After a full career In the Royal Navy as an aerospace engineer working mainly on Rotary wing Aircraft I then joined a major aerospace defence company charged with delivering support and services across the globe to multiple International and domestic customers of key Avionics and electrical components. This involved managing large contracts and a highly skilled team of logisticians, technicians, projects managers and associated functional support. From there I progressed into the world of digital and ultimately ended up in the IT department of the same Aerospace and Defence company as a Business partner working across multiple sites and all of the major functions. This included finance, engineering, procurement, operations, legal and support and services, a great grounding for this job!
This is a dream job for me! Being part of a team that develops Robotics and AI solutions for the benefit of society, involves working with the brightest talent in this field every day, in a fantastic building, and means partnering with leading edge companies across many sectors. I also get to shape how we operate, help build a fantastic team culture and deliver real value to our customers
I’m extremely privileged!
y.petillot@hw.ac.uk
Yvan Petillot is a Professor of Robotics and Autonomous Systems at Heriot-Watt University. He the academic lead and co-director of the National Robotarium and the chair of Robotics theme of the Scottish Research Partnership in Engineering.
He is interested in developing robotics solutions in the marine sector, supporting his long-term vision of robot teams operating in hazardous environments, supported by remote human operators. Over the last 20 years, he has made major contributions to robot perception, navigation and planning in the underwater domain.
A former Royal Society Industry Fellow and the co-founder of SeeByte Ltd, Yvan Petillot is also determined to see academic research translate into new products and markets. He has created several EU robotics competitions to support the development of new talents in robotics in Europe.
As a software, AI and robotics engineer with over 20 years of experience in science and industry, I am leading the facility’s growing team of robotics engineers as they test and develop new technologies and systems to address real-world challenges.
I have in-depth, hands-on experience with many robotic systems, including all phases of software development, life-cycle management and DevOps tooling. I co-founded and led engineering teams in several start-up companies in robotics, software architecture and database management systems. Throughout this time, I developed an understanding of the potential of applied emerging technologies for addressing industry challenges.
I’m also passionate about sharing the knowledge and expertise of our talented team to build robotics skills in different sectors, ensuring people are equipped with the tools they need to operate and manage robotics and AI, and promoting the positive benefits of these technologies to all.
… my goal is to get more robots out of the lab and into the wild, and being able to talk directly to industry leaders about their challenges means we can develop safe, practical, and effective robotic technologies that can be seamlessly integrated into society.
Title: Reader in Construction Informatics
Contact info: f.bosche@ed.ac.uk
Tel: 0131 651 3525
I am Reader in Construction Informatics and leader of the CyberBuild Lab in the School of Engineering at the University of Edinburgh. Previously, I was a postdoctoral researcher at ETH Zurich before being appointed Lecturer (and Senior Lecturer) at Heriot-Watt University.
My research interests relate to the development and application of new digital solutions to support construction project delivery and asset management (both historic/heritage and modern), with current focus on:
• Acquisition and Processing of reality capture data to support construction and life cycle management (scan-to-BIM, scan-vs-BIM)
• XR technology, to support enhance on-site construction works.
• OpenBIM, Linked Data, Digital Twinning, and ICT for information management, principally in relation to the previous two areas.
• Construction robotics
I have received several international research and innovation awards, including the IAARC Tucker-Hasegawa Award in 2018. I am Associate Editor of Information Technology in Construction, and Past President of the International Association for Automation and Robotics in Construction (IAARC).
To learn from all its members who bring breadth and depth of expertise in so many domains.
Contact info: michael.mistry@ed.ac.uk
Michael is a Professor and Personal Chair of Robotics at the School of Informatics, University of Edinburgh, and the Director of the Centre for Doctoral Training in Robotics and Autonomous Systems at the Edinburgh Centre for Robotics. Michael’s research focuses on the principles behind dexterous movement and control in robots and humans, particularly in environmental contact.
Heriot-Watt University
Edinburgh, Scotland
UK EH14 4AS
Scottish registered charity number SC000278
The University of Edinburgh
Edinburgh, Scotland
EH8 9YL
Scottish registered charity number SC005336
