June, 12 at 09.00 - Opening Welcome Address
Murli Iyer holds an MBA in International Business from the Rochester Institute of Technology, New York. He holds a Teaching Fellowship in Russian Language from Moscow Linguistic University, Russia, and University of Texas in Austin, Texas. Mr. Iyer also holds an Honors Degree in Russian Language and Literature from JNU, India.
Mr. Iyer has worked and consulted for over fifty years with several Indian and international organizations in the areas of international business development, technology transfer, corporate planning, strategic marketing, and cross-cultural negotiation.
Mr. Iyer retired from SAE International in 2020 after serving the organization for 25 years. Since them, he has been appointed as Global Advisor to the CEO/COO and the President of SAE International. Mr. Iyer also launched his own consulting company “Global Advisory Group” and serves as its President & CEO.
June, 12 at 09.10 - Opening Welcome Address
Gianmarco Giorda, born in Torino, where he graduated in Business and Economics. After being at DEUTSCHE BANK at Milan HQs (1998-2002) as Project Manager, he worked as Marketing Manager at ITP Invest in Turin and Piedmont at Turin HQs (2002-2007), first Italian regional agency dedicated to attracting foreign investments towards Italy.
As from 2007: Director of Operations at ANFIA (Italian Association of the Automotive Industry). Since December 2007 CEO of ANFIA Service S.r.l. (a services company operating in various sectors including Consultancy, Training, Conferences and Technical Publications on Quality, Environment, Safety and Ethics). As from 2012: Director of ANFIA; confirmed in 2013 as President and CEO of ANFIA Service S.r.l. In 2014 he becomes Vice President of ATA (Technical Automobile Association). In October 2017, he has been elected President of the Exhibition Committee of OICA, of whom ANFIA has been part for several years.
June, 12 at 09.20 - Electro Mobility is the Future, but...!
Marc Sens is currently the Senior Vice President for Research & Technology and Sustainability Engineering of IAV GmbH, where he started his professional career as an engineer in 1998. He worked on the mechanics, the calibration, the boosting technologies and the combustion systems of internal combustion engines for more then 20 years, becoming the Senior Vice President for Advanced Powertrain Development in 2015.
He graduated in Mechanical Engineering from University of Berlin (Germany