ConnectING International 4 - December 2022

• Cooperation with Siemens Industry Academy

• CoMove IT builds smart wheel chair

• 25 years lab for Lighting Technology

• Teaching Lifelong Learning

• Sustainable Engineering in an IoT World

• Functional Materials tackle bacteria

• The added value of Additive Manufacturing

• An Oscar for the greenest film?

• A philosophical look at Artificial Intelligence

ROYAL SUPPORT FOR SOLAR TEAM

It is well known that H.M. King Philippe of Belgium faithfully supports the Belgian Solar Team. During the iLumen European Solar Challenge on 17 and 18 September, the monarch personally encouraged the Leuven engineering students at the Zolder circuit. The European championship is the only 24-hour endurance race for solar cars in the world and is organised by iLumen, the engineering firm of Ismaël Ben-al-lal, former Solar team member and alumnus of Group T Campus. Unfortunately, for the current team members, the royal pat on the back was of little avail. Due to rain and electrical problems, the Belgian solar car finished in sixth place.

COLOPHON

ConnectING is the magazine of the Faculty of Engineering Technology of KU Leuven. It is published three times a year and is intended for all students and staff of the faculty and its 7 campuses, alumni, external relations and the broad social field with which the faculty maintains a network.

Responsible publisher: Prof. Bert Lauwers, Dean of the Faculty of Engineering Technology | Editorial Board: Anja Huysmans (Madam Chairman), (Hilde Bonte) Kris Henrioulle a.i., Dorine Bruneel, Niels De Brier, Koen Eneman, Hilde Lauwereys, Bert Lauwers, Yves Persoons, Inge Van Cauter, Louis van Hoye, Rens Vervaeke Editor: Yves Persoons | Editorial Secretariat: Inge Van Cauter

Editorial Adress: ConnectING Faculty of Engineering Technology Willem de Croylaan 56, building E, bus 2203 3001 Heverlee (Belgium) +00 32 53 72 71 86 (Secretariat) connecting@kuleuven.be  www.fet.kuleuven.be

Photos: Jadon Beerlandt, Yasmina Besseghir, Tine Desodt, Kurt Desplenter, Joren De Weerdt, Julie Feyaerts, Kobe Michiels, Tom Talloen, Johan Van Droogenbroeck, Filip Van Loock

Layout and printing Office:  artoos group – www.artoosgroup.eu

FACULTY BOOSTS INTERNATIONAL PROFILE

In 2023, the Faculty of Engineering Technology will celebrate its tenth anniversary. From the start, work has been done to develop an international profile in education, research and services. This manifests itself in an increasing number of Englishlanguage programmes, international research projects, student exchanges and cooperation with partner universities worldwide. The figures show that we are on the right track with our internationalisation policy. This academic year, the number of international students increased by 14%, double the university average. On the Leuven campus, international students are even in the majority in the first bachelor year. They represent no less than 80 different nationalities. Among PhD students, we see the same trend: half come from abroad, over 70% of them from outside the EU.

What drives students from all over the world to register at our faculty? A survey of international starters shows that they are mainly attracted by ‘the practice-based approach’, followed by the level of ‘technical skills’ and ‘interaction with the professional field’. Decisive factors in the study choice were ‘KU Leuven’s place in the international rankings’, ‘the content of the courses’ and ‘the professional options with the degree’. The prestige of our university, the quality of our education and the extensive future and career prospects we offer are motivating more and more young people to leave their home countries and become KU Leuven students.

In this overview issue, we highlight professors, researchers, students and alumni who have worked to raise the international profile of our faculty and its campuses in 2022. Best practices undoubtedly include the successful 29th Conference on Life Cycle Engineering and the 9th Conference on Assembling Technology & Systems, both under the auspices of the International Academy for Production Engineering (CIRP), a leading organisation in production engineering research that unites more than 600 academics and industrialists. Other eyecatchers were the smart wheel chair built by spin-off CoMove IT and the launch of two new international programmes: the Advanced Master of Artificial Intelligence in Business & Industry and the Postgraduate Smart Operations & Maintenance in Industry.

In this issue, we also pay attention to the researchers working on lifelong learning programmes and the development of polymers for the production of smart wound dressings with diagnostic and antimicrobial capacities. Furthermore, we reflect on the structural embedding of business practice in training through the collaboration with the Siemens Industry Academy. This should lead to moments or periods in every year of the programme where the students will be immersed in engineering

practice. Intensive cooperation with industry is also one of the strengths of the Lab for Lighting Technology, which celebrates its 25th anniversary this year.

Of course, the student teams did not leave themselves out in international competitions in 2022: the Solar team in Africa, Formula Electric Belgium on the European racing circuits and the iGEM team in the international synthetic biology competition in Paris. They were joined this year by two new strongly internationally oriented teams: Aether and Neurotech Leuven. We proudly introduce them in this issue.

That alumni are our best ambassadors at home and abroad has been confirmed again this year. Graduates from our campuses won prestigious awards, make careers in business and academia or are entrepreneurs in sectors where you would not immediately expect an engineer such as agility, self-management or sociocracy to name a few. They are examples of the versatility and multi-purpose of engineers trained on our campuses.

By the way, innovative ideas and projects are not only born from international cooperation. Where young people from different continents and cultures meet, feelings also germinate, from close friendship to true love. Witness this George & Jesheena in this country and Stijn and Sophie in the States. With their warm story, we end a dark and chilly year in beauty.

Professor Bert Lauwers Dean of the Faculty of Engineering Technology

DEAN OF THE FACULTY & PRESIDENT OF THE ACADEMY

Prof. Bert Lauwers, Dean of the Faculty of Engineering Technology and prof. Hans Nørgaard Hansen, Head of Department of Mechanical Engineering at the Technical University of Denmark

From August 2022, Professor Bert Lauwers, Dean of the Faculty of Engineering Technology, is the new President of the prestigious and exclusive International Academy for Production Engineering (CIRP). At the General Assembly in Bilbao (Spain) he has taken over the torch from Professor Hans Hansen, head of the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the Technical University of Denmark.

CIRP is a world leading organization in production engineering research. It is in the forefront of design, optimization, control and management of processes, machines, and systems. CIRP aims to promote research and development related to manufactu ring processes, prod uction equipment and automation, manufacturing systems and product design. The Academy’s main publications are the

CIRP Annals-Manufacturing Technology and the CIRP-Journal of Manufacturing Science and Technology. Furthermore, CIRP owns a number of conferences with related proceedings that are available online.

“CIRP is committed to the digitization of industry and digital manufacturing and engineering,” explains Prof. Lauwers. “Therefore, key research areas, emerging topics and advanced techniques are addressed, such as modelling and simulation, artificial intelligence, big data analysis, machine learning, smart robots and sensors, cybersecurity, cybe rphysical systems, advanced manufacturi ng technologies, sma rt sustainable materials, nanotechnology, and biomaterials as well as biosensors and bio-actuator. As education plays a leading role in technological progress and economic growth, CIRP is committed to promoting quality education linked to digital manufacturing and engineering.”

Committees

Within CIRP, ten Scientific Technical Committees are active, including Life Cycle Engineering & Assembly, ElectroPhysical and Chemical Processes, Precise Engineering & Metrology and Design. The Academy has restricted membership based on demonstrated excellence in research. Currently, CIRP counts some six hundred worldwide academic and industrial members. “CIRP may be an academic organization in the first instance, but this does not prevent the Academy from fully encouraging cooperation with industry”, Pr of. Lauwers continues “Therefore, some 150 companies, called corporate members, follow the research work of the academic members and contribute to the information exchange by presenting their views on specific themes or needs”.

Policy

In his maiden speech as new president, Prof. Lauwers stressed the importance of continuity and the contributions of all members. “Let it be clear that the work done by small groups and even individual members as well is indispensable and should be highly appreciated.”

As president of CIRP, Prof. Lauwers strongly commits to sustainability. “The challenge of digital manufacturing -from the scientific and educational point of view- must reflect the core concern of achieving a better and more sustainable future as stated in the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN. Moreover, CIRP’s vision of sustainability should also be translated into the daily practice of our education and research, but also the way we run the Academy.”

Reflection

Finally, the new president called the members to reflect on the future of the orga nization itself. “Are we properly prepared for the uncertain future and the rapidly changing world? Are we sufficiently in touch with the thinking and acting of the younger generations? Do we know the expectations of Gen Z in a society in w hich everybody and everything is connected but at the same time also deeply divided? Has the time not come to track down new talent: experts and researchers from countries and regions that are currently under-represented?”

Many questions, even more challenges. Prof. Lauwers’ presidency heralds a promising period in which action and reflection together will set the course for a new era.

Yves Persoons 

www.cirp.net

FACULTY OF ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGY AND SIEMENS ACADEMY STEP UP COOPERATION

Engineer is more than ever a bottleneck profession. Quantitatively and qualitatively. An enforced collaboration between the academic and the business world can offer solace. In the Siemens Industry Academy, the Faculty of Engineering Technology at KU Leuven and some fifty industrial players in Flanders have found each other.

Companies are begging for engineers. Over 3,000 vacancies for technology engineers are not getting filled. “The problem is twofold,” says Prof. Bert Lauwers, dean of the faculty. “On the one hand, there has been too little intake of young people into engineering faculties for years. On the other hand, efforts are needed to bring students into contact with engineering practice earlier and more intensively. Together with the Siemens Industry Academy, we want to kill two birds with one stone: offer an engineering education that is attractive to both prospective students and the purchasing market.”

“Through the Academy and using our expertise, materials and tools, Siemens aims to bring students and educational

institutions closer to the job market,” notes Eddy Nelis, Senior Vice-President of Siemens. “Our investment in education leads to a stronger new generation of engineers, which is crucial to support the economy. Conversely, industry also benefits from the valorisation of scientific research at universities and the timely detection of young talent.”

Internships

In 2019, KU Leuven became the first Belgian university to step into the Siemens Industry Academy. Students from the Faculty of Engineering Technology kicked off. Twenty-four third-year students from Group T Campus were linked to ten hightech companies for a so-called internship as part of their Engineering Experience. The teams’ assignment was to design an

automated machine at one of the partner companies. The tasks and responsibilities were neatly divided. Siemens vouched for the automation, digitisation technology and technical training. The industrial partners were responsible for project definition, professional skills training and coaching by a company mentor. And the campus took care of administrative handling and evaluation coordination.

This collaboration is now being greatly expanded. At each stage of the programme, there will be moments or periods when students will be immersed in engineering practice. This ranges from job shadowing by freshmen over guest lectures and company visits to an engineering experience in company, master’s theses and an internship.

Embed “The great added value of these formulas is that future engineers acquire not only technical knowledge but also crucial ‘professional skills’ with which they can make a difference in their careers as well as already in their education,” Prof. Lauwers said.

This structural embedding of business reality should also make the programme more attractive to young people. “If they can experience from the outset how varied and fascinating the engineering profession really is, they will also feel more attracted to the study programme because it reflects it,” Prof. Lauwers believes.

There is a growing belief in companies that they have a part to play in the choice

of study and training of future engineers. “Engineers are indispensable in the economy. The industry has everything to gain from the timely detection of young talent and an increased inflow into the labour market,” concludes Thierry Van Eeckhout, Vice-President Sales of Siemens Digital Industries. Yves Persoons

© Johan Van Droogenbroeck

Prof. Bert Lauwers, Garo Tombazian and Thierry Van Eeckhout © Johan Van Droogenbroeck

TECHNOVATION HUB CELEBRATES INNOVATIVE ENTREPRENEURSHIP

Technological innovation, community building, and entrepreneurship are the key values of Technovation Hub. During the annual Innovation & Networking Evening, they literally come to life and inspire future engineering entrepreneurs to keep surpassing themselves. The event on 17 May 2022 provided a true explosion of youthful enthusiasm and creative energy.

The expressive architecture of the brand-new Quadrivium on Arenberg III Campus provided the perfect setting for the annual high mass of innovative entrepreneurship at the Science, Technology & Engineering Group of KU Leuven. All student teams that belong to Technovation Hub turned out with an animated workshop.

From established names such as the Agoria Solar Team, Formula Electric Belgium, Core and iGEM and newcomers such as Aether, Circl-E and Neurotech Leuven, to start-ups in the making. “It was a great opportunity for the large audience to get to know the full range of young, organised entrepreneurial talent within the faculty,” says Ellen Demarsin, day-to-day manager of Technovation Hub.

“And the teams, they enjoyed sharing their passion with the guests and each other”.

Breeding ground

Hannah Gunsch, a student of the Postgraduate Tech Innovation In Ventures & Teams (TechInVenT) and in the start-up team herself, immediately set the tone. “We have all been looking forward to this event. Not only to show off our progress, but also to learn from each other. Technovation Hub is a breeding ground for creative engineering and entrepreneurial talent. Here, new ideas are hatched and nurtured into mature business plans. At events like this, the expertise of seasoned teams is injected into newcomers, creating a cycle of sustainable cross-fertilisation. Events like this are an example of circular entrepreneurship of, for and by engineers”.

Role model

Visibly impressed by Hannah’s enthusiasm, Prof. Gerard Govers, Vice-Rector Science, Engineering and Technology, officially opened the evening. The ViceRector called the student teams that operate within Technovation Hub and the postgraduate TechInVenT role models for current and future engineers. “They show how essential engineering skills can be acquired outside the lecture halls and classrooms. And for the younger generation, they are living proof that engineering is quite fun”.

