Dr. S. G. Ponnambalam has a Ph.D. degree in Industrial Engineering from Bharathiar University, Coimbatore, India. He is currently holding a Senior Professor position in the School of Mechanical Engineering at VIT University, Vellore-632014, India. He has held academic and administrative positions at various higher learning Institutions in India and abroad, such as PSG College of Technology, Coimbatore, and National Institute of Technology, Trichy, in India, Monash University Malaysia Campus and University Malaysia Pahang in Malaysia. His area of expertise includes manufacturing, optimization, and swarm robotics. He has supervised a number of doctoral students in the area of manufacturing automation and swarm robotics. He is serving as Associate Editor and as Editorial Board Member for many international journals. He has over 300 articles published in various referred journals, refereed conferences, and chapters in edited books.
Dr. Purush Damodaran is Presidential Teaching Professor and Chair of Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering at Northern Illinois University, USA. He earned his Ph.D. in Industrial and Systems Engineering from Texas A&M University, an M.S. in Industrial and Systems Engineering from Northern Illinois University, and a B.E. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Madras. His research and teaching interests are in the area of large-scale optimization, scheduling, lean, Six Sigma, simulation, logistics, and warehousing. He has received over $6 million in research contracts and grants from companies and federal agencies. He was recognized by the Institute of Industrial Engineers with the 2021 Operational Excellence award for his contributions in teaching and research in the area of continuous/process improvement. He also received the distinguished Presidential Teaching Professorship and prestigious International Educator Award from Northern Illinois University.
Dr. Nachiappan Subramanian (Nachi) has 26 years of experience including 24 years in academia and 2 years in a consulting company. He is Professor of Operations and Logistics Management at the University of Sussex Business School. He is Fellow of Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT), UK. He serves as Associate Editor in the following journals: i) International Journal of Physical Distribution and Logistics Management, ii) Socio-Economic Planning Sciences, and iii) International Journal of Logistics Management. He successfully organized several conferences and workshops on digital technology intervention to enhance resilient supply chains in Turkey, Brazil, China, and India. His research on emerging topics has received several hits including the media article on delivery drones published by China Daily and LSE Business Review blog on Social media and successful retail operations in the hyper-customization era.
Dr. J. Paulo Davim is Full Professor at the University of Aveiro, Portugal. He is also distinguished as Honorary Professor in several universities/colleges/institutes in China, India, and Spain. He received his Ph.D. degree in Mechanical Engineering in 1997, M.Sc. degree in Mechanical Engineering (materials and manufacturing processes) in 1991, Mechanical Engineering degree (5 years) in 1986, from the University of Porto (FEUP), the Aggregate title (Full Habilitation) from the University of Coimbra in 2005, and the D.Sc. (Higher Doctorate) from London Metropolitan University in 2013. He is Senior Chartered Engineer by the Portuguese Institution of Engineers with an MBA and Specialist titles in Engineering and Industrial Management as well as in Metrology. He has more than 35 years of teaching and research experience in Manufacturing, Materials, Mechanical, and Industrial Engineering, with special emphasis in Machining & Tribology.
