Special Interest Conference:
Precision Engineering for Sustainability

2nd – 3rd September 2026

Programme

Please note that all times are shown in British Summer Time (BST)

Wednesday 2nd September 2026

Time (BST)Programme
08:15 – 09:00Registration
09:00 – 09:10Welcome address by meeting chair: Prof. Liam Blunt, University of Huddersfield, UK
09:10 – 09:20Welcome address from local host: Prof. Mairi Watson, Glasgow Caledonian University, UK
09:20 – 09:50Keynote 1: Small-Scale Renewables Incorporating Wind Turbine for Sustainable Communities: Empowering Local Energy Futures
Professor M. Emad Farrag, Glasgow Caledonian University, UK
Chair: Mahmood AnwarSession 1: Renewable Energy Generating Machines (Part 1)
09:50 – 10:05S1.01 Precision Laser Powder Bed Fusion (LPBF) of Plasma Facing Components in Fusion Reactors
Liam Blunt, University of Huddersfield, UK
SUS26101
10:05 – 10:20S1.02 Charge Capacity Analysis of Battery Energy Storage Systems for a Low-Speed Vertical Axis Wind Turbine in a Rural Community
Richard Danyi, Glasgow Caledonian University, UK
SUS26108
10:20-10:35S1.03 Towards Edge-AI enabled real-time onboard defect detection for Unmanned Aerial Vehicle-based wind turbine blade inspection
Godwin Enemali, Glasgow Caledonian University, UK
SUS26112
10:35 – 10:50Discussion
10:50 – 11:20Coffee & Networking
11:20 – 11:35S1.04 A two-stage SCADA-based predictive maintenance framework for wind turbines: evaluation on the CARE benchmark dataset
Babakalli Alkali, Glasgow Caledonian University, UK
SUS26113
11:35 – 11:50S1.05 A Diagnostic Post-Processing Framework for S809 Aerofoil Aerodynamics Aiding Wind Turbine Design: Quantifying Turbulence Model Fidelity
Akmal Nizam Mohammed, Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia, MY
SUS26114
11:50 – 12:05S1.06 Towards Efficient Recycling of Wind Turbine Blades Through Large Scale Inspection, Data Fusion and Virtual Twin Generation
Adam Haynes, Manufacturing Technology Centre, UK
SUS26119
12:05 – 12:20Discussion
12:20 – 12:35IOP: Special Issue presentation, Sophie Caldwell
12:35– 13:45Lunch & Networking
13:45 – 14:15Keynote 2: Laser as a digital key enabling tool for electric vehicle manufacturing
Prof. Ali Gökhan Demir, Politecnico Di Milano, Italy
Chair: Krishna Kumar SaxenaSession 2: Net Zero Manufacturing (Invited talks)
14:15 – 14:30S2.01 Integrating manufacturing and materials characterisation for waste reduction and value add
Asst. Prof. Alistair Spiedel, University of Nottingham, UK
14:30 – 14:45S2.02 Challenges and Approaches in the Forming of Metallic Bipolar Plates for PEM Fuel Cells
Dr Tim Herrig, RWTH Aachen, Germany
SUS26102
14:45 – 14:55Discussion
15:00 – 15:30 Coffee & Networking
15:30 – 15:45S2.03 Towards carbon and environmental performance evaluation of multiphysical manufacturing processes: Insights from hybrid laser-ECM as a use-case
Dr. ir. Muhammad Hazak Arshad, KU Leuven, Belgium
SUS26107
15:45 – 16:00S2.04 Specialising in net-zero manufacturing for heat exchangers/diffusers
Dr. Ali Koruk, Bosal, Belgium
16:00 – 16:15 S2.05 Air-to-Ground Robotic Metrology Networks for Sustainable Manufacturing in Extreme Environments
Yongjia Xu, University of Huddersfield, UK
SUS26116
16:15 – 16:30Discussion
16:30 –17:30Laboratory tours of GCU
19:00 – 22:00  Networking dinner at The Bothy restaurant