In his speech, the Vice-Rector expressed his concern about the ongoing shortage of engineers. “People talk about the future of society and the world, but hardly ever ask questions about how it will happen, what it will cost and especially who will do it and ensure that know-how is built up and disseminated. Then you inevitably end up with the engineers. If it turns out that there are too few of them, you can put your ambitious plans on hold”.

Convergence

Keynote speaker Xavier Werbrouck, CEO of software company Infinite/CadCorner and partner of Technovation Hub, also talked about the engineering shortage. He called it one of the major threats of the moment along with the scarcity of goods and rising prices. The keynote itself dealt with the convergence of the physical and digital worlds, one of the important consequences of the digital transformation. “Those who hesitate to adapt to the digital reality will soon see their customers leave for the competitors. Because the customer is not waiting anymore. Companies that do not evolve with them will suffer the same fate as Kodak, which disappeared from the scene ten years ago”.

Concrete examples of the physical and digital convergence, according to Xavier Werbrouck, are the applications of augmented reality (AR) in product development, service and training and the use of digital twins. Infinite/CadCorner is currently working with the Agoria Solar Team on the optimisation of parts of the Blue Point Atlas solar car. Through digital twins, the forces to which the suspension is subjected are determined. According to Ellen Demarsin, the project can serve as a model for partnerships with high-tech companies. “This involves both setting up innovation challenges and initiatives that are beneficial to all partners”.

 www.technovationhub.be

Yves Persoons

©Filip Van Loock

FACULTY LAUNCHES NEW INTERNATIONAL POLICY PLAN

The Faculty of Engineering Technology has invested resources and staff in developing an international strategic plan from its founding onwards. The previous five-year international strategic plan 2016-2021 was under review in the middle of a pandemic situation with international collaboration almost reduced to zero. Nevertheless, the Vice-dean for International Affairs, Professor Koen Eneman and his team did not hesitate to renew the international engagement. Together with the Faculty Council for International Policy (FCIP), he developed a new vision for the coming five years.

The context for international relations has changed, so our faculty approach and strategy are facing up to the new challenges and opportunities. The pandemic situation of the past two years has yielded some important international insights: digitisation is here to stay in all fields of international collaboration, new formats for mobility are proliferating, and multiculturality and international competences are at the forefront of the learning outcomes of our study programmes.

The new policy plan builds upon the realisations of the previous one and on the international mission statement that was adopted in 2015. The international activities in our faculty are geared towards four levels: students, staff, the organization as a whole and our role in society. The basic principle is that internationalisation is a transversal action, which permeates all activities in education, research and services in the faculty. Internationalisation is not a goal, but a means to higher quality in each of these four levels.

Motor of innovation

The international mission statement starts from the assumption that our graduate engineers can function well in an intercultural environment. Professors and staff are actively coaching the students and work in an international context whereby internationalisation is a motor for innovation in education and research.

The faculty creates the necessary framework to allow these international activities to develop. It facilitates international activities by a specific human resource policy, by a strategic partner policy, the necessary services, and financial means.

The strategic targets for students for the period up to 2025 focus on developing intercultural competences for our graduate students. All students graduating in Engineering Technology must be able to function in an international and intercultural context.

The post-covid era urges us to think of new ways of achieving these targets such as blended and virtual mobility, COIL (Collaborative Online International Learning), international student challenges etc. In this respect, several concrete actions were set up such as participation in the UNA EUROPA student hackathon (July 2021) or the blended intensive programme “Sustainable energy in an IoT world” (March 2022).

Partner universities

Another strategic choice lies in the increase of the faculty’s English-taught course offering at Master level (in addition to the unique English-taught ‘Bachelor of Engineering Technology’). At the moment, our faculty boasts 8 master’s programmes and 3 advanced master’s programmes in English. A new working group on international recruitment, founded by the FCIP, is taking concrete actions for these study programmes, such as an online recruitment evening.

The new policy plan furthermore includes actions geared towards staff, with specific attention to support for the integration of our increasing group of international staff. An online networking event to address questions from our international staff and doctoral students in May 2021 proved to be very successful.

International collaboration builds upon a strong network of international partner universities and there also the faculty is making some important choices. The international partner plan has been reviewed and updated with an increased attention for the development of several strategic partnerships. The faculty’s educational programme committees (POCs) have been involved in a discussion to work towards an appropriate partner policy, both for EU and non-EU partners. The ongoing operation in the POCs will result in a pilot project for course package semesters later in 2022. This in-depth curriculum comparison can yield important insights for the ongoing curriculum reforms in our faculty.

International campuses

New formats for mobility, increased attention for international master’s programmes and a pilot project for course packages are three actions that are at the forefront of international activities in the ongoing year. Professor Koen Eneman, together with Hilde Lauwereys, the Domain Coordinator for Internationalisation will also monitor the quality of all activities by a set of quality indicators (figures are an important basis for data-based policy). They will, based on the results of the international quality indicators, define an annual action plan with priorities for that year.

Building on international campuses is a long and winding road, the faculty’s new international policy plan is an important corner stone to achieve this goal.

Eneman Hilde Lauwereys

Koen

Hilde Lauwereys and prof. Koen Eneman © Julie Feyarts

CoMoveIT BUILDS SMART WHEELCHAIR

“Providing the greatest possible independent mobility for people with complex movement disorders”. That is the mission of KU Leuven - Bruges’ first spin-off, the result of the symbiosis of the faculties of Movement and Rehabilitation Sciences and Engineering Technology that share the campus as well as the Faculty of Bioscience Engineering. In September 2021, CoMoveIT launched a smart control system for wheelchairs that uses sensors and artificial intelligence. Prof. Elegast Monbaliu (Faculty of Movement and Rehabilitation Sciences) explains.

Did you know that one in five hundred children are born with cerebral palsy? Over 30% of them will never be able to walk independently and thus depend on a wheelchair. According to Prof. Monbaliu, we are talking about 7,000 to 8,000 people who are effectively trapped in their own bodies for life. “Their intellectual ability functions well in most cases, but motor problems restrict their freedom of movement. On top of that, because of their condition, they make a lot of uncontrolled and inconsistent movements that do not really enable them to smoothly operate an electric wheelchair with a joystick. Consequently, they rely on the help of others for most movements.”

The wheelchair control system was developed together with the team of Prof. Hans Hallez (Faculty of Engineering Technology Bruges Campus) and Prof. Jean-Marie Aerts (Faculty of Bioscience engineering) and does give these people substantial independent mobility. Because the system continuously adapts and learns, even users with complex disorders are able to control their wheelchair independently. “For them, the world literally and figuratively opens up,” Prof. Monbaliu said.

Cross-pollination

Elegast Monbaliu studied Kinesitherapy and Rehabilitation Sciences at KU Leuven. He has always managed to combine his clinical work in care institutions with an academic career. A cross-pollination that has always benefited both his professional and scientific work.

“In the paediatric neurorehabilitation research line at Bruges Campus, we initially developed programmes to evaluate and teach wheelchair steering skills. We found that there was a need

for more user-friendly operating equipment for users with complex movement disorders. This led us to the idea of moving away from the difficult-to-handle joystick and designing a system that the user can control with the head and feet. Sensors register the pressure exerted by these body parts and steer the wheelchair in the desired direction.”

“We solved the problem of uncontrolled movements using AI,” Prof. Monbaliu continues. “That enables the control system to recognise and compensate for such movements. This makes the wheelchair move fluidly and no longer with jerks. The bottom line is that the user only needs help to get in or out of the wheelchair. All the rest he or she can do themselves”.

Customised CoMoveIT’s control system is currently only available in a standard version. “Nothing is stopping us from adding new functionalities in term,” says Prof. Monbaliu. “Think of sensors that register stress and temperature or measure speed. Also a port for speech recognition can be built in. Through the internet, electric wheelchairs can be connected and exchange information. By means of such accessories, the user can personalise his/her wheelchair according to desire or need.”

This of course raises the question of cost. Is a high-tech wheelchair from CoMoveIT still affordable for the average user? Prof. Monbaliu believes so. “There is no significant price difference compared to other alternative control systems on the market, except for the joystick. Moreover, the intelligent wheelchair is also fully reimbursed by the health insurance fund as an innovative product.”

Health & Tech Campus

The new spin-off is housed in Bruges.Inc, the incubator through which the city and province of West Flanders are bringing health and technology into action. CoMoveIT also fits perfectly into the expansion plans of Bruges Campus and the development of a Health & Tech Campus.

Finally, do not expect a big showroom at CoMoveIT with lots of sales people and demonstration models. “The marketing, sales and distribution is in the hands of specialised companies like VIGO,” Prof. Monbaliu explains. “There, the CoMoveIT Smart is

installed on existing wheelchair models. Through our CoMoveIT Academy, we do remain active in training therapists and technicians, so that they can provide the best service and guidance to users.”

Yves Persoons

www.comoveit.com

Frederik Vervenne (CEO), Sotirios Gakopoulos (PhD) and prof. Elegast Monbaliu (CCO) © Kurt Desplenter

Prof. Davy Pissoort and Jorie Soltic © Tom Talloen

POSTGRADUATE SMART OPERATIONS & MAINTENANCE IN INDUSTRY

Interuniversity and embedded. Those are two major strengths of the postgraduate ‘Smart Operations & Maintenance in Industry’ that started in September 2022. The programme is organised by KU Leuven and Ghent University and taught by mixed teaching teams. Moreover, it is the precursor to an Advanced Master of the same name. Prof. Davy Pissoort, Programme Director and Jorie Soltic, Programme Coordinator, explain.

State-of-the-art technology in two historical cities in Europe’, is how the new study programme profiles itself at home and abroad. The historical name and fame of the twin cities Bruges and Kortrijk need no further explanation. Prof. Davy Pissoort does have something to say about the state-ofthe-art technology. “The qualification ‘smart’ is crucial. This refers to the digital transformation that is currently taking place in all sectors of the economy. Information and data technologies are now an integral part of modern manufacturing and the associated operations and maintenance. The latter, in turn, have become inseparable. Maintenance allows operational processes to run as smoothly and undisturbed as possible by ensuring that all equipment and infrastructure required for production is always functioning 100% efficiently. Operational excellence has become the goal of every company in Industry 4.0”.

Main courses

“Operational excellence presupposes excellent professionals who must be excellently trained,” Jorie continues. “That brings us to the objectives of the programme. We aim to educate experts who can optimise both operational and maintenance processes by making them smart by using innovative technologies such as robotics, big data analysis, digital twins, cloud computing, etc. Our programme covers technologies that facilitate the digitisation of product and process information and connect equipment, assents, and people. Concrete applications are smart sensors, robots, and industrial Internet-of-Things platforms”.

The postgraduate programme consists of four main courses of 6 ECTS each. In ‘Digital Twins’, students learn how to simulate the physical world using virtual replicas. ‘Monitoring & Prognostics’ aims at preventing production line failures and reducing maintenance costs. ‘Operations Management Strategies’ introduces students to different business strategies. ‘Smart Factory Design’ focuses on digital tools and models to design smart factories and processes. For this purpose, virtual replicas and digital twins are used, which were discussed in the first main course.

Advanced Master

Although the new postgraduate may present itself as a standalone programme, it cannot be separated from the broader picture. “In fact, the postgraduate degree is part of the Advanced Master of Science in Smart Operations & Maintenance in Industry that will be launched in Bruges and Kortrijk in 2023,” explains Prof. Pissoort. “This means that anyone who successfully completes the postgraduate programme can enrol directly in the Advanced Master’s and benefits from exemptions. This formula makes it easier to combine the training with a job or family. In addition, educational tools such as hybrid and virtual classrooms allows us to adapt a blended teaching method. There will be a mix between live contact moments and learning material that can be processed at one’s own pace.”

About the target group of the new postgraduate programme, Jorie says: “We are initially aiming for Master’s in Engineering Science or Engineering Technology. The most suitable majors are (Electro)Mechanical Engineering, Electronics & ICT Engineering, Machine & Production Automation, Energy and Business System Engineering and Operational Research. If you do not have such a degree, you may be admitted if you can demonstrate that you have the necessary professional experience.”

The students who started in the autumn do not have to worry about their future. Many doors will open for them in various sectors and companies ranging from SMEs to multinationals. “All operationally intensive companies are already waiting impatiently for the first smart O&M engineers,” concludes Jorie.

Yves Persoons

AUTOMATE THE BORING, ENGINEER THE AWESOME

There is a real chance that your organisation or your job will soon cease to exist. A huge wave of digital transformation is coming our way, changing the world at an exponential rate. As an engineer, how do you turn disruptive threats into disruptive opportunities? Christian Kromme, futurist, tech-entrepreneur, and best-selling author, spoke about the future of engineering during a forum evening ‘Beyond Engineering’ at Group T Leuven Campus.

Predicting the future in times of uncertainty seems like looking into a crystal ball. According to Christian Kromme, the waves of technological innovation that follow each other in ever faster succession are not at all coincidental. He discovered striking parallels between biological evolution and technological revolutions. “The development of single-celled organisms into complex organisms such as humans took place in phases in which not the strongest or the most intelligent species survived, but the one that was the most adaptable to change”, says Christian. “Technological developments follow a similar pattern, starting with the first tools over agriculture and the industrial revolutions to the machine learning and Artificial Intelligence phase we are now in. Just as cells form organisms, people build organizations. As needs grow larger and more complex, so does technology”.

Self-organizing

The future belongs to decentralized autonomous organizations, Christian believes. “You can compare them to a school of fish or a swarm of starlings. Each fish or bird responds to the seven others around it. The whole is very agile, almost fluid. In such organizations, all individuals are connected by the algorithm. If the need changes, the algorithm changes. Such organizations no longer need a CEO or an energy-consuming hierarchy or bureaucracy. They organize themselves”.

