18th WCEAM Proceedings : Automation, Digital Transformation, Industry 4.0, and Beyond: Engineering, Operation and Management of Engineering Assets and Public Infrastructure

18th WCEAM Proceedings is an academic record of the intellectual discussions that took place among the attendees and participants during the 18th World Congress on Engineering Asset Management. The events were organized by the International Society for Engineering Asset Management and hosted by IIT Kanpur, India. This proceedings summarizes the discussion during keynote addresses, research paper presentation sessions, debates in panel sessions, knowledge practice workshop sessions, and industry case study presentations. True to the essence of the title, the topics dealt in this proceedings aligns with overarching themes such as Infrastructure, Manufacturing, Process Industry, Automation, Digital Transformation, Industry 4.0, and beyond.

Turuna Seecharan is an Associate Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering at the University of Minnesota Duluth. Dr. Seecharan received her B.Sc. degree from the University of the West Indies in Industrial Engineering, and her Master’s and Ph.D. degrees in Systems Design Engineering from the  University of Waterloo, Canada. She is a licensed Professional Engineer with the Professional Engineers of Ontario and a board member of the International Society of Engineering Asset Management. Her research interests are Gamification and the role of Human Factors in Asset Management.

Joe Amadi-Echendu is an Emeritus Professor at the Graduate School of Technology Management, the University of Pretoria. He specializes in the management of Engineering and Technology, and continues to provide advice, consultancy, and research to public and private sector organisations on a variety of issues regarding technology commercialization and engineering asset management. Joe has co-edited 9 books, sole-authored one book, and authored/co-authored over 160 articles in various technical publications worldwide. Joe obtained the chartered engineer status in the United Kingdom, is a registered professional engineer, and a rated researcher in South Africa. Joe served as an experienced researcher for the European Union Horizon 2020 MSCA RISE Project 645733 (2014-2018) on the Sustainable Design and Management of Industrial Assets through Total Value and Cost of Ownership. Professor Amadi-Echendu is a Founding Fellow, Director, and current Chair of the Board of Directors of the International Society of Engineering Asset Management (ISEAM), as well as a member of the Board of International Association for the Management of Technology (IAMOT).

Dr. Georges Abdul-Nour is an Emeritus Professor of Industrial engineering, Université du Québec, Canada. He completed his PhD at Texas Tech University. He authored and co-authored more than 450 books and chapters, refereed papers, and technical reports. His research interest is in Intelligent Asset Management, Systems Resilience, and Reliability, Lean Intelligent Manufacturing and Six Sigma. He is member of the Editorial Board of International Journal of Production Research, and Director on the Board of International Society of Engineering Asset Management (ISEAM). He is an Elected Member of the Academy of Industrial Engineering of Texas Tech. Dr. Abdul-Nour holds the HQ/NSERG Research Chair in Asset-Management, and is a Fellow of ISEAM.

Adolfo Crespo Márquez is a Full Professor at the School of Engineering of the University of Seville. He holds a Ph.D. with Honors in Industrial Engineering from the same university. In 2020, he received the Spanish Maintenance Award from the Spanish Maintenance Association (AEM). His research work - comprising more than 150 scientific papers - has been published in leading international journals. He is the author of eight books and the editor of six additional volumes published by Springer, AENOR, IGI Global, and INGEMAN, focusing on maintenance, warranty, supply chain, and asset management. Professor Crespo is a Fellow and Director of the International Society of Engineering Asset Management (ISEAM) and serves as Editor-in-Chief of the Springer book series Engineering and Asset Management Review. He also leads the SIM (Sistemas Inteligentes de Mantenimiento) research group, dedicated to maintenance and asset management, and has been extensively involved in engineering and consulting projects for a wide range of institutions. Since 2002, he has chaired INGEMAN, the Spanish National Association for the Development of Maintenance Engineering.