Thursday 3rd September 2026

Time (BST)Conference Programme
08:30 – 09:00Keynote 3: Creating A New Standard for Rapid Swap Battery Interfaces 

Prof. Alex Slocum, MIT, MA

09:00- 09:30Keynote 4: The Potential of Remanufacturing for the Sustainability Transition: Developments, Challenges and Prospects

Prof. Tim C. McAloone, DTU, DK

Chair: Liam BluntSession 3: Circular economy (Design for (re-)manufacturing and recycling)
09:30 – 09:45S3.01 Sustainable Extraction of Rare Earth Elements from Coal Fly Ash

Georgios Toupalas, MIT, US

SUS26105

09:45 – 10:00S3.02 Manufacturing of a Titanium Alloy XCT Calibration Artefact

Joel Keen, University of Southampton, UK

SUS26111

10:00 – 10:10Discussion
10:10 – 10:40Coffee, Networking & Poster Session
Chair: Liam BluntSession 3: Circular economy (Design for (re-)manufacturing and recycling)

Part 2

10:40 – 10:55S3.03 First steps toward surface metrology as an enabler of sustainable wood manufacturing

Sabina Rebeggiani, Halmstad University, SE

SUS26118

10:55 – 11:10S3.04 Advancing Circular Production of Precision Moulded Medical Devices with Recycled Polypropylene

Guido Tosello, Technical University of Denmark, DK

SUS26122

11:10 – 11:25S3.05 Laser-directed energy deposition as a key enabling technology for remanufacturing- An overview of capabilities, process chain and qualification challenges

Akash Meena, Technical University of Denmark, DK

SUS26125

11:25 – 11:40Discussion
Chair: Alex SlocumSession 4: Manufacturing machine tool efficiency (Energy efficiency) Part 1
11:40 – 11:55S4.01 Reducing the environmental impact of titanium turning through coolant channel geometry modification

Jindrich Sykora, University of West Bohemia, CZ

SUS26103

11:55 – 12:10S4.02 Validation of an actuated graphite tool electrode system for sustainable sinking EDM processes

Sergio Lezama, IWF, Technische Universität Berlin, DE

SUS26104

12:10 – 12:25S4.03 Performance of porous aerostatic gas bearings in deflection compensated paper roll

Jesper Riihola, Aalto University, FI

SUS26109

12:25 – 12:40Discussion
12:40 – 13:30Lunch & Networking
Chair: Alex SlocumSession 4: Manufacturing machine tool efficiency (Energy efficiency) Part 2 cont.,
13:30 – 13:45S4.04 Sustainable EDM Finishing through Wear Compensation: A Proof-of-Concept Study on Topography Smoothing of High-Energy Craters by Low-Energy Discharges

Leonard Günther, IWF, Technische Universität Berlin, DE

SUS26110

 

13:45 – 14:00S4.05 Enhancing Heat Pump Efficiency by Additive Manufacturing of Leak-Tight Thin-Walled Heat Exchanger Structures

Janek Fasselt, Fraunhofer-Institute for Production Systems and Design Technology IPK, DE

SUS26106

14:00 – 14:10Discussion
Chair: Mahmood AnwarSession 5: Renewable Energy Generating Machines (Part 2)
14:10 – 14:25S5.01 A Lightweight Secure IoT Architecture for Wind Turbine Condition Monitoring Using AES-128-CBC and HMAC-SHA256  

Ahmed Solyman, Glasgow Caledonian University, UK

SUS26123

14:25 – 14:40S5.02 Feasibility Analysis and Experimental Evaluation of 3D-Printed Structural and Aerodynamic UAV Components

Juan Manuel Parrilla Gutierrez, Glasgow Caledonian University, UK

SUS26121

14:40 – 14:55S5.03 A Proposed Low-Cost UAV Framework for Visual Inspection and 3D Condition Monitoring of Wind Turbine Structures   

Ahmed Solyman, Glasgow Caledonian University, UK

SUS26124

14:55 – 15:10Discussion
15:10 – 15:20Closing remarks by Prof. Liam Blunt