A key driver in this evolution is the ever-increasing power of the chips. According to Moore’s law, the capacity doubles every year, and the price drops accordingly. According to Christian, this means that in three years’ time, you will be able to buy a chip for 1,000 euros that can process as much information as the human brain. In 2038, a chip would have the power of all human brains combined. As this process continues, the relationship between man and machine will change dramatically. Where until now, man had to adapt to technology, technology will be able to adapt to man. This means not only recognising your voice or face, but also reading your intentions and anticipating your needs.

Generative design

According to the futurist, such human-sized technology will work according to the principle of ‘generative design.’ “Suppose you want a chair that can cost up to twenty-five euros and has to be able to bear 120 kg. A software platform first uses AI to generate thousands of designs, from which you can choose your favourite. But it does not stop there. Your chair contains sensors that collect user data and provide feedback so that subsequent copies improve.”

This evolution means the end of mass production. The future belongs to micro-factories. These consist of a number of 3D printers and a robot to assemble the parts. Efficient and cheap. Do you want a new pair of shoes? Enter your desired colour, size and model and your shoes will be 3D printed in your neighbourhood.

Chief Ethical Officer

“With the rapid development of AI and robotics, soon almost all hard skills will be automatable,” Christian predicts. “The reason is simple. Hard skills are usually repetitive and regulated, so easily digitised. You could put it like this: everything that cannot be digitised will decrease in value. That also applies to jobs”.

If the entire core business of most companies can soon be digitised, what will be the function of the engineer? According to Christian, the engineer should put maximum effort into the development of what are currently called ‘soft skills’. He mentions empathy, imagination, creativity, emotional intelligence and, finally, ethics. The future CEO will first and foremost be a Chief Ethical Officer.

“If the engineers in the organizations of the future still want to play a meaningful role, they must specialize in the skills in which the machines fall short,” says Christian. “Or to put it another way: automate the boring, engineer the awesome.”

Yves Persoons

Christian Kromme

25 YEARS LAB FOR LIGHTING TECHNOLOGY

What do Paris, Eindhoven and Ghent have in common? All three are called ‘city of lights’. If Paris owes its name to the Enlightenment, and Eindhoven to Philips’ light bulbs, Ghent can call upon not only a true Festival of Light, but also the Laboratory of Light Technology. On 6 September 2022, the lab celebrated its silver jubilee on the Ghent Campus of KU Leuven.

Measuring light, manipulating light, assessing light, doing business with light ... these are just a few of the experiments and demonstrations with which the researchers of the celebrating lab displayed their knowledge and skills. From a one-man initiative of Prof. Peter Hanselaer, the lab has grown into a sizeable SMB with more than 20 employees: professors, researchers, and PhD students. A significant proportion of them were not yet born when the lab saw the light of day.

Visual comfort

The Laboratory for Lighting Technology was founded in 1997 at the then KAHO Sint-Lieven University College, which was already a pioneer in applied scientific research at the time. Actually, the lab owes its existence to the HOBU fund with which the Flemish government wanted to upgrade technological research at the university colleges and stimulate knowledge transfer to companies. The research focus of the lab evolved from solar cells (from light to electricity) over LED lighting (from electricity to light’ to the perception of light. From the outset, the Ghent lab combined PhD research with services to industry and cooperation in many fields such as indoor lighting, perception, optical design and metrology.

A common thread running through the now impressive research work is the influence of light on people, more specifically on health, well-being and visual comfort in general. Appropriate lighting improves sleep quality and the ability to concentrate, and thus efficiency at the workplace, school or office. Two of the lab’s research projects recently appeared in the media in this connection: one on the importance of daylight in classrooms and another on the positive influence of light on elderly people suffering from dementia in residential care centres.

Pioneering research on sensor-based control systems was further carried out by the lab. Via daytime control, presence detection and remote control, such systems contribute greatly to optimal lighting. From there, it is only a small step to the Internet of Things and intelligent systems.

In recent years, the lab has profiled itself as a knowledge and innovation centre on sustainable lighting technologies. In cooperation with the government and business partners, projects on energy-efficient and sustainable lighting of buildings, roads, business premises and public places are set up.

Green light

During the anniversary celebrations on 6 September, the new batch of Enlightenment experts was also officially proclaimed. Eighteen students successfully completed the eighth edition of the specialisation course in lighting and received the corresponding certificate from KU Leuven. The course participants are architects, designers, prevention consultants, installers, energy experts, facility managers who are fascinated by the applications of lighting technology.

The specialisation course is organised by Groen Licht Vlaanderen (GLV), a spin-off of the Laboratory for Lighting Technology. GLV is a lighting cluster to which more than 80 companies belong and which has been recognised by the Flemish government as an Innovative Business Network. GLV organises training courses and study days and acts as the voice of the lighting sector. As a member of the European Lighting Cluster Alliance, GLV represents the sector at foreign forums. Well-known publications of

the consortium are ‘Light and Schools’, ‘Human Centred Lighting’ and ‘Energy-efficient Lighting for SMEs’.

Masters

The icing on the cake of the Ghent lab is the Erasmus Mundus Japan-Master of Science in Imaging & Light in Extended Technology (IMLEX) that started in the academic year 20-21. This is a two-year programme from four partner universities in Finland, Japan, France and Belgium that combines lighting, light processing and ICT with practical applications such as Extended Reality, Mixed & Virtual, robotics, rending, etc. Students are expected to take part of the course at three of the universities involved.

In December 2021, the lab set up a collaboration with TU Eindhoven’s Intelligent Lighting Institute (ILI) and TU Delft’s Perceptual Intelligence Lab with the aim of putting a world-class Dutch-Flemish lighting institute on the map.

Farewell

At the conclusion of the anniversary celebrations, Prof. Hanselaer announced that in the next few years, he would concentrate

Left to right front row: Frédéric Leloup, Stijn Beuckels, Tamara De Jaegher, Hang Phung, Ujjayantha Bhaumik, Begga Karadza, Eva Bauwens, prof. Peter Hanselaer, Catherine Lootens

2nd row: prof. Kevin Smet, Laurens Van de Perre, Ravi Kishore, Inneke Huts, Jeroen Cerpentier, prof. Wouter Ryckaert, Kaveh Ahmadian and prof. Youri Meuret

3rd row: Rik Spieringhs, Nick Rondelez, Jan Audenaert, Roel Daneels and Ching-Wei Lin ©Yasmina Besseghir

primarily on his new duties as campus chair and academic administrator of the Ghent Campus. After 25 years, the founder leaves behind a monument that is among the world’s best. A new generation of seasoned specialists is ready to take up the torch and shine its light on ... light.

Yves Persoons

 www.iiw.kuleuven.be/onderzoek/lichttechnologie

Sofie Craps, Lynn Van den Broeck, prof. Greet Langie and Rani Dujardin ©Joren De Weerdt

HOW DO YOU TEACH LIFELONG LEARNING

Exploding job mobility and the fast-moving pace of technology mean that engineers will never be completely scholarly or finished learning. How do you prepare current and future engineering students for lifelong learning? That is the subject of a new research project at the Faculty of Engineering Technology. Lynn Van den Broeck and Sofie Craps tell the story.

The days when you got a diploma around 22 and could rely on it for the rest of your career are over. Learning increasingly drives the economy and not the other way around. During the job interview, it is no longer just about what you know or can do, but what you still want to learn. Alvin Toffler, author of ‘The Future Shock’ and ‘The Third Wave’ put it this way: “The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read or write but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn”.

Research-based

Lifelong learning is one of the hobbyhorses of ETHER, the faculty research group critically examining the engineering curriculum. Research about education, it is called. “Academic education by definition is research-based,” says Lynn. “That applies not only to subject content but also to the way in which it is applied, acquired and tested. An education policy that does not lean on educational research is venturing on quicksand”.

“Fortunately, there is no doubt about the necessity for lifelong learning,” continues Sofie. “Only, it has not yet been fully clarified how to prepare future professionals for this. In companies, you see reflection logs and portfolios becoming more and more commonplace. In education, on the other hand, the teaching of Life Long Learning skills is not yet always considered a priority task”.

Personal development

The new research project is called ‘TRAINengPDP’ which stands for ‘Training Engineers’ Personal Development Project’. “Starting point is that lifelong learning is a form of personal development that starts from the very beginning of study,” Lynn explains. “Selfdirection and reflection play a crucial role in this. Lifelong learning assumes that you can take control of your learning process and are able to critically face your progress.”

“For students, this implies knowledge of their own strengths and weaknesses and the type of engineer they want to become,” Sofie says. In this regard, she refers to the PREFER tests she developed with which students can sort out the professional role that best suits them and the competences involved.

“But also professors and lecturers are directly involved parties,” Lynn believes. “They play an important role in coaching and mentoring students, but also as providers of subject-specific feedback. This means that they also need guidance and support so they can contribute in their students’ personal development project.”

Sofie further highlights the need to not only make personal development explicit, but to effectively embed it in the curriculum in the form of seminars and workshops.”

Ecosystem

Therefore all actors must engage in the personal development process of future engineers, as a result of which over time, can originate a natural mindset for lifelong learning. In this regard, the researchers talk about creating an LLL-ecosystem on faculty campuses.

TRAINengPDP proceeds in a number of stages and is also the subject of Rani Dujardin’s PhD with Prof.Greet Langie as supervisor. Lynn describes them as follows: “Until January 2023, we are mapping which LLL competences are already being addressed in students’ training and personal development. We spend the next two years on pilot studies and the creation of a toolkit for lecturers. We will conclude with an effectiveness study, so that in spring 2025, we can come out with a validated tool to give lifelong learning the place it deserves in the curriculum.”

Yves Persoons

 www.fet.kuleuven.be/trainengpdp

TRAINengPDP is supported by the EU’s Erasmus+ programme (grant agreement 2021-1-BE02-KA220-HED-000023151)

AGORIA SOLAR TEAM FINISHES SECOND IN SOUTH AFRICA

Flat tyres, a defective battery cell, a damaged solar panel, a skid, penalty time for speeding, the engineering students of the Solar Team will not soon forget their participation in the Sasol Solar Challenge. An eight-day cat-and-mouse game with TU Delft’s team ended in a deserving second place. Team leader Pieter April looks back.

From 8 to 16 September 2022, South Africa hosted the Sasol Solar Challenge, a 4,000 km race from Johannesburg to Cape Town. “For us, it was the first race on South African soil,” Pieter says. “Moreover, it was also the longest competition in the Solar Team’s history. So a real ‘challenge’ for the BluePoint Atlas and the team”.

Kilometres

The Leuven solar car passed the technical inspection and associated tests with flying colours. During the qualifying round, the team set the second-fastest time, just two seconds behind the Dutchmen from Delft. “A negligible difference,” notes Pieter. “In a race of that magnitude, not only speed is decisive. At least as important is a well thought-

out race strategy. In the Sasol Challenge, it comes down to covering as many kilometres as possible. The team that manages to cover the most kilometres during eight days wins the race.”

Immediately after the start, the solar cars ended up in the hectic South African traffic, including the busy highways where toll booths caused delays time and again. During the first day of racing, the Leuven students already came into unpleasant contact with the road surface. “Shortly after the start, our follow car burst two tyres at once,” said Pieter. “A few hours later, an uneven road caused the solar car to land on two wheels and drag its side against the ground. That inevitably caused delays. Fortunately, we retained our second place”.

Secret weapon

From the start of the race, the Solar Team deployed its ‘secret weapon’: a folding fin. Immediately a first, as never before has a solar car been equipped with such an attribute. “Thanks to the fin, we could literally sail along on wind power when there was sufficient crosswind,” Pieter explained. “It would serve us well during the stage along the coast.”

The fin but especially the manoeuvrability of the car ensured that the Solar Team won the third day of racing with a 78km lead and took over the lead from their Delft colleagues. In the mountain stages, however, the Dutch came back strongly and the people from Leuven again dropped to second place. During the flat stage along the coast, they were able to reduce the gap to ten kilometres and victory came within reach. “Ten kilometres is peanuts in a race of that size,” confirms Pieter. “Especially when at

times the competition looks more like an obstacle course with roadworks, diversions and unexpected obstacles.”

Battery cell

With such minimal difference between the two top teams, the final stage promised to be super exciting. The final night, things threatened to turn out wrong when a member of another team accidentally damaged the solar panel of the BluePoint Atlas. On top of that, the Belgians and the Dutch received a 10-minute penalty time for speeding. In the end, it was a faulty battery cell that killed the Solar Team. “With less battery capacity, we could not drive at top speed without jeopardizing safety,” says Pieter. “So we knew immediately that the victory was lost.”

Despite the setbacks, Pieter is proud of his team. “We fought for every kilometre and got the best out of the car and ourselves. Using the experience we now have, with fresh courage we will begin building a new solar car. Next year, our world title is at stake in Australia”.

Yves Persoons  www.solarteam.be

AETHER STUDENT TEAM: THE SKY IS NOT THE LIMIT

Anyone who thought that the engineering students of the Faculty of Engineering Technology had reached the absolute top with the world title in the World Solar Challenge should revise his/her opinion. A new team has emerged, aiming even higher. Their mission; to build a satellite that can return to Earth in one piece. “A world first,” said Dries Wellens, leader of the Aether Student CubeSat Team.

How do you bring a satellite back to earth in one piece? This question has intrigued Prof. Valentijn De Smedt on Geel Campus for quite some time. In Jurgen Vanhamel, assistant professor of Aerospace at TU Delft, he found an passionate sparring partner. Together, they coach and inspire the Aether Student CubeSat Team that is developing the technology for future re-entry satellites.

