the best paper in ceramics field, IOM3, 2017
Nominated for Two Vice Chancellor’s Awards in 2024 – for International Reputation and Collaborative Research

Professor Nigel Brandon OBE FREng FRS is Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Professor of Sustainable Development in Energy. His research is focussed on the science and engineering of electrochemical devices for the low carbon energy transition. He is a founder of Ceres Power, a FTSE listed fuel cell company spun out from Imperial College in 2000, RFC Power, a flow battery company spun out from Imperial College in 2018, and M-SPIN, a company developing & manufacturing low cost high surface area materials for electrolysers, fuel cells and batteries, in 2024

Ean works closely with employers at Axia to introduce and support apprenticeship and training programmes into their business. He understands the extensive pressures the ceramics industry has faced, and continues to face, particularly with skills development and succession planning.

His background includes 10 years as a co-owner and Operations Director for a digital marketing agency (working with global brands like Apple, Wedgwood and Garmin), giving him a strong understanding of business processes, client relationship management and global marketing in challenging circumstances.

Since joining Axia in 2018 Ean initially focused on delivering apprenticeship training before taking responsibility for Axia’s own marketing and client management. Now his focus is on building strong partnerships with employers and managing key business processes. He remains connected to training delivery, leading sessions on topics like Digital Skills and Artificial intelligence to support learners with skills for the future.

Gilda is the Director of Programmes at Lucideon and “Midlands Advanced Ceramics for Industry 4.0” Programme Manager. She has 16 years’ experience in product development, scale up and collaboration across a variety of high value manufacturing sectors. The “Midlands Advanced Ceramics for Industry 4.0” Programme is funded by UKRI through their flagship funding scheme “Strength in Places” and brings together 13 partners across the Advanced Ceramics sector supply chain. The aim of the programme is to bring economical and social growth for the Advanced Ceramics sector in the Midlands through the acceleration of new product development and of innovation commercialisation.

Ben Gibbons, CEO, previously taught anthropology at the University of Oxford, before moving on to work for a range of international organisations in areas from water security, youth empowerment, and waste management.

Annalisa Gigante is an award winning innovator and Venture Capital investor, and board member of Cambridge Enterprise and IUP. She served as Chief Innovation and Technology Officer, launching and building multi-billion new businesses with global leaders across different industries from life sciences and chemicals to services and digital technologies. Annalisa started her career in consulting at Bain & Co in the consumer and retail practice, and is an advisor and thought leader in innovation, AI, leadership and corporate governance. She studied Natural Sciences at Cambridge University (BA hons, MA hons) and holds an MBA from Bocconi.

Mike has worked for a number of large organisations in leadership roles in construction and civil engineering, including Laing O’Rourke and Landsec. He has extensive experience of leading teams in technically challenging environments. He has a proven track record of delivery, is a known and respected leader within the construction industry and has the relationships with key organisations to drive adoption of Concretene by the developers and asset owners that procure construction in the UK.

Dr Cathryn Hickey – Chief Executive of AMRICC, and Director of Lucideon, the Advanced Materials consultancy based in North Staffordshire. Cathryn led the successful bid and is now Programme Director of the Strength in Places (SIPF) wave 2 programme entitled ‘Midlands Advanced Ceramics for Industry 4.0’ which was started in 2021.  This comprises a 5 year research programme with MICG partners as well as the development of The AMRICC Centre as a go-to facility for ceramics innovation commercialisation.  Cathryn is also leading Lucideon’s contribution to the Foundation Industries Sustainability Consortium (FISC) through its participation in the Economiser Programme.  This activity involves the implementation of data science and machine learning to key ceramics manufacturing sites to enable manufacturing process optimisation, and share learning with other foundation industries. Cathryn has a first class honours degree and PhD in Chemistry from University of Sheffield, 18 years experience in the downstream oil business and 10 years experience in vocational skills development for a variety of industries.

Brenna Howley is a UK and European Patent Attorney at Gill Jennings & Every LLP – a specialist intellectual property law firm based in London.  She is part of the Chemistry and Life Sciences group, and her work involves patent drafting, prosecution and advising on portfolio strategy. She has a particular interest in contentious matters, especially oppositions before the European Patent Office.

