keynote speaker I

Prof. Jianjun (Jan) Shi
Georgia Institute of Technology, USA

Bio: Dr. Jianjun Shi is the Carolyn J. Stewart Chair and Professor in H. Milton Stewart School of Industrial and Systems Engineering, with joint appointment in the George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology. Prior to joining Georgia Tech in 2008, he was the G. Lawton and Louise G. Johnson Professor of Engineering at the University of Michigan.  
Dr. Shi is a pioneer in the development and application of data fusion for quality improvements. His In Process Quality Improvements (IPQI) and Stream of Variation (SoV) methodologies integrate system informatics, advanced statistics, and control theory for the design and operational improvements of manufacturing and service systems by fusing engineering systems models with data science methods. He has produced 44 Ph.D. graduates, 30 of which have joined IE department as faculty members.  Among them, 7 have received NSF CAREER Awards and one has received the NSF PECASE award.  He has published one book and more than 250 papers.  He has served as PI and co-PI for projects totaling more than 25 million dollars, which were funded by the National Science Foundation, NIST Advanced Technology Program, Department of Energy, General Motors, Daimler-Chrysler, Ford, Boeing, Lockheed-Martin, Honeywell, Pfizer, Samsung, and various other industrial companies and funding agencies. The technologies developed in Dr. Shi’s research group have been widely implemented in various production systems with significant economic impacts.
Dr. Shi was elected a member of the National Academy of Engineering (2018), and an Academician of the International Academy for Quality (2013). He is a Fellow of American Society of Mechanical Engineering (2007), the Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineering (2007), Institute of Operations Research and the Management Science (2008), Society of Manufacturing Engineering (2021). He received the ASA Deming Lecturer Award (2025), the ASQ Shainin Metal (2025), the ENBIS George Box Medal (2022), the Statistics in Physical and Engineering Sciences (SPES) Award (2022), the ASQ Walter Shewhart Medal (2021), the SME/NAMRI S. M. Wu Research Implementation Award (2021), the ASQ Brumbaugh Award (2019), the Horace Pops Medal Award (2018), IISE David F. Baker Distinguished Research Award (2016), the IIE Albert G. Holzman Distinguished Educator Award (2011), Forging Achievement Award from Forging Industry Educational and Research Foundation (2007), Monroe-Brown Foundation Research Excellence Award (2007), the 1938E Award (1998) at The University of Michigan, and NSF CAREER Award (1996).
Dr. Shi is the founding chair (1998-1999) of the Quality, Statistics and Reliability (QSR) Subdivision at the Institute for Operations Research and Management Science (INFORMS).  He served as the Editor-in-Chief of the IISE Transactions (2017-2020), the flagship journal of the Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineers. He also served as the Focus Issue Editor of IISE Transactions on Quality and Reliability Engineering (2007-2017), editor of Journal of System Science and Complexity (2008-2020), and advisory editor of Journal of Quality Technology and Quantitative Management (2016-present).
Dr. Shi received his B.S. and M.S. in Electrical Engineering from the Beijing Institute of Technology in 1984 and 1987, and his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Michigan in 1992.

keynote speaker Ii

Prof. Kwang-Jae Kim
Pohang University of Science and Technology, Korea

Bio: Dr. Kwang-Jae Kim is a Professor in the Department of Industrial and Management Engineering and the Head of the Graduate Program in Industrial Data Science at Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH), Korea. His research focuses on quality assurance in product and service design and analytics-driven new service development.

His work has been applied to various fields, including semiconductor manufacturing, steel manufacturing, automobile design and manufacturing, healthcare and wellness, smart energy, smart transport, telematics, and ICT services. His research has been supported by organizations such as the National Research Foundation, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Knowledge Economy, the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, and the Ministry of ICT of Korea, as well as leading companies including Samsung, LG, POSCO, Hyundai, SK Hynix, KT, IBM, and Microsoft.

He has received several prestigious awards, including the Proud POSTECHian Award, the Literati Award for Excellence, the KIIE Jung-Hun Academic Excellence Award, and the KSQM Academic Excellence Award. He is a member of the National Academy of Engineering of Korea and currently serves as the President of the Korean Institute of Industrial Engineers (2023–2024). More details can be found at http://quality.postech.ac.kr/.
 

keynote speaker IiI

Prof. Bopaya Bidanda
University of Pittsburgh, USA

Speech Title: AI and Sustainability: Emerging Roles for Industrial Engineers
Abstract: This talk will share insights on how industrial engineering is evolving with the help of AI and how it is helping us balance efficiency and sustainability. Industrial engineering is at the forefront of process optimization and system efficiency. But with rising global challenges such as climate change and resource limitations, the role of industrial engineers is expanding. AI has become a crucial tool in tackling these challenges, helping industries become more sustainable while improving their operational efficiency.

The talk with begin with discussing how industrial engineering can evolve to meet today’s challenges. Then it will detail how innovation is driving new efficiencies and how sustainability is becoming a major focus. The next part will dive into how AI is being applied to industrial engineering. We’ll explore specific ways AI is improving both efficiency and sustainability, using real- world examples from leading industries. Finally, it will detail the emerging roles industrial engineers are taking on in this AI- driven landscape with a focus how industrial engineers can bridge the gap between technology and operations.

Bio: Dr. Bopaya Bidanda is currently the Ernest E. Roth Professor at the Department of Industrial Engineering at the University of Pittsburgh. He also serves as the Director of the Center for Industry Studies. He returned to the faculty in 2021 after 21+ years as Department Chair. He also serves as Director of the Manufacturing Assistance Center Initiative that helps underserved communities develop manufacturing skills. His most recent book includes the Maynard Industrial & Systems Engineering Handbook, Sixth Edition that serves as the definitive body of knowledge for industrial engineering. His research focuses on different dimensions of manufacturing from reverse engineering to manufacturing modernization.

He is also the Past President of the Institute of Industrial & Systems Engineers (IISE), the largest and oldest professional society representing the discipline. Dr. Bidanda has also served on the ABET Board (of Delegates) and is an active accreditation visitor for the past 20+ years and has led ABET teams to many countries. Dr. Bidanda has received many international awards - last year alone, he received the Frank & Lillian Gilbreth Award by IISE and also the Lillian Gilbreth award by the Indian Institution of Industrial Engineering.

Bidanda is also a dual Fulbrighter, first appointed in 2004, as Fulbright Senior Specialist to Uruguay, and more recently as a Fulbright-Nehru Senior Scholar to India, by the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board and the U.S. Department of State. Over the past decade, he has delivered keynote and plenary addresses at conferences in Brazil, Israel, Spain, Turkey, and India.

keynote speaker IV

 

Assoc. Prof. Zhisheng Ye
National University of Singapore, Singapore

Bio: Education: PhD in Industrial and Systems Engineering, National University of Singapore, BEng in Material Science and Engineering, Tsinghua University, BEco in Economics, Tsinghua University
Research Interests: Industrial statistics: field failure data analysis, warranty data analysis and queuing data analysis, Complex systems modelling: systems involving physical components and human; degradation modeling, Reliability engineering: burn-in testing, accelerated testing, preventive maintenance, warranty cost modelling. (more