The team has six members, all students or recent graduates of Group T Campus. They are following the Postgraduate Tech Innovations in Ventures & Teams, known as a breeding ground for entrepreneurial engineering talent. The team’s mission therefore presupposes not only solid technical knowledge but also creativity, team spirit, perseverance and other qualities that fall under the heading of ‘entrepreneurship’.

Cube sat

“Satellites come in all sizes and weights,” says Dries. “Besides the big rigs, miniature ones are really on the rise. Cube sats are not only cheaper and more accessible to companies and organisations, but can also be deployed faster and more targeted. The standard dimensions are 10x10x10 cm, which is slightly larger than a Rubik cube. The weight is also fixed at 1.33 kg”.

“Because of their small size, cube sats can easily be sent along with the existing large launchers. They are then packed a sealed container, from which they are ejected by a spring system. During resupply flights to the ISS space station, cube sats are almost always carried and deployed. Major players such as NASA and ESA deploy cube stats during missions to Mars or in astrobiological or chemical experiments in space. In fact, it is impossible to imagine modern space travel without cube sats.”

Perspectives

Cube sats may have the wind in their sails, yet none have ever been retrieved back to Earth to date. “Sending satellites into space is indeed easier and cheaper than recovering them,” says Dries. “But that doesn’t stop us from trying anyway. Indeed, we are convinced that returning satellites will open new perspectives for scientific research in space. For numerous experiments, it would be useful if the results could effectively reach researchers on Earth for further follow-up. Moreover, cube sats can also make their own measurements on the composition of the atmosphere during their return journey.”

Which brings Dries to the heart of the AETHER project. “We are not satellite builders. Our core business is to develop

the technology needed to return cube sats preserved. As we know, entering Earth’s atmosphere is a perilous undertaking. That means we need to design a heat shield that can prevent the craft from burning up. Furthermore, we must be able to guarantee that the cube sat will land in a safe and easily accessible place after its hellish journey through the atmosphere.”

Ballistic coefficient

As for the heat shield, the task is to keep the so-called ballistic coefficient as low as possible. “That means we need to create as much air resistance as possible that allows the satellite to slow down to eventually land softly,” Dries explains. “This is why we plan to equip the cube sat with an inflatable and expandable heat shield that increases the surface area of the cube many times over and thus creates more drag. Such technology has already been successfully experimented with by NASA and ESA on missions to Mars. But again, there is as yet no application or example for a cube sat”.

The AETHER team’s ambitious space plan is divided into three major subprojects. “The first includes the development of the heat shield and the investigation of launch capabilities,” says Dries. “We are now fully engaged in that until the end of next academic year. This is followed by controlled re-entry and testing out the landing system. So the ‘moment suprême’ is still some time away. Rome and Paris were not built in one day either”.

Yves Persoons

 www.aetherspace.be

The Aether Team: front, left to right: Dries Wellens, Marijn Gielen and Witse Janssens Back, left to right: Seppe Craeninckx, Joppe Leers, alumnus Roemer Spreij and Brecht De Vuyst © Julie Feyaerts

NEUROTECH LEUVEN: BRIDGING BRAIN & MACHINE

The student teams are the showpieces of the Faculty of Engineering Technology. High-tech, entrepreneurship and innovation merge into a unique product or realisation with which the teams compete with the best in the world. The youngest member is the Neurotech Leuven team. Chairman Anthony Vorias tells the story.

Front, left to right: Faith Johnson, Ghita El Bakkouri, Eveline Wuytens, Izabella Czarnecka and Emilie Bartsoen

Back, left to right: Frederic Vanderveken, Jonas Heylen, Arne Staes, Paul Van Tieghem, Ward Van Ginsberg, Anthony Vorias (Chairman), Jonah Van Assche, Samuel Berton, Arno Libert and Sandro Winkel

Teammembers not present: Maarten Schelles, Rochelle Aubrey and Rien Sonck ©Filip Van Loock

Telepathy really exists. It is possible to send brain signals to a computer, a drone, or any other device without physical contact. What is more, you can also use your thoughts to control or direct these devices. How to make this happen is the domain of the new NeuroTech Leuven Team, a group of talented KU Leuven students from various disciplines who are bringing together their knowledge of neuro-technology and -sci-

ence, advanced electronics, signal analysis and machine learning as well as medicine and psychology in a unique project.

NXT Competition

Chairman Anthony is a master’s student in Nanoscience, Nanotechnology and Nanoengineering at the Faculty of Engineering Sciences. From his study but also from his concern for people with mental problems, he wants to further explore the possibilities of neurotechnology and make them known to young people and the general public.

Anthony does not come onto the ice unprepared. He has already won his spurs in the Product Innovation Projects (PiP) of KU Leuven. With the iGEM team he won silver in the Genetically Engineered Machine Competition in Paris last year. “With NeuroTech Leuven we are going to participate again in such an international competition,” Anthony says. “This time it will be the NeuroTechX Student Club Competition from September 2022 to April 2023. About thirty top teams will participate. The teams are all given the same subject about which they must realise the best project. The participants will receive the required hard- and software and can register for lectures, workshops, and training sessions. The competition itself consists of two parts. In the offline part, each team will show a video or show case of its application. The real competition will take place in the online presentation of the project results.”

Organisational structure

The competition started in September 2022. Anthony gathered a nine-strong team around him to pave the way. “By the time the competition started, we wanted to have developed a solid organisational structure in which roles and tasks are clearly defined,” Anthony says. “This will

enable us to be more targeted in our search for the right profiles of future members. It is also good for the continuity of the team. We want the team to continue after April 2023. The Solar Team did not stop after the first World Solar Challenge in 2005”.

“The basic structure is already broadly established,” Anthony continues. “We have Ward and Sandro who take care of financial status and business relations. Emilie plans the in-house events. Frederic, Jonah, and Maarten supervise the projects while I co-ordinate all activities.”

Events

Like the other student teams active within the entrepreneurial incubator Technovation Hub, NeuroTech Leuven will also share its knowledge and expertise with other students and the public. “We do that through hackathons, workshops and talks by experts,” Anthony explains. “STEM activities for young people are also part of this. We participate in events such as the Technovation Hub Innovation Day, the Advanced Engineering Expo, and the job fairs of the faculties of Engineering. In time, we want to make NeuroTech Leuven a real forum for all those who are active in this promising field. The potential to increase the capacities of human-machine interfaces makes us believe that the next technological revolution will be based on neurotechnology. We want to be prepared for that”.

 www.ntxl.org

Yves Persoons

FORMULA ELECTRIC TEAM BUILDS FIRST BELGIAN SELF-DRIVING E-CAR

Seventeen years after the first Belgian solar car, Belgium’s first autonomous electric racing car was presented. With this, Formula Electric Belgium is not on its trial run. The team of engineering students from KU Leuven and bachelors from Thomas More Hogeschool has been building electric cars for thirteen years. With the self-driving Super Nova, however, they are racing into a new era.

On 28 July 2022, press and public were introduced to the newest star of the enterprising student team. “Three men worked on it day and night for months, but actually it is the merit of each of the 48 team members,” says team leader Remko Schippers. “The Super Nova is the result of many years of

experimenting, optimising and, of course, racing. As a result, we currently have two state-of-the-art models: the Titan with pilot and the Super Nova without.”

At the base of the sophisticated self-driving car is a simple go-cart costing barely 20 euros. “We equipped it with smart sensors and cameras, which quickly raised the price tag to 25,000 euros. We then installed the best-suited technology in one of our existing race cars that was completely converted,” Remko says.

Expertise

The Super Nova is a 250 kg mini-bolide, 1.5 m wide and 2 m long. Externally, you don’t see too many differences compared to the Titan, except that its autonomous counterpart is equipped with intelligent sensors, a powerful computer and a special LiDAR (Light

Detection and Ranging) camera that virtually maps its surroundings. What started modestly with a 20-euro go-cart is now a racing car worth over half a million euros.

Such an amount is impossible for a student team to cough up on its own. “That’s why the support of 120 companies was indispensable,” Remko continues. “Some of them also helped us considerably with expertise. Among them Ford, Siemens, aviation company Sonaco, chip developer Melexis and 3D-Systems”.

Speed records will not be broken by the Super Nova for now. “We are currently reaching 30km per hour,” confirms Remko. “Not exactly impressive for a racing car, but at the development stage,we are not concerned with speed. We do think that in about two years’ time, 150km/h will be achievable. Besides, speed is not the only factor that counts in the international competitions we participate in with our cars.”

Self-built

The Formula Student Competition is the world’s largest engineering tournament for self-built racing cars. “Until recently, there were two categories of competitions for combustion engine cars and electric-powered cars respectively,” Remko explains. “To this has been added a third competition intended for autonomous driving ones.”

As mentioned, the Formula Competition is not a race against the clock where whoever finishes first is the victor. The competition consists of several sub-trials - called ‘events’ - grouped into static and dynamic judging events. Any team can participate in the static events. The

jury evaluates the team’s car design, cost price and business plan. The dynamic events are only open to cars that have passed the technical tests. In this category, the car’s acceleration, endurance and handling, among other things, are put to the test. How fast a lap is driven on the track determines the results in the autocross. Points can be earned in each of the ‘events’. The team with the highest final score is declared the winner. In the past thirteen years, the Belgian Formula Team has participated in competitions in the Netherlands, Germany, Hungary, Great Britain, Italy, Austria and the Czech Republic.

Prototype

In astronomy, supernovas are the natural end of massive stars. Can we infer from the name of the autonomous racing car that the Titan was the last piloted electric car and the team will only build autonomous ones from now on?

According to Remko, that is not an option for the time being. “The Super Nova is actually a prototype. There is still quite a bit of work to do to get the car ready for competition. It is up to our successors to make choices”.

Yves Persoons

 www.formulaelectric.be

GUIDE TO THE DIGITAL FUTURE

The right book at the right time for the right audience. That is how you could characterise ‘Evolving as a Digital Scholar’. The authors take their fellow scholars and researchers by the hand and lead them into the digital world of today and tomorrow. The three-dimensional framework they developed serves as a compass and a handle. An interview with Professor Wim Van Petegem, co-author and inspirer of this extraordinary book.

Prof. Van Petegem is expert in Learning Technologies at the Faculty of Engineering Technology. As Head of the Media & Learning Unit (formerly known as AVNet) and subsequently as Director of the Technology & Learning Department of the KU Leuven, he earned his spurs in, among other things, new educational technologies, networked e-learning, lifelong and open distance learning, and science communication. As a passionate education innovator, he is also engaged in several international academic networks. In 2019, he co-founded the European EdTech Network (EETN), a project that brings together professors, researchers and entrepreneurs around educational technology.

Training

The book may be hotly topical, but it has deep roots in the author’s career. In this regard, Prof. Van Petegem refers to the AVLM training courses he has been giving since 2000. “AVLM stands for ‘Audio-visual Learning Materials’. Initially, it was about the production of AV material, but later the focus evolved to new educational technologies. We have already organised more than ten editions in Leuven, each time for twelve to eighteen participants from all continents in the South. From 2017, we added the ‘Digital Scholar’ course, which is a one-week training course organised twice a year by the African Doctoral Academy at Stellenbosch University in South Africa. It was during a stay in Stellenbosch that we decided with several colleagues to pool our knowledge and ideas. At first, we thought of a massive open course (MOOC), but this turned out not to be financially feasible. When Leuven University Press later provided the resources for an open access publication, the choice was quickly made”.

How do you get a grip on the ‘digital world’ and the enormous opportunities that present themselves to scholars and researchers? “It soon became apparent that there was a need for a structure, a framework to support our ideas and to guide the reader through this complex subject matter. We started working on this in good spirits,” says Prof. Van Petegem.

Three-dimensional

The development of such an order-creating framework is perhaps the authors’ greatest achievement. “Evolving as a Digital Scholar” thus becomes a thoughtful and useful manual that provides guidance at any time.

“As mentioned, we distinguish three dimensions of digital agility,” explains Prof. Van Petegem. “These are: getting involved in research, education and service, then mobilising digital skills on various levels and thirdly acting in multiple roles, both individually and interlinked with others”.

“In terms of the roles and the skills involved, we distinguish five. First, there is the author who writes specialized articles for experts. Then there is the storyteller who delivers comprehensible messages to a wider audience in the form of blogs or podcasts. The creator uses graphics, audio and video to keep the audience captivated. The integrator goes a step further and develops multimedia applications that are shared and spread via websites, webinars and open-source channels. And last but not least, there is the networker who plays the social media and is active in online learning communities”.

Change agent

According to Prof. van Petegem, these five roles should not be seen as hierarchical, nor as sequential. “One role is indeed not ‘better’ or ‘higher’ than the other. Moreover, you can combine or switch roles. What matters is that the scholar or researcher recognizes himself in it and makes himself familiar with the competences that are connected to it. “

“The current and future digital scholar and researcher is above all a professional learner,” concludes Prof. Van Petegem. “A change agent who does not suffer the rapid changes, but who takes the lead and actively contributes to innovation in the ever-evolving digital age”.

