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).

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 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.

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.

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.

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 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.

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 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.

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.

Speakers

Andrew Lynch

António Braz Costa *

António Pontes

Blaž Nardin **

Cláudia Novo

CENTIMFE / EROFIO GROUP

Cornelia Rojacher *

Daniel Sánchez

AIJU - Energy & Advanced Manufacturing

David Afonso

Denis Rodrigue *

Elsa Henriques ***

Enric Fontdecaba

Gonçalo Tomé

CENTIMFE / CIE PLASFIL

Luís Santos

Nuno Ferreira

Olli Hatakka

Pedro Alberto **

Pedro Dominguinhos **

Rui Marcelino **

Rui Soares

Rui Tocha

Saltanat Seitzhan

Torsten Urban **

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