Brenna’s areas of specialism are predominantly in the chemical, materials, pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. She works with a diverse range of clients from start-ups, SMEs, investors and universities, to multinational corporations.

Prior to GJE, Brenna worked in-house at a biopharmaceutical company that develop CAR T-cell therapies for the treatment of cancer.

Brenna holds a BSc in Chemistry from the University of Glasgow, and a MSc in Management of Intellectual Property from Queen Mary University of London.  Her research focused on solid-state graphene oxide-metal hydride composites for hydrogen storage applications.”

Jon Hughes is a Senior Scientist at the National Physical Laboratory. He has worked in the field of materials testing for around 15 years and has specialised in the testing of composites. From 2016 to 2018, Jon worked at Red Bull Racing and developed and tested carbon fibre composites for the RB12, RB13 and RB14 Formula 1 cars. Jon re-joined the National Physical Laboratory in 2018 where he has helped take typical non-contact materials test techniques such as Digital Image Correlation out of the laboratory and into the field, where it is used to monitor large structures such as railway tunnels and nuclear infrastructure.

Danny Kamenecka is a Senior Business Development Manager at Blueshift, a market leader in thermal protection systems for harsh environments within aerospace, defense, and specialty electronics. A resident of Denver, Colorado, Kamenecka earned a degree in Material Science and Engineering from the University of Wisconsin – Madison in 2020.

Danny has worked with composites, and in the Material Science industry for 8+ years and has experience in both composite manufacturing and aerodynamic analysis, helping companies solve some of their most complex business challenges with thermal protection systems. He has been a part of the Blueshift team for over 5 years, and assisted the transformation from an early-stage start-up into an advanced materials company with flight and space-proven commercial products developed in collaboration with leading OEMs.

Timothy Kamps is a Tribologist in the Advanced Engineering Materials group at NPL. He is experienced in the design and analysis of laboratory experiments that quantify the friction and wear of lubricated interfaces. Timothy received his MEng & PhD degrees from the University of Southampton. Timothy is currently developing in situ contact and non-contact topography measurement technologies for both unidirectional and reciprocating tribometers. This capability provides high value tribology testing by reducing both the number and duration of tests required to investigate friction and wear phenomena.

Robert Kay is the CEO of Hydra Manufacturing and Professor of Advanced Manufacturing at the University of Leeds. With over 20 years of experience in manufacturing research, specialises in hybrid additive manufacturing approaches and the translation of academic research into real-world applications. His work has led to multiple patent applications, spinouts, and licensing activities. Robert’s collaborative, multidisciplinary approach crosses both academia and industry, covering a broad range of sectors. At Hydra Manufacturing, he now leads the commercialisation of advanced hybrid 3D printing technologies for high-performance materials including ceramics, continuing his commitment to bridging research and industry to drive technological progress.

Bio coming soon…

David is the Advanced Materials Lead at the National Composites Centre and currently chairs the UK-Ceramic Matrix Composite working group.

Prior to joining the NCC, David has worked in composite R&D at Solvay, Warwick Manufacturing Group, The University of Birmingham, and Rolls-Royce. His research has focused on both Ceramic and polymer matrix composites.

Tony Kinsella joined Lucideon in July 2004, bringing over 30 years’ experience in general management to his role. Tony is a qualified marketeer, strategist and leader and has a background in chemistry.  Tony has led Lucideon to its market-leading position as a development and commercialisation organisation (DCO), specialising in materials technology, processes, and testing.

His day-to-day role encompasses leading the Group and the Management Team and horizon scanning with a view to future proofing Lucideon alongside the CSO; and directing decisions on investments and spends.

Tony has lived and worked in the USA, Germany, South Africa, alongside the UK and brings his varied experience to his position as CEO and to his position as Director of Lucideon Group Ltd and all Lucideon companies.

Professor David Knowles joined the Henry Royce Institute as its CEO in early 2019, bringing with him a wealth of experience from senior roles in both academia and industry in the areas of materials and structural integrity. David is particularly experienced in leading the collaboration between higher education and industry, to accelerate energy sector-related research, knowledge transfer and implementation.