Yves Persoons

Wim Van Petegem, JP Bosman, Miné De Klerk, Sonja Strydom, Evolving as a Digital Scholar. Teaching and Researching in a Digital World. Leuven University Press, 2021 (open access: OAPEN, JSTORE)

Prof. Wim Van Petegem © Julie Feyaerts

A PHILOSOPHICAL LOOK AT ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

Technology and artificial intelligence are tricky topics. On the one hand, cyberutopians praise the infinite possibilities. Opposite are the techno-alarmists for whom the digital revolution is heading for disaster. In the first group, you will find a striking number of entrepreneurs and engineers. In the second, quite a few social scientists and philosophers. Prof. Lode Lauwaert does not take sides. This allows him to expertly demolish some sacred cows and take a magnifying glass look at technological developments.

Late October 2021 saw the publication of ‘We, robots. A philosophical look at technology and artificial intelligence’ by Prof. Lauwaert. In the weeks and months that followed, the author was not got out of the media. A second edition was already released in November and a film adaptation of the work is currently in the pipeline. The right book at the right time, that much is clear.

“My book is closely linked to the Faculty of Engineering Technology,” Prof. Lauwaert explains. “When I was asked seven years ago to teach the subject Philosophy and Ethics on the Leuven campuses, I found that there was not much literature available in our language area. So I just started writing my own. What was originally meant to be course material for Engineering Technology students has developed and grown into a book for all those concerned or engaged with technology and AI.”

Propositions

In ‘We, robots’, Prof. Lauwers takes a close look at three propositions generally supposed to be true. Is technology really as neutral as commonly assumed? Does AI really have a disruptive effect on society? And is technological development following its own path that nobody can control yet? For each proposition, the

author first clarifies the concepts. Then he weighs the arguments pro and con to finally assess the relevance of the reasoning. Philosophising may be fascinating, but does the engineer benefit from the thinking exercises?

On the so-called neutrality of technology, Prof. Lauwaert says: “The neutrality thesis is as old as Western philosophy. The Stoics in ancient Greece already passed judgement that technological artefacts are neutral”. That this is not true, the author illustrates through numerous examples. From algorithms that systematically favour men in selection procedures because they are taught to do so, to the discrimination against people of colour because the software is trained to recognise white faces first. Each time, it turns out that technology is loaded with values simply because it is designed from an existing frame of reference. Incidentally, this does not necessarily have to be negative. Technology can just as easily be loaded with positive values, but this confirms the fact that it is not a neutral matter.

Disruptive and determined

The disruptiveness of digital technology and AI has been much talked about for some time. The world wide web, the smart phone, social media have dramat-

ically changed lives with on one side unprecedented connectivity, and on reverse growing polarisation, disinformation, hate messages and young girls with eating disorders because they are bombarded with images of hyper-slim young ladies.” Ethically, these problems are neither new nor unique to AI,” Prof. Lauwaert said. “Rather, they are transformations, shifts or magnifications of things that existed before. But there is more. Behind the stories of disruption, there is not infrequently a marketing trick. After all, the more disruptive a product is presented, the more it is highlighted and arouses curiosity among consumers. So it is not seldom a promotional message from a company hoping for a self-fulfilling prophecy.”

According to the ancient Greeks, Prometheus was the founder of technology. He brought fire to helpless humanity. When they started working with it, it started up an untameable development. One invention or application inevitably led to another. The so-called determination thesis is the third sacred house to be demolished. Prof. Lauwaert enfeebles the argument of the same technologies emerging in different places at the same time . “The computer, the aeroplane, the passenger car did not appear in different places at the same time. So we are dealing with a generalisation. And even if it happened to be the case, it is no proof of inevitability or necessity. Most technological developments are the result of a choice by people in a particular context or role.”

Responsible engineers

That with the rise of AI, nothing fundamentally new has really occurred in the world runs like a thread through Prof. Lauwaert’s book. The so-called neutrality, disruptiveness and determinacy of the

technology are not infrequently fallacies of stakeholders who would like nothing more than for no ethical questions to be asked about their product.

Of course, Prof. Lauwaert realises that the technological clock cannot be reversed or stopped. So he puts his hopes in engineers and policy makers. “They have to take their moral responsibility and use their expertise to design AI that makes little or no mistakes or repro-

duces. That means they need to assess the potential drawbacks of their creations at every moment and anticipate harmful side effects. Hiding behind the neutrality principle or -even worse- placing the blame unilaterally on the user is equal to acting unethically.”

Yves Persoons

Prof. Lode Lauwaert © Filip Van Loock

Lode Lauwaert, We, robots. A philosophical look at technology and artificial intelligence’. Lannoo Campus, ISBN 9789401470544

AN OSCAR FOR THE GREENEST FILM?

Like any industrial sector, the film industry faces the challenge of working more sustainably. Several initiatives at home and abroad focus, among other things, on the importance of storytelling, the impact of production and choices during film distribution and screening. But what does sustainability mean on the film set? And how do you correctly map the environmental impact of this global creative sector?

Prof. Jo Van Caneghem (research group ChEMaRTs, Group T Campus) collaborated on the development of Eureca (European Environmental Calculator). This online tool measures the environmental impact of audiovisual (co)productions and is part of the Interreg project ‘Green Screen’.

The ChEMaRTS team actually specialises in making waste treatment more sustainable, among other things through efficient energy and material recovery in thermal systems. Evaluation of environmental impact with life-cycle analysis (LCA) is also among the team’s core competences. The foray into the film world came

Tim Wagendorp and prof. Jo Van Caneghem

© Julie Feyaerts

about after a rather chance meeting with Tim Wagendorp, the sustainability coordinator of the Flemish Audiovisual Fund (VAF). VAF links its financial production support to sustainability, making it a European front runner. It shares its knowledge and expertise in Green Screen. This European project focuses not only on the exchange of sustainable strategies and best practices for film funds, but also on the development of a measuring instrument for the European film industry. For this, VAF is collaborating with the Spanish Promalaga and the Slovak Film Commission. Scientific input is provided by KU Leuven.

CO2 emissions

“Making a film is quite an undertaking,” Prof. Van Caneghem explains. “From pre-production through production to post-production and distribution, each time masses of people and goods that need to be transported, installed and maintained are involved. Each of these steps in the process eats up energy and raw materials and produces significant amounts of waste.”

How do you make a sustainable film? Is it a question of saving energy, cutting back on materials or reducing greenhouse gas emissions? Or do you take the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals as a guideline?

“In Eureca, the focus is on carbon dioxide,” Prof. Van Caneghem explains. “The tool measures emissions at different stages and translates variables such as transport, electricity consumption, waste, catering into comparable units. The consumption data comes from the film producers. They have a good view of the actual course of the production process and what is needed. Using special software, an impact analysis is carried out that results in a kg CO2 equivalent. That way, you can accurately calculate the impact of a film. For your information: the impact of an average European film is estimated at 192 tonnes of CO2 equivalent, although this figure hides large regional differences. This is not the end of the matter, of course. What matters is that film makers become aware of the ecological consequences of their activities so that they can already make sustainable choices when preparing their projects”.

Case study

How to get started with Eureca was demonstrated by Prof. Van Caneghem and a couple of master students in a case study. They chose ‘Buck’, a comic television series on the VRT youth channel Ketnet. “This choice was obviously not accidental,” says Prof. Van Caneghem. “In fact, in this series, there is already a lot of focus on sustainability and, in consultation with the VAF, a systematic effort is made to reduce energy, CO2 and waste. We

tested scenarios in which we calculated the impact of different options. For example, what are the consequences of switching to vegetarian catering, avoiding the use of traditional generators or housing cast and crew members in a hotel near the set instead of having them commute back and forth every day? In collaboration with Prof. Johan Eyckmans of the Faculty of Economics and Business, we are currently investigating the economics of these green choices. After all, the idea is that environmentally friendly choices are not always more expensive but not seldom precisely cost-saving.” At VRT, you hear a lot of praise for the work of the Leuven researchers: this research can be seen as a cost (in €) benefit (in CO2) analysis and helps producers use time and resources efficiently.

“KU Leuven’s scientific input helps me to further refine our substantive VAF coaching and lifts Eureca’s accuracy to a higher level,” Tim Wagendorp knows.

According to Prof. Van Caneghem, the willingness to produce more sustainably is definitely present in the film world. “In practice however, it is still often guessing work. From now on, using a scientifically based method, well-founded choices can be made, both ecologically and financially. That immediately provides enough arguments to convince the staff and, in the long run, the cinephile audience as well”.

Kingfisher

A first milestone has now been planted. On 10 February, at the Berlin Film Festival, the first Kingfisher was awarded, i.e. the prize for the most sustainable film production. This broke the ice. An official European Green Film label cannot be long in coming. Nor is a green Oscar.

Yves Persoons

 www.interregeurope.eu/greenscreen/no-planet-no-film  www.eurecafilm.eu

PRODUCTION ENGINEERS GATHER AT WORLD SUMMIT IN LEUVEN

From 4 to 8 April, two international conferences took place in Leuven: the 29th Conference on Life Cycle Engineering (LCE) and the 9th Conference on Assembling Technology and Systems (CATS). What made both events special is that they shared part of their programme and thus created a unique cross-fertilization between both domains. A look back on an inspiring week.

Both conferences were under the auspices of the International Academy for Production Engineering (CIRP), a leading organization in production engineering research that unites more than 600 eminent academics and industrialists worldwide. The conferences are always highlights for exchanging

the latest knowledge and expertise. For most participants, it was also a happy reunion after two years of physical isolation due to the pandemic. Those who preferred not to travel to Leuven could follow both conferences fully online and interact with the conference participants.

Circular engineering

Environmentally sustainable development occupies a central place in the vision and mission of the international academy. In his opening speech, Prof. Wim Dewulf, Chair of the LCE Conference, referred to the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN. “Production engineering is a large contributor to energy and resource consumption. Therefore, the challenge of designing and manufacturing must reflect the core concern of achieving a better and more sustainable future for all”, said Prof. Dewulf. “More specifically, it is our task as researchers, designers and builders to assess the environmental sustainability impacts of manufacturing activities in a life cycle perspective”.

In his welcome address, Prof. Gerard Govers, Vice-rector for Sustainability Policy of KU Leuven, made the following comparison: “The industrial society has existed for about 200 years. In that period, we have managed to create a lot of prosperity, but at the cost of nature, air, water, and biodiversity. Life on earth, on the other hand, has existed for four billion years and has also undergone an enormous evolution. However, this growth and diversity is based on circularity. Nothing goes to waste; all materials and substances have been reused countless times. We should take this as an example. That is why I say with all my heart: circular engineering is the future!

Studies and practices

The LCE 2022 Conference was a success across the board. The offer consisted of no less than 149 technical presentations, 6 keynotes, 3 workshops, a panel discussion, and a multitude of networking opportunities. More than 250 experts from academia and industry were present

Prof. Karel Kellens

© Kobe Michiels

or followed online. Targeted application areas included manufacturing, electronics, energy systems, transport and mobility and health care systems. The audience enjoyed innovative case studies and practices, visionary papers on paradigm change as well as contributions covering theoretical and experimental research.

During the workshops, the introduction of a digital product passport and industrial symbiosis to promote the (re)use of material resources between different industrial players were discussed. A third workshop dealt with sustainable engineering education. The student teams CORE, Formula Electric Belgium and the Solar Team were invited to explain how their sustainable projects are integrated into engineering education.

Assembly and disassembly

The central theme of the 9th Conference on Assembling Technologies & Systems was ‘Flexible Assembly and Disassembly Systems’. More than 100 participants followed or presented the latest developments and trends in the wide field from manual towards fully automated (dis) assembly technologies. In 7 keynotes and 73 technical sessions, topics such as flexible and reconfigurable (dis)assembly concepts and systems, human-robot interaction and collaboration, handling technologies, mobile and multi-robot systems, operator support and ergonomics were discussed.

The joint sessions with LCE2022 covered topics such as design for assembling and disassembling, disassembling technologies, re- and de-manufacturing, and automation solutions for lightweight structure manufacturing.

Industrial Forum

On Wednesday 6 April, an animated panel discussion on the sustainable factory of the future took place with Martin Röhrig (Airbus), Prof. Jef Peeters (KU Leuven), Prof. Christoph Herrmann (TU Braunschweig) and Dirk Torfs (Flanders Make).

As mentioned earlier, the participants in both conferences included many engineers and specialists from the manufacturing industry. The close relationship between academia and industry was also made visible during an industrial forum on 7 April. About ten companies showed off their innovative assembly and disassembly technologies.

Prof. Karel Kellens, Chair of the CATS Conference, looks back with satisfaction.

“Both in format and in content the conference was a success. Thanks to the hybrid format, many researchers were able to participate and even give presentations. In terms of content, the joint day with the LCE Conference provided significant added value. It was a first but one that is worth repeating. Perhaps CATS and LCE will meet again in Karlsruhe (Germany) in 2024”.

Persoons  www.cats2022.eu  www.ice2022.eu

Yves

Prof. Wim Dewulf © Kobe Michiels

Prof. Pieter Rauwoens ©Jadon Beerlandt

DUNE IN FRONT OF DIKES: BUILDING COASTAL RESILIENCE

At Bruges Campus, the Coastal and Geotechnical Engineering group is world-renowned for its research into the interaction between soil, water, and structures. On 12 and 13 April, the group again lived up to its reputation by organizing the very first conference on nature-based solutions for coastal protection in Belgium. We look back with Prof. Pieter Rauwoens, Conference Chair.

Last year, during the Coastal Dynamics Conference at TU Delft, we presented the pilot project Dune in front of Dike for the first time,” says Prof. Rauwoens. “The interest was so great that we decided to devote a conference to it ourselves. This resulted in a two-day event during which not only we but also eleven other international experts presented their advances in building resilient coastal infrastructure. In addition, 22 research posters were presented. We welcomed 57 participants, 48 of whom were on campus and 9 online”.

Pilot projects

The first conference day focused on the pilot projects of Bruges Campus on the Belgian coast. “Our project partners were given an important role here,” continues Prof. Rauwoens. “Daphné Thoon of Flanders’ Coastal Division explained how dunes can form a natural defence against flooding and coastal erosion. What is new here is the use of natural elements and processes in the formation of new dune areas to reinforce traditional sea dikes. Such dunes in front of a dike offer a high level of protection of coastal infrastructure as well as a high ecological value and -last but not least- a nicer natural appearance”.

Toon Verwaest of Flanders Hydraulics Research elaborated on the added value

and monitoring of the pilot projects in terms of coastal defence, morphological stability, ecology, and tourism. Glenn Strypsteen, researcher at Bruges Campus, then presented his model for predicting dune growth. By means of weekly topographical measurements, he monitored the growth and profile shape of the dune. He also mapped out the role that the vegetation can play in dune development. Dries Bonte (Ghent University) illustrated the importance thereof using marram grass. This plant proved to be an excellent natural engineer to prevent the sand on the beach from being blown away. The extent to which the marram grass increases in density and spreads over the beach greatly influences the creation and growth of new dunes.

Engineering with nature

The second conference day was reserved for the international researchers. Prof. Jean Taylor Ellis of the University of South Carolina kicked off the event with a keynote on ‘Engineering with Nature for Coastal Engineering Purposes’. “Socalled ‘soft’ interventions are gaining in importance compared to classical hard engineering structures such as sea walls and dikes,” Prof. Rauwoens explains. “In the context of the climate change, these expensive and hard to adapt structures will not resist future flood events, which

means that more innovative solutions such as dune-in-front-of-dike will be required”.

Francisco Tavaro-Pinto (University of Porto), Caroline Hallin (TU Delft), Björn Mehrtens (TU Braunschweig) and Hendrik Vinge Karlsson (Danish Coastal Authority) explained how coastal protection by dunes is achieved naturally elsewhere in Europe. Whereas in Portugal there is a shortage of sand, in Denmark there is a problem of dunes moving inland and bogging down the coastal roads.

Finally, Marien Boers of Deltares presented a model to calculate the strength of dikes that are partially or completely covered with sand. The idea is that during a storm, the sand will get the full brunt of the storm so that the dike will not be damaged.

Site visit

The conference ended with a visit to the pilot projects. On the beach in Ostend, an area of 2400 m² of marram grass was planted with the intention of retaining as much sand as possible so that, in time, a natural dune will form. “The project uses the forces of nature to protect the coast from storms and the consequences of climate change,” concludes Prof. Rauwoens. “Moreover, dunes are a unique ecosystem that contain a wealth of biodiversity. So, with our pilot projects, we score on multiple fronts”.

Yves Persoons

SUSTAINABLE ENGINEERING IN AN INTERNET-OF-THINGS WORLD

The future will be digital and sustainable. And tomorrow’s sustainable society will be shaped with the help of Internet-of-Things. This message has been picked up on Ghent Technology Campus: from 14 to 18 March, an intensive programme has been organized on this theme. About 50 engineering students from 7 different countries have been working on new insights and technologies that will turn our energy supply, energy distribution and energy use more sustainable for the next generations.

Prof. Liesbet Van der Perre and Simon Ravyts, the organisers of this course (with EU funding as a Blended Intensive Programme) are looking back on a successful edition. Their research groups Dramco and Electra saw an opportunity to engage in this adventure together.

“The multi-disciplinarity of the course turned out to be a major added value”, explains Prof. Van der Perre.” It has brought our two research teams on renewable energy and IoT closer together, which we believe will result in increased future collaboration.”

The course’s focus is on the concept of ‘SUSTOPIA’: a society where living, working, transport and leisure are organized in the most sustainable way. Energy generation, storage, distribution, and usage all get ample attention, together with the societal impact for transport, urban planning, work organization and other domains.

Project based International experts from the universities of Lund, La Rochelle, Porto, and Anhalt as well as industry experts contributed to the intensive course. Students were divided into teams after registration and were given the assignment of developing concrete cases in international teams under the supervision of academic coaches. “The project-based learning approach in teams created a special learning experience for the participating students”, says Simon. The classical teaching system is replaced with a more active format where students learn to work with real life challenges and with the unpredictability of problems and the variables and incomplete information, which are inherent to complex issues such as energy sustainability.”

This one-week international course is not only innovative by its integrated and multidisciplinary approach ‘under way to a SUSTOPIA society’, but also the format is using a combination of

transnational online collaboration and physical mobility. This blended type of education is a new format of international education, combining the best elements of physical mobility (the international and intercultural immersion) and the online component (digital learning and education).

Network

The SUSTOPIA course is part of a larger scheme of seven intensive courses that have been set up by the partner universities of the EUCLIDES network, the EUCLIDES INTERNATIONAL WEEKS. The Faculty of Engineering Technology, as a founding member of EUCLIDES network, is participating actively in six of the seven projects.

Students and staff participating in these courses have been working online in teams for a month, co-creating on specific projects. The intensive week in Ghent is the physical moment where teams of students and staff meet. The Faculty of Engineering Technology has made a strategic choice involving this blended mobility. “This format can function as complementary to the traditional student exchanges”, says Prof. Van der Perre. “This type of collaboration allows students and staff who –for whichever reason– are not able to participate in longer mobility periods, to join in meaningful international activities.”

Both Prof. Van der Perre and Simon Ravyts are eager to go and teach in other EUCLIDES network intensive programmes in future editions.

Hilde Lauwereys

Prof. Arn Mignon © Julie Feyaerts

FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS TACKLE BACTERIA

When treating open wounds, the risk of bacterial infection is never far away. For diabetic patients with chronic wounds, that risk is even acute and infections can lead to amputations or worse. Prof. Arn Mignon of the Functional Materials Research Group (SIEM) at Group T Campus developed a new type of dressing to nip this problem in the bud. Who is this scientist who does great work with the smallest things?

Is it his young age, his hunger for knowledge or his quest for the tiniest of particles? Fact is that Prof. Arn Mignon does not fit directly into any of the classic, school-based boxes. Chemistry and biochemistry, materials technology and life sciences blend seamlessly with him. The smaller the material the better, as long as it can be used to heal wounds or repair torn tendons in hands and fingers, among other things. Arn’s research belongs to the cluster ‘Healthcare Engineering’, which together with ‘Sustainable Engineering’ is the domain where pre-eminently disciplines cross and inspire each other so that spontaneous innovation blossoms.

Organic

Prof. Mignon studied Chemical Engineering at UGhent. In 2016, he received his PhD in Engineering Sciences there for a thesis describing an intelligent, super absorbent polymer capable of repairing cracks in concrete. “It represented the switch from inorganic to more organic material,” he explains. “Indeed, the process of self-healing in concrete can be triggered by a combination of polymers and bacteria. Polymers are long molecules with repeating units that can develop numerous interesting properties.”

As a postdoc at UGhent, Arn is concentrating on microfibres that can be used to heal wounds in humans using a special technique -electrospinning. The next step is to develop a smart polymer-based wound dressing that not only neutralises the bacteria in the wound but also makes the progress of this process visible by a discolouration of the wound dressing. “That way, there is no need to unnecessarily administer antimicrobials that would make the patient resistant,” Arn explains.

Amical

In October 2019, Arn became a lecturer at KU Leuven Group T Campus, a job he combined with the postdoc project at UGhent for another year or so. “The informal, amical atmosphere and the international character of the Leuven campus immediately appealed to me,” Arn says. “Add to that a tour of the campus by colleague Veerle Bloemen and I was immediately sold. My first teaching assignment in early 2020 was also an instant windfall: the master course Biomedical Engineering, consisting of a series of six workshops in which students tackle a concrete biomedical problem, from prototyping to pitching.”

In the Biomaterials & Tissue Engineering research group to which both Veerle and Arn belong, Arn started to create new polymers for the creation of smart wound dressings with diagnostic and antimicrobial capabilities. “Again, polymers were enabled. The polymers in the dressing are equipped with so-called nanocontainers. These are tiny spheres that contain certain active materials. For example, there are two types. The first contains an antimicrobial compound, the second a self-extinguishing dye. When the nanocontainers come into contact with the bacteria in the infection, they release their charge. The antimicrobial compounds immediately attack the bacteria. The intensity with which the dye is released from the second kind of nanocontainers gives an indication to the doctor and the patient how the healing process is progressing.”

Bioscience Centre

The Biomaterials & Tissue Engineering research group now has more than 15 postdocs and PhDs, four of them under Arn’s direct supervision. At the same time, the number of research projects is increasing.

Arn and his colleagues’ have no shortage of plans and future prospects. “In the short term, we will house the biological and chemical aspects of our research in a common lab. That will be the forerunner of research spaces within the Bioscience Centre that will open its doors in Heverlee in five years’ time. Furthermore, we are systematically expanding our cooperation with partners: nationally such as UZ Ghent or imec, but also internationally with universities and institutes such as Laval University (Quebec, Canada) and the Leibniz Institute of Surface Engineering (Leipzig, Germany). There is also a huge potential for cross-fertilisation and collaboration in numerous high-tech companies. In five years’ time, our new building is guaranteed to be full of functional materials.”

Yves Persoons

JULIE LEGRAND WINS BELGIAN PHD AWARD

He who damages his nose damages his face. In modern surgery, this old saying is taken very seriously. Consequently, operations on sinuses are consistently performed through minimally invasive surgery. As a PhD student, Julie Legrand developed a new technique to perform procedures even in the most difficult attainable areas. For her pioneering work, she was awarded the Belgian PhD Award from the National Committee for Theoretical & Applied Mechanics.

On 28 May 2021, Julie successfully defended her PhD thesis ‘Single-handed, flexible, stearable instruments for constrained workspace surgery’ at the Faculty of Engineering Technology in Leuven. Given her study background -Julie is a Master of Mechanical Engineering from UCL- one would have expected her PhD rather at the sister Faculty of Engineering Science. An interesting vacancy in Prof. Manu Vander Poorten’s Robotics, Automation & Mechatronics research group (Group T Campus) made Julie decide otherwise.

Maxillary sinus

“If you take minimally invasive to the extreme, it’s called ‘Natural Orifice Transluminal Endoscope Surgery’,” Julie explains. “In this, surgery is performed through the body’s natural orifices. That seems obvious, but in practice you run into the complexity of human anatomy. This means that the surgeon’s working space is usually very limited. On top of that, every person is different, so fixed standard equipment using rigid instruments almost always creates the need to cut away extra tissue.”

In her research, Julie focused on the maxillary sinus or jawbone cavity. This is located near the small molars and is difficult to access with endoscopic sinus surgery. Julie’s assignment was to develop a new, flexible instrument for this type of procedure so that no tissue needs to be removed. An additional requirement was that the surgeon must be able to operate the device with one hand, in order to be able to do other supportive work.

Actuator

“The first phase of my research consisted in a statistical analysis of a large amount of images and scans of the jawbone cavity,” Julie explains. “Since it is not economically feasible to make a customised instrument for every patient, it came down to finding a greatest common denominator. I then designed an add-on that could be attached to an existing passive endoscope.

The next step was to develop a miniature pneumatic actuator that could serve as an artificial muscle. This allowed the instrument to be made as compact as possible. Via an algorithm, hysteresis or unwanted position differences can be compensated without having to deploy large sensors. Another algorithm ensures that the end of the flexible instrument can react smoothly to an action by the surgeon.”

Unique

Add all these components together and you obtain a “onehanded, flexible, controllable instrument for limited workspace surgery”. According to Julie, this is the thinnest flexible endoscope for maxillary sinus surgery designed to date. Two surgeons tried out the instrument and confirmed its added value.

Can Julie’s innovation be used in other procedures as well? The answer is positive. “In the whole range of nose, throat and ear, the possibilities are numerous, even in brain surgery. Knee surgery that is already minimally invasive can be perfected even more.”

Postdoc

Julie is currently a postdoc at VU Brussels. There, she is working on the development of soft robots for use in prosthetics or in moving fragile objects. She is also supervisor of two PhDs and fulfils a limited teaching assignment in the interuniversity Biomechanics course. An academic career seems right up her alley. The Belgian Best PhD Award may yet prove to be of golden service in this regard”.

Yves Persoons

Julie Legrand ©Julie Feyaerts

MAGALI’S MAGIC

‘From impossible to impact’ is her motto. Initiating sustainable change her mission. Systemic thinking her approach. Who is this engineer-entrepreneur who knows how to get to the essence without losing sight of the whole picture? A portrait of ‘big picture thinker’ Magali Minet.

Social entrepreneur, systemic coach, improvisation actress, musician, ... Magali Minet is not to be taken for granted. She calls herself and her company ‘Mind Innovators’. Here, engineering expertise, psychological dynamics and service design are integrated to initiate and guide sustainable change processes. The essence of her conviction is in line with what Confucius once said: ‘Every journey begins with a first step’. That first step lies with yourself to then gradually expand into your environment, your organisation and society. “Change starts with the awareness of being part of the movement yourself. It is about identifying where you as an entity can play a strengthening role in the overall link, inherently part of a well-oiled whole. This applies both to an individual level but equally to organisations,” Magali says.

Globalist

Magali graduated from Group T Campus in 2013 as a Biochemistry Engineer, Medical Bio-Engineering option with a well-deserved ‘magna cum laude’. Throughout her school career, she struggled with the apparent dichotomy between ‘exact’ and ‘human’ sciences. “You were either good at maths or strong in languages. Constant choices had to be made. “I became blazing with Latin, philosophy and poetry, but equally with exact sciences or mathematics. That did not fit into the school pigeonhole system I was part of”.