David is a Fellow of the Royal Academy, a Professor of Nuclear Engineering at Bristol University and was Co-Director of the South-West Nuclear Hub and Atkins Fellow. Through his career he has lead materials research at Shell Global Solutions, served as CTO at Quest Integrity (operating throughout Australasia and SE Asia) and lectured at Cambridge University; collaborating with Rolls-Royce as Assistant Director of their Ni-alloy UTC.

In recent years David has led industrial projects related to design and assessment of renewable energy offshore structures, oil and gas and nuclear plant. He holds and participates in several EPSRC/Innovate grants and is the PI on ‘SINDRI Prosperity Partnership’ which is developing cutting-edge digital technology for nuclear plant design and assessment.

Watercycle Technologies is a sustainable mineral recovery company that span out from the University of Manchester. They design and build end-to-end mineral recovery and water treatment systems, targeting core applications of lithium battery recycling, lithium brine mining and desalination. The company has an international profile and manufactures their systems in the UK.

Dr Seb Leaper, CEO of Watercycle Technologies, founded the company while studying for a PhD in Nanoscience from the Department of Chemical Engineering at the University of Manchester. With a background in Materials Science and Engineering, Seb’s scientific and technological interests span advanced materials, critical minerals extraction and water purification. He has a desire to use this knowledge to make a positive impact and address global concerns around resource security and the transition to a circular economy.

Dr Matt Lunt is a Dstl Chief Scientist in the field of Advanced Materials, focusing primarily on structural materials; I have about 30 years’ experience working in defence materials S&T. I am a Principal Advisor to the UK MOD’s Advanced Materials Programme, where I lead Theme 1 Materials in Extreme Physical Environments, which include Ceramic Matrix Composites. I am the Associate Director of Dstl’s new Defence Materials Centre of Excellence and a Chartered Engineer and Fellow of the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining. My deep technical expertise lies in jet engine propulsion materials, manufacturing and lifing and light alloys technology (aluminium, magnesium, titanium and beryllium). In 1998 I received a DPhil from the University of Oxford for research on the creep deformation of nickel-based superalloy single crystals, which was co-funded by EPSRC and DERA.

Dr Tom McDonald is a Reader in Sustainable Materials at the University of Manchester, jointly appointed in the Departments of Materials and Chemistry. His research focuses on sustainable colloids, polymers, and plastics, with current projects tackling plastic recycling, environmental nanoplastics, and the development of circular materials. Tom leads the Chemical Materials Design area at the Henry Royce Institute and serves as Head of Environmental Sustainability for the School of Natural Sciences. He collaborates extensively with industry and has been awarded over £10 million in research funding. Tom has published more than 70 peer-reviewed papers.

Dr. Subhasish Mukerjee is the Chief Scientific Officer at Ceres Power, a leading clean energy technology company in the UK.  Dr Mukerjee has worked at Ceres for 13+ years in multiple technology leadership roles where he has led the R&D programs, managed the Energy Materials R&D teams and provided key technical leadership in the commercial growth of the company. Dr Mukerjee was part of the team at Ceres which won the prestigious MacRoberts award by the Royal Academy of Engineering in the UK in 2023, the highest award for engineering innovation by the academy. He is also an honorary Visiting Professor at Imperial College, London.  Dr. Mukerjee has extensive (27+ years) experience in clean energy technologies and has worked previously at BP Chemicals and at Delphi Corporation.  He gained his PhD at Yale University and postdoctoral fellowship at Harvard University.

Ash Owen is Head of Future Technology at Rolls-Royce. This team is focused on accelerating disruptive technology into the RR business, owns the Environmental technology brief including the support for ICAO’s CAEP process and owns the RR-University research network. He is the Rolls-Royce Director on the UK’s Sustainable Aviation Council.

Ash also supports the Rolls-Royce Heritage Flight as Chief Engineer for Griffon & Merlin engines.

His previous role was Chief Engineer – Civil Technology Programmes where his team delivered many gas turbine demonstrators and the ACCEL project which set the electric world speed record.  Before that he has been Chief Engineer Trent 700, Engineering Executive Compressor Engineering and Managing Director for a composite R&D centre.