After high school, a new dilemma awaited Magali: study psychology or engineering? A hard-fought compromise led to engineering technology and the direction Biochemistry. For her, the link between science and life, in the broad sense of the word. The postgraduate ‘Biomedical Engineering Techniques’ that Magali followed after her master’s was along the same lines: how to embody even more the translation between technology and humans?

From her student days, Magali vividly remembers the guest lecture by climate ambassador Serge de Gheldere. “He posited the proposition ‘Who is here to make the world a better place?’ Shuffling, muttering and laughter. My hand went smoothly into the air. As an engineer, you use scientific and mathematical knowledge to identify challenges in your own environment and turn them into opportunities and solutions. This within a larger playing field, such as society. This means first seeing and recognising the challenges and then making them workable for the doers. If engineers look away from the big world problems, we miss an essential link in finding solutions.”

Clinical engineer

Magali’s professional life starts at Materialise in Leuven, the pioneer in 3D printing and after 30 years still among the world’s top companies. The company’s mission ‘innovation for a better and

Minet ©Julie Feyaerts

healthier world’ is right up her street. She starts as a corporate quality engineer and after a year is active as a clinical engineer. Among other things, she designs anatomical heart models for the world’s cardiology elite and also plans virtual skull and face surgeries with surgeons. In 2019, she will co-launch Materialise’s new cardiovascular planner as a technical consultant. Everything points to the promising biochemistry engineer walking a glittering path in a top company.

In March 2020, however, the success story takes a sudden turn. Magali leaves Materialise. She immerses herself in systemic coaching and decides to pursue a deeper integration of people and technology as a social entrepreneur. In January

Magali

2022, her company MINET - Mind Innovators is floated above.

Deeper self

Why this seemingly sudden turnaround? It is Magali embracing and rediscovering the apparent contradiction within herself. The Magali who thus no longer sees the world in terms of dichotomies and no longer accepts having to choose between either this or that. The Magali who is both engineer and coach and entrepreneur and performer and who wants to use this combination of talents and competences to help others.

I choose every day to go in search of which version of myself I really want to be’. The result of years of deep explora-

tion of and into the deeper self. A process in which ratio, emotions and seemingly separate identities are allowed to merge into a new, better and even best version of that Self. “I have shed many tears in my life. I have not died from them. They have only brought me closer to my core”.

‘The core of all things is endless,’ wrote Felix Timmermans. That core turns out to be a universe in itself. Full of possibilities, discoveries and, above all, bursting with mental energy for personal growth.

MINET

This brings us seamlessly to the mission of Magali’s company: ‘At MINET I empower people and organisations to act on societal change. I co-create fertile soils for

change by strongly focusing on innate talents of the individual, the characteristics of the system they are part of and the unique points of contact between the two’.

This mission cannot be pigeonholed as engineering science or naive woolly rhetoric. MINET’s mission has magic. It is the magic of Magali.

 www.magaliminet.be

Yves Persoons

Jesheena Appalsawmy and George Athanassoulis-Makris

ENGINEERING EXPERIENCE CULMINATES IN FAIRYTALE WEDDING

The Engineering Experiences are unique in many ways. Not only do they integrate sciences and technologies, they also bring people closer together. On an international campus, they manifest themselves as a veritable melting pot of nationalities and cultures. What this can lead to is demonstrated by the touching story of George Athanassoulis Makris and Jesheena Appalsawmy.

May 2022 sees exuberant celebrations in Quatre Bornes, a small town near Port Louis, the capital of Mauritius, the exotic island with its pearly white sands and azure Indian Ocean. It is clearly not a party like any other. It involves a ‘vivaah’, a Hindu wedding, a ceremony that lasts for three full days. First there is the Mehndi, the henna ritual on the bride, followed by the Bhatwaan or bachelor party and finally the Sahdie, the apotheosis with joyous music, graceful dancing, delicious food and beautiful outfits.

When George and Jesheena started the engineering programme at Group T Campus eight years ago, they did not have the slightest idea that it would evolve in that way. What brought them to Leuven was the university’s excellent reputation, the Englishlanguage engineering programme and the international learning environment.

Melting hearts

Looking back to 2014 now, one must come to the conclusion that George from Greece and Jesheena from Mauritius were destined for each other. Once they arrived in Leuven, they could not avoid each other. It already starts with their surnames. The first letter in both is an A, so they are immediately placed in the same group in the first bachelor. The following year, they meet in an Engineering Experience where they form a team with four fellow students from the USA, Egypt and Ukraine. The international team gloriously wins the EE competition with the first 3D chocolate printer built with fischertechnik tools. However, the Engineering Experience not only melts the chocolate but also the duo’s hearts. From then on, they are inseparable and for the rest of their studies, they walk on a pink cloud. They both choose the same major (Electromechanical Engineering Technology) and after graduation, they both find their first job at the Swedish multinational Atlas Copco Airpower in Antwerp, where the global headquarters of the compressors division is located.

George starts first in the position of tool designer. “I came at the right time because an ambitious investment plan in new production technologies with even greater automation was just launched,” he says. For Jesheena, things were less smooth because of administrative formalities applicable to non-EU citizens, but she was eventually hired as a process engineer in the central Air Tech

Department. “My job initially was programming robots used for automatic welding,” she explains. “Through applications of Artificial Intelligence and machine learning, we want to build smart and sustainable compressors that can provide even better services to customers.”

Implant

In 2019, George returns to Group T Campus as a PhD student in Prof. Kathleen Denis’ Smart Instrumentation Research Group. There, innovative instruments and supporting technologies are developed and validated for the medical sector.

“I am working on optimising a measuring system that checks the fixation of an implant in the hip bone,” says George. “Fixation is usually done by press-fit but this does not always go according to plan. Often there is either too little fixation or too much pressure is applied, which can lead to intra-operative bone fractures. A solid measuring system that monitors fixation during surgery can prevent this. Vibro-acoustic measurement has already been experimented with but the method is not yet up to scratch.”During 2023, George hopes to obtain a PhD in Engineering Technology. About his plans afterwards, he does not want to say much yet. A job in the R&D department of a high-tech company would appeal to him though.

Social skills

Jesheena is still quite happy at Atlas Copco. Her mainly technical job has evolved over time into project management. This manifests itself, among other things, in greatly increased contacts with suppliers, requiring her to increasingly use her social and communication skills. “Let that be precisely the skills that were so important in the Engineering Experiences at Group T Campus,” Jesheena laughs. “Admit it, that can’t be a coincidence. Apparently, the same laws apply to these skills as to people: they don’t meet by chance.”

Yves Persoons

THE ADDED VALUE OF ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING

“3D printing, or Additive Manufacturing as we call it in the field, is a fascinating and versatile technology. You can let your imagination run free and create the craziest things,” says Prof. Brecht Van Hooreweder, head of the AM research team a director of KU Leuven’s fledgling Institute for Additive Manufacturing. On 30 June 2022, his new 3D printing lab was inaugurated by Princess Elisabeth. A portrait of a passionate engineer, scientist and value-added seeker.

The fact that Flanders is at the top in 3D printing technology owes a lot to KU Leuven,” notes Brecht. “The pioneering research of prof. emeritus Jean-Pierre Kruth led to numerous innovations, patents and international companies, the eye-catchers being the spin-offs Materialise and LayerWise which is now part of 3DSystems.” As a member of the jury at the defence of Brecht’s PhD, the 3D printing pioneer discovers the upcoming talent and promptly includes the postdoc in his research team. When the eminent professor retires in 2015, his successor is just about ready.

Solar team

Brecht graduated in 2008 as an engineer in Electromechanics at the then Group T University College in Leuven. In the same year, he and the Solar Team achieved second place in the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge in Australia, a feat that would only be surpassed 11 years later by the eighth team’s world and two European titles. “During qualifying, our solar car drove the fastest time which meant we started in pole position,” Brecht

recalls vividly. “A problem with the steering system caused a delay that we were unable to make up for. But we had proved that, as a young team, we could compete with the best in the world.” Brecht still calls his Solar adventure an unparalleled learning experience. No wonder he continues to advise and coach subsequent teams for five years after the race.

In the Solar Team, Brecht is responsible for Design and Aerodynamics. In this position, he develops the lightweight tubular frame of the Umicar Infinity, which is also the subject of his master’s thesis. Through his co-supervisor, he can immediately enter a new research project at the Department of Mechanical Engineering after his studies. But Brecht aspires to more. At the same time, he follows a predoctoral programme at the Faculty of Engineering Science, which was still required at the time if you wanted to obtain a PhD in Engineering Technology.

In 2013, Brecht obtained his PhD with a thesis on measuring the service life of mechanical components using fatigue tests.

He experiments with scale models whose test results he extrapolates to real-life applications. At the Solar Team, he had previously perfected the aerodynamics of the solar car by placing a scale model in a wind tunnel. As a postdoc, Brecht continues to carry out fatigue tests, but on 3D printed materials. In 2016, he succeeded Prof. Kruth as professor of Additive Manufacturing and became head of the research group of the same name at the Department of Mechanical Engineering.

Multidisciplinary Under Brecht’s leadership, research in the AM group takes off. In five years, activity triples. “We are constantly looking for ways to improve 3D printing techniques and material quality,” says Brecht. “What makes us unique is that we design and build our machines ourselves. That gives us an edge over other centres around the world that are often much larger and have significantly more resources.

Masters in Engineering Technology also play an important role in AM’s success story at KU Leuven. “Our research is very hands-on so specific technical profiles are virtually indispensable,” confirms Brecht. “Theory and practice are inseparable. But there is more. Since 3D printing has so many applications, multidisciplinary collaboration is equally a must. Healthcare and, more specifically, surgery are good examples. Custom printed artificial joints and dental implants are already well established but there is much more to come. For example, for MRI scans, we print personalised coils that not only pro-

vide better image quality but also require less radiation and are significantly cheaper. In cooperation with specialists at the UZ, we are researching the printing of prostheses with living tissue. Also promising is the 3D printing of personalised medication. Together with colleagues from the Department of Materials Engineering, we are looking for techniques to 3D-print technical ceramics. If we succeed in this, a new market of heat exchangers tor nuclear reactors will open up.”

Ecosystem

Cross-disciplinary cooperation is also at the heart of Leuven.AM, the KU Leuven Institute for Additive Manufacturing of which Brecht is the director. “With the university, the UZ and numerous high-tech companies, we have a unique ecosystem

in Leuven for innovative research but also for education and services. Our aim is to create added value: economically, ecologically, socially, ethically. AM’s assets are truly enormous. A few success cases to illustrate : 23x faster production throughput, 20x lower costs, 60% less weight and 100% less waste”.

Barely four months after the launch of Leuven.AM, Brecht is unpacking a new first: the opening of the Princess Elisabeth Additive Manufacturing Lab in the presence of the crown princess herself. “With a royal ambassador, we hope to appeal to more young people, especially girls who are still heavily underrepresented in technical studies and professions,” says Brecht. “The demand for highly skilled technical profiles will continue to grow. The 3D printing sector alone is growing by

an average of 25% every year. When I see how enthusiastic schoolchildren are after visiting our lab, I think we can help turn the tide. With 3D printing, you can easily connect with young people’s world and appeal to challenges or problems they know. With such an approach, we can make a difference. That too is creating added value”.

 www.mech.kuleuven.be/en/research/am

Yves Persoons

Crown princess Elisabeth and prof. Brecht Van Hooreweder

IF YOU CAN DREAM IT, YOU CAN ENGINEER IT

Stijn Vandycke’s story looks like it comes from a Disney fairy tale. The prince meets a beautiful princess in a faraway land. They fall head over heels in love. The prince leaves everything behind to marry the princess of his dreams. They now make a career together. He as a systems engineer, she as a mechanical at Walt Disney Company in Orlando (Florida).

Who is not familiar with Walt Disney’s historic saying: ‘If you can dream it, you can do it’? To be able to keep on putting the grand master’s boundless imagination into practice, an army of engineers is working day and night. One of them is Stijn Vandycke, who graduated in 2017 at Group T Campus as Master in Electromechanical Engineering (option Intelligent Mobility). In his third year of bachelor’s studies, Stijn spent a semester at the Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering in Needham, Massachusetts. The institution is world-renowned for its dynamic, project-based curriculum and Best Classroom Experiences. The revelation that changes Stijn’s life is not the study, however, but Sophie, a senior student who helps the newcomers find their way around the campus. Sophie has Cuban roots, comes from Miami (Florida) and studies Mechanical Engineering and Robotics at Olin. From being Stijn’s ‘big sister’, she quickly evolves into ‘big love’. The spark ignites and transforms the semester into an unforgettable fairy tale.

Internship

Back in Leuven, Stijn still has three long semesters to complete his studies and plan his return to the States as soon as possible. He manages to do the latter. In the new academic year, Stijn starts at the University of Minnesota for a master in Bioproducts and Biosystems Engineering. He combines his studies with a job in the ‘remote sensing ‘lab. Here, he helps developing advanced agricultural robots, which will earn him an additional master’s degree.

Sophie in the meantime is back in Florida and is working at Disney World, where she managed to get an internship. Stijn follows her example and can get a place at the magical resort through an internship as well. Once united, the young couple gets married and settles down in Orlando, near the world’s largest and most visited amusement park.