Ash studied Aeronautical Engineering in Manchester University.

Born in Wales, he lives in Derbyshire, UK. He is married with a 22 year old daughter and enjoys cycling, hill walking, swimming and scuba diving holidays.

Daniel Palme, CEO of HalioGen, is at the forefront of breakthrough battery technology aiding the green energy transition and addressing challenges in Long-Duration Energy Storage (LDES) and Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS). He pioneers innovative solutions that empower clients to achieve sustainable energy goals. Based in London, Daniel specializes in ESG and sustainability transformations for private equity funds through comprehensive decarbonization strategies. Previously, he led the Metals, Mining & Advanced Materials advisory desk at a German bank and has experience at Schneider Electric, AlixPartners, UBS, and Morgan Stanley.

Bio coming soon…

• • Andrius Patapas is the Co-founder and CEO of 2D Nano, a cutting-edge production company specialising in graphene and other two-dimensional materials for deep tech applications. With a strong academic foundation in chemical engineering, Andrius holds a BEng, MSc, and PhD in the field, combining technical expertise with entrepreneurial drive to advance innovation in advanced materials.
    He is also a Research Associate at Imperial College London, working at the intersection of academia and industry to develop scalable, real-world technologies. His leadership at 2D Nano reflects a commitment to pioneering next-generation solutions that harness the unique properties of 2D materials across sectors including construction, energy, electronics, and biomedical engineering.

Yiwen Pei is a Senior Scientist in the Surface Technology Group at NPL. Yiwen is a multidisciplinary scientist with over 15 years’ experience in the design, synthesis and characterisation of advanced polymeric (nano)materials. At NPL, she leads research into the development of chemical metrology underpinning innovative polymer technologies for medical applications and beyond, with a growing focus on sustainable materials and manufacturing.

Yiwen obtained her PhD in Chemistry from the University of Auckland (New Zealand). After her PhD she worked as a post-doctoral researcher at University of New South Wales and Curtin University (Australia). In 2016, she moved to the UK and worked at Kings College London and University College London before joining NPL in 2018.

Yiwen has been the main coordinator (PI) of European projects (EMPIR ISOCONCur) and led/participated on several other national and international collaborative R&D projects. She has been the recipient of the NPL’s Explorers’ Award in 2019, which recognises and supports excellence in science and engineering.

Yiwen has authored over 40 peer-reviewed publications and regularly contributes to ISO and ASTM standards. She is the co-leader of nanomedicine focus group in Academy of Pharmaceutical Sciences. She also acts as a UK expert for ISO/TC 229 (nanotechnologies) and CEN/TC 352 (nanotechnologies).

Yiwen is a charted chemist and a member of Royal Society of Chemistry.

Jonathan Phillips plays a key role in driving innovation and operational excellence within Morgan Advanced Materials. With a strong background in materials science and engineering, he specializes in the development and application of advanced materials for diverse industries. Jonathan’s expertise lies in optimizing processes, improving product performance, and fostering collaborative relationships with customers, academia, and suppliers to address complex challenges. At Morgan Advanced Materials, he is committed to leveraging cutting-edge technology to create sustainable, high-performance technical ceramic solutions that meet the evolving needs of customers across various sectors.

James is a Senior Technologist at the Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI) and is currently leading the UK Aerospace Metallics Strategy through this role.  As part of the technology team within the ATI, James shapes the ATI programme to deliver the technologies that will achieve the ATI’s strategic goals as outlined in Destination Zero.  Before joining the ATI, James spent 12 years working for Rolls-Royce, delivering life improvements for critical rotating parts, developing new materials, and contributing statistical analysis to quantify safety cases.  James later managed the Rolls-Royce University Technology Centres for Materials, overseeing key research undertaken in the UK’s leading universities to bring about the next generation of materials technologies for gas turbine application.

Dr Ehsan Sabet is an associate professor of Ceramics AM at Loughborough University and the founder and CEO of Additive Manufacturing Centre of Excellence, the biggest ceramic 3D printing facility in Europe with over two hundred ceramic printers and a full material development and a characterisation facility in Derby, UK.  Ehsan has twenty years of experience in research and manufacturing in material development and 3D printing. His track record of managing multi-million pounds industrial and research projects has made impacts in the supply chain of Rolls Royce (RR), SIEMENS, Jaguar & Land Rover (JLR), JCB Compact Systems, and General Motors (GM), as well as many small and medium-sized manufacturers in the UK and Europe.