“Disney World is not one but four theme parks and two water parks,” Stijn explains. “Add to that two shopping centres, 27 hotels, a campsite, sports grounds and countless places of entertainment. The locations are connected by a road network, two monorails, three ferries, gondola systems, water taxis and buses. All this covers an area of 101 km², which is twice the size of the city of Leuven. In pre-Corona times, there were more than 50 million visitors annually”.

Simulations

Since 2019, Stijn has been working as a system engineer in the MST department. That stands for Modelling Simulation & Training Tools, a mix of mechanics and electronics. “We are heavily involved during the design process of the animatronic robots as well as many machines controlling the attractions”, Stijn continues. “This is done based on computer simulations. Nowadays, for each new installation, we also develop the appropriate packages to train or retrain the operations cast using tools like VR”. As an example, Stijn mentions ‘Stuntronics’, a show where a robot dressed like Spiderman gets launched from one roof to another. The robot is designed to land in a small hidden net. “During the design we had to consider all possible safety risks for cast members and guests. One of them is the weather. Wind gusts can happen at any time pushing the robot away from the intended catching net. For each type of weather, we have a suitable scenario ready that anticipates the danger”.

Experiment

Soon after the start of Stijn’s new role, the Covid pandemic crippled Florida’s entertainment industry hard. Disney was forced to close all their parks and resorts for several months. This resulted in a loss of billions for the company and the dismissal of thousands of employees. As an engineer, Stijn was able to stay at work. “In order to re-open the park as responsible as possible, Disney evaluated and inspect every attraction thoroughly. Measures were put in place on all the attractions to guarantee safe operations. For this purpose, we had to talk to experts from various departments such as logistics, security, legal and marketing. Top management also closely followed our progress. After all, every form of optimization should lead to further reopening the parks in a safe manner while increasing customer satisfaction”.

And Sophie? She too has found her dream job contracting for, being closer to the design aspects. Her job is to surprise people. What Sophie dreams up and designs, Stijn engineers. Walt Disney could not have imagined it better.

Yves Persoons

Stijn Vandycke and Sophie ©Alexander Hermans

Uliana Durbak ©Julie Feyaerts

LUCKY PLANTS FOR HAPPY PEOPLE

She grew up in Kyiv, studied Electromechanical Engineering at Group T Campus Leuven, followed the Postgraduate Programme in Innovation & Entrepreneurship and now she runs an agro-food company in Kinrooi (Belgium). Uliana Durbak from Ukraine has come a long way as an engineer-entrepreneur to bring a unique product onto the market. A portrait of a role model for present and future engineers.

Uliana literally means ‘daughter of Jupiter’ (Jove), the supreme god of classical antiquity. No wonder there is a divine spark in her. Uliana’s mission is to help farmers around the world increase their yields and income with the help of innovative technologies. Together with her father, she developed a technique for repotting plants quickly and efficiently. Uliana’s innovation is now patent-pending and Lucky Plants is ready to make its entrance into the market.

Highly ranked

In 2015, Uliana started her engineering studies at Group T Campus Leuven. Previously, she had already spent a year going to school in Brighton, England, so she did not enter the international scene unprepared. “My choice for Leuven was quickly made,” Uliana says. “I was looking for a top-ranked university in Western Europe with a complete English engineering programme. KU Leuven - Group T Campus quickly came into the picture.”

The choice of a major was not a problem for Uliana either. “Electromechanical Engineering is by far the most versatile programme that allows you to go in all directions. This also applies to the Clinical Engineering option that I took. The Postgraduate Programme in Innovation & Entrepreneurship in Engineering offered me the chance to work on the professional skills needed to run a business myself. You must know that about every member of my family in Ukraine has their own business, so I feel predestined to become an entrepreneur too”.

Blueberries

In Ukraine, the Durbak family is known. Uliana’s father runs a farm specialised in growing blueberries. Because the plants must be repotted up to four times, father Durbak produced an ingenious technique to speed up transplanting. Together with his daughter Uliana, he developed a system that makes transplanting blueberries, raspberries, and other small fruits five to ten times faster and virtually effortless. “SmartyCoir works with coconut substrate,” Uliana explains. “This substrate replaces the usual growing soil in the pots or containers. This method offers the advantage that the

process is fully controlled. Adding water and nutrients happens in exactly the right dosage. In addition, it drastically reduces the physical labour involved in moving the plants. Transplanting directly in the field requires no additional movements, so no extra staff is needed. After repotting, there are in principle no surpluses of substrate either, which in turn benefits the sustainability of production”.

Incubator

On the advice of Marc Van Aken, Uliana’s coach in the postgraduate programme, she took her business idea to Flanders Investment & Trade and the Flemish Agency for Innovation and Enterprise (VLAIO). This provided her with a two-year subsidy. Via VLAIO, Lucky Plants - named after her father’s company - was able to move into Agropolis, an incubator and business site in Kinrooi. “We rent a business unit there where we can produce and stock,” Uliana continues. “Our test field is 3.5 hectares. We test our products on various types of plants and crops. Agropolis is an inspiring environment. Most of the residents are starters in agrofood with innovative ideas and a lot of ambition, but sometimes also with uncertainties and doubts, because those are part of the game too.”

This year, Lucky Plants will launch the SmartyCoir product on the market and start selling the coconut substrate. Engineerentrepreneur Uliana is optimistic about it. “Agriculture and fruit cultivation are going through a difficult period right now because of the spiralling costs. Our products make labour, time, and energy significantly cheaper. With this, we want to give the agrofood sector a new wind in its sails and make it attractive to young entrepreneurs. Hopefully, we will be as lucky as our plants”.

 www.lucky-plants.com

Yves Persoons

THE AGILE ENGINEER

“The world is constantly changing, so you have to be able to deal with change as an organisation and as an individual. This became very clear during the corona pandemic. Those who don’t change fast enough will disappear from the scene,” says Jef Cumps, co-founder of iLean and seasoned change facilitator and trainer. Agility and self-management are his tools to stay in the running.

Engineer, entrepreneur, coach, trainer, inspirational speaker, writer.

Jef is, can and does it all. His career is a textbook example of the versatility of the master’s in Engineering Technology of KU Leuven.

Jef graduated in 2001 as Electronics-ICT engineer from the then University College Group T in Leuven. He immediately started working as an IT programmer at the software company Cronos, a classic starting job for an electronics engineer. During the six years he spent in this position, he attracted attention from large and small customers as an all-round professional who combined technical know-how with the ability to get the best out of people and teams. From programmer pur sang (hard skills), he evolved to management consultancy and then to coaching and training of professional competencies (soft skills). During this period, he immersed himself in NLP (Neurolinguistic programming), personal coaching, Agile, Lean and Sociocracy. In 2007, he co-founded iLean, a consultancy firm specialised in the combination of Agile and Sociocracy principles and techniques.

High performing

What do Agile and Sociocracy stand for?

Jef explains: “Agile focuses on how prod-

uct development teams can work really efficiently and create added value for the customer. In essence it comes down to enabling small, self-organising teams to continuously deliver value and continuously improve. Sociocracy is all about governance and how to run an organisation based on equivalence, collective intelligence and continuous learning. It shows you how to pull self-determination to the organisational level, creating flexible structures and leveraging decentralized power”.

The trump card of iLean is the combination of bringing in powerful processes and focusing on effective collaboration. According to Jef, it is “the most powerful way to grow resilient and high-performing teams and organisations. That’s why I will always combine both views”.

Autonomy

iLean has around 20 employees, of whom a lot have an engineering or ICT background. However, they certainly do not work exclusively for electronics or high-tech companies. Their clients include governments, hospitals, and social profit organisations. “It doesn’t really matter what sector the customer is in”, says Jef. “We activate the self-management capacity of employees and teams with a view to creating maximum cooperation

One of iLean’s satisfied customers is KU Leuven, more specifically the central IT department, an organisation with 300 employees. In just a few years, it has been transformed from a hierarchical structure to an agile organisation in which individuals and teams work together in different ways, depending on the task or context. “Using Sociocracy 3.0 we have encouraged collaboration between teams so that decisions can be taken where the most expertise is,” continues Jef. “We also introduced people coaches who operate across teams. When the department had to operate remotely from one day to the next during the lock-down

Jef Cumps

© Joren De Weerdt

and satisfaction among stakeholders inside and outside the organisation”.

last year, everything went smoothly. It was a test that agile and sociocracy work effectively even in difficult circumstances”.

Novella

Jef put his broad knowledge and rich experience to book in ‘ Sociocracy 3.0 - The Novel’, which was published in 2018. It tells the story of the company HRS that threatens to become a victim of its own success. Kris, the new CEO, is faced with the difficult task of getting the organisation afloat. Using Sociocracy 3.0 techniques, he manages to make the company successful again. “What presents itself as a novella is actually meant as a practical guide towards resilient, innovative and humane organisations”, says Jef. The book has received much

acclaim from the public and the press, both at home and abroad. Urs Bolten, Managing Director of Blum International Consulting speaks of ‘an important contribution to try new leadership approaches’ and ‘a well-written, highly readable and easily understandable book’.

Drive and continuous learning Jef is currently one of the most experienced Sociocracy 3.0 coaches and trainers worldwide. His career path from a programmer of machines to people coach does not take away that Jef still feels like an engineer, but one with a vision and a mission. He has an eye for the person behind the technology and wants to make the world of work more human and

more efficient. This drive makes him a role model for current and future engineers.

Next to a positive drive, a continuous learning attitude is essential to survive and thrive. That is why Jef very recently decided to leave iLean as a founder and manager. Since he wants to spend more time training and facilitating teams and organisations, he is leaving the governance and growth of the company in the hands of Kris Philippaerts, a fellow Group T alumnus and iLean’s co-founder. This way, Jef is enabling new growth opportunities for the company, as allowing himself to contribute more to the world of work.

Yves Persoons

INTERNATIONAL ALUMNI REUNITE IN LEUVEN

Under the motto ‘20 Years Truly International’, Group T Campus Leuven’s international graduates gathered in Leuven for the first time on Saturday 21 May 2022. Over a hundred and twenty of them accepted the invitation and returned to the place where they shared joys and sorrows, and their lives took a decisive turn.

International alumni reunions are not a novelty for our campus,” explains Wim Polet, Director of the International Office. “Before the pandemic, we organised an almost annual gathering in China and

Thailand for local graduates of Group T Campus. in Beijing, we co-founded the university-wide Alumni Chapter run by a Group T Campus Leuven alumnus. The 60th anniversary of the campus was a good opportunity to call together the alumni who (still) reside in Belgium and, by extension, in Europe. On top of that, twenty years ago at the then Group T University College, internationalization started in, with, and from China’.

Nationalities

The extensive internationalization, with the English-language engineering programmes as the crown jewel, has done the campus no harm. Over one third of the 2400 students are currently from abroad. Together, they represent eightyone nationalities. By way of comparison: at KU Leuven, the international share of the total student population is 18%. Parallel to the growing inflow from abroad, the number of international alumni has also steadily increased to over a thousand. The vast majority make a career abroad. About one in five chose to stay in Belgium or neighbouring countries. Almost half of this group was present at the first reunion in Leuven on 21 May.

A Chinese student representative and a Flemish student in the international engineering programme welcomed the guests. Zhibin Sun and Jan Vander Velpen gave striking testimonials. Zhibin was one of the pioneers who came to study at Group T University College in 2001. Jan took part in the first study trip of third-year students to China in 2000 and met his wife there.

On behalf of Beijing Jiaotong University, one of Group T’s first partner universities in China, Vice-President Prof. Guan Zhongliang expressed his appreciation for the long-standing collaboration. He extensively congratulated the 250 students who left his university for Leuven in the past twenty years.

Profiling

Campus Chair Prof. Wim Dewulf concluded the academic part with an overview of ‘Group T Campus Leuven: today and tomorrow’. “This campus was created, grew and flourished on the basis of a clear vision and mission,” explained Prof. Dewulf. “This was true in the past and will be true in the future. In this fast-changing world, it is more than ever important to raise your profile as an organization, as a company, but also as a university and a campus. Since we, as a campus, are at the beginning of the process, it is crucial to make the difference right there. If it does not happen at the base, you will inevitably disappear into the anonymity of the masses or be swallowed up by entities that do know what they stand for and want to go for. So, we keep working on our profiling every day. It is a never-ending story.”

Expo

On the occasion of ‘20 Years Truly International’, a retrospective exhibition was opened with images of the international highlights of the past two decades.

Yves Persoons

© Julie Feyaerts

ENGINEERING THE FUTURE

Study at the Faculty of Engineering Technology

We make you feel at home in a globalised world. As an engineer without borders, you are committed to the major challenges of our time: climate, environment, health, mobility, poverty…

Equipped with science, technology and professional skills, you are prepared to turn the tide.

English-taught programmes

Bachelor’s programme

• BSc in Engineering Technology

- Electromechanical Engineering Technology - Electronics and ICT Engineering Technology - Chemical Engineering Technology

Master’s programmes

• MSc in Biochemical Engineering Technology

• MSc in Chemical Engineering Technology

• MSc in Civil Engineering Technology

• MSc in Electromechanical Engineering Technology

• MSc in Electronics and ICT Engineering Technology

• European MSc in Sustainable Food Systems Engineering, Technology and Business

• Erasmus Mundus Japan - MSc in Imaging and Light in Extended Reality

• Erasmus Mundus - European Master in Radiation and its Effects on MicroElectronics and Photonics Technologies

Advanced Master’s programmes

• Advanced MSc in Innovative Health Technology

• Advanced MSc in Welding Engineering

• Advanced MSc Artificial Intelligence in Business & Industry

• Advanced MSc in Smart Operations and Maintenance in Industry www.fet.kuleuven.be