At Ploughshare, Kalyan leads the commercialisation of inventions and innovation from Dstl, the wider MOD network and the UK government in the field of Climate, Environment and Sustainability. He has recently joined Arthur D Little as a Non-executive Advisor for their London office, and is an Advisory Board member for Innegev, a start-up technology incubator organisation where he advocates for the development of sustainable technologies across a wide range of sectors. Kalyan also manages Ploughshare’s partnership and service contract with The National Oceanography Centre and The Met Office.

Following his PhD in nanotechnology from the University of Cambridge, he worked across the UK, Europe, the USA, Israel, Singapore, China, and in Southeast Asia. He has also completed a senior executive programme in Strategy and Innovation from MIT and IMD, and is a fellow at the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining (IOM3).

Prior to joining Ploughshare, he headed the delivery of the CTO’s corporate venturing implementation strategy of a FTSE 250 chemical company. He developed open innovation assets, ecosystems and capabilities in various geographies to identify external projects, and built technology portfolios to support the development of future products and markets. He also worked for UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) as a Global Innovation lead. In this role, he was responsible for providing expert advice on European funding in Nanotechnology and Advanced Materials, and represented the UK at the Programme Committee and High-Level Advisory Group of the European Commission’s (EC) Directorate of Research and Innovation. He had the opportunity to work on many strategic projects with various European government agencies, industries and research organisations.

Olivier joined Hitachi Hitachi High-Tech Analytical Science Ltd. in September 2019 as the thermal analysis sales manager for EMEA.  He has since taken ownership of the global thermal analysis product manager role.  Before joining Hitachi, Olivier worked as a material characterization application specialist for PerkinElmer UK and Canada.  He obtained his baccalaureate in chemistry (B.SC.) from Université Laval (Québec City, Québec) in 2002, and his master in polymer chemistry (M.SC.) from Simon Fraser University (Burnaby, British Columbia) working with Prof. Steven Holdcroft. In his thesis he worked on the synthesis and characterization of novel sulfonated polyimides for high temperature proton exchange member fuel cells.

Co-founder of NanoRegMed Ltd and Nanoloom Ltd. Alexander, Professor of Nanotechnology, worked at the Royal Free Hospital and University College London for over 26 years; during this time, he spent a year at Harvard Medical School working on the development of synthetic vascular compliance graft and one year at Johns Hopkins Medical School. He published more than 687 peer-reviewed research papers and registered 14 UK and International patents on materials and nanotechnology. On editorial boards of 45 journals. He supervised 121 PhD students, all successfully completed. Currently, he is working on graphene-based materials for industrial applications.

Simon has 30 years’ experience within aerospace and manufacturing, working for SMEs and large aerospace organisations. Time served on the bench, he has extensive knowledge of manufacturing and engineering processes, providing a sound footing to progress through various engineering, project and commercial roles within the industry.

A passion for aerospace has driven Simon to build a network within aerospace spanning large organisations, OEMs, supply chain partners and trade associations. He plays an active role as a board member of the Midlands Aerospace Alliance and is committed to supporting the advancement of innovation, sustainability and competitive advantage across the aero-structures sector.

Mandar Thakare is the Associate Director of ICAM. He joined bp in Sep 2019, as the Materials Science Programme Manager in Group Research, and is responsible for the operational aspects of the ICAM partnership. He has over ten years’ experience in materials engineering, innovation strategy and new product development. Prior to joining bp, he worked as an Innovation Programme Lead at Element Six Ltd., where he supported a multi-site global team of scientists in developing and commercialising novel polycrystalline diamond products for oil and gas applications. As part of this role, he was closely involved in developing cutters for a range of O&G drilling applications across the globe, working closely with field users and drill-bit manufacturers.

He holds a BEng in Mechanical Engineering (Mumbai, India), MSc in Surface Engineering (University of Nottingham), a PhD in Tribology (University of Southampton, Schlumberger plc funded) and an MBA (Alliance Manchester Business School). Prior to Element Six Ltd., he held a post-doctoral research position at the Osney Thermofluids Lab, University of Oxford, working closely with Rolls-Royce plc on gas turbine seals. During this period, he also tutored undergraduates in Engineering Science at St. Catherine’s College, Oxford. After his PhD, he worked for Schlumberger plc, developing wear-corrosion resistant solutions for downhole directional drilling systems. During this period, he was responsible for identifying and qualifying coatings and materials solutions for Schlumberger tools deployed globally, through new suppliers and technologies. He has published journal papers, book chapters and conference papers on the subject of tribocorrosion and is a member of the IMechE Tribology Committee as well as a reviewer for journals such as Wear, Tribology International, ASME Journal of Tribology.

Rachel is a Policy Manager at Ceramics UK and manages a range of areas including skills and employment. After studying Politics at Lancaster University, she went on to work in the political field for a number of years in London before moving back to Cheshire; she has been at Ceramics UK for 6 years.

Dr. Aphrodite Tomou, as the Head of Technical at Goodfellow, oversees a global team of scientists and engineers. Her role involves identifying and introducing innovative materials, while providing technical support to both customers and the company. With a diverse background in Materials Science, including a PhD and two Masters’ degrees, she has published scientific papers in peer-reviewed international journals and presented as an invited speaker at international conferences. She actively contributes to the fields of Science and Engineering, participating in organizations such as Innovate UK, IOM3, and driving material research standardization through BSI. In 2023, she earned recognition as an Exemplar (Top 20) in The Manufacturer’s Top 100 in the UK. Her aim is to radiate Goodfellow’s technical knowledge and bridge the gap between academia and industry sectors.

Dr Tom Whitehead leads the Science Team at Intellegens. Tom has a PhD in theoretical physics from the University of Cambridge and extensive experience of practical applications of machine learning in industry. His team works closely with R&D teams in the materials, chemicals, and manufacturing sectors to understand their product and process development problems and to apply the Intellegens technology to accelerate innovation. Tom is also active in the development of new machine learning methodologies to address high-value data analysis bottlenecks.

Sebastian Wood joined NPL in 2015 following undergraduate and doctoral studies in the Physics Department at Imperial College London. His initial research was in the field of nanoscale structure-function characterisation of organic semiconductors for photovoltaic applications. In his role at NPL, Sebastian has developed a unique facility for nanometrology of emerging electronics including structural, functional, chemical, and optical measurement modes. He has applied these techniques to hybrid perovskites, nanostructured semiconductors, 2D materials, and compound semiconductors for a variety of device applications.

Sebastian is a member of the Institute of Physics, a Chartered Physicist, and contributes to British and International Standardisation committees on Surface Chemical Analysis and Semiconductors. He is an enthusiastic communicator of physics, with experience presenting his work to a wide range of audiences from primary school children to Members of Parliament.

Dr. Zeshan Yousaf is an Application Specialist within the Composites area at the Graphene Engineering Innovation Centre (GEIC), University of Manchester. His work at GEIC focuses on leveraging 2D materials to enhance the multifunctionality and lightweighting of textiles, polymer composites, metal matrix composites, and ceramics.

Dr. Yousaf earned his PhD in Materials Science from the University of Manchester in 2015. His doctoral research involved the development and characterization of novel lightweight glass/carbon fibre composites for automotive and aerospace applications. Following his PhD, he has collaborated on numerous research projects with industrial manufacturers and R&D organizations worldwide, developing ultra-lightweight composites for applications in aerospace, defence, marine, and other sectors. Prior to his PhD, he worked in R&D at a vertically integrated textile company for several years, developing textile structures for various applications.

Dr. Yu Yu is the Lead Researcher at Almath Crucibles Ltd.

With a background in Materials Science and Engineering (BSc, MSc, and PhD), she specialises in developing, characterising, and manufacturing advanced ceramics for applications in nuclear technology, energy conversion and storage, and green metal production and recycling.

She leads Innovate UK and industry-funded research projects at Almath and works closely with university partners to support innovation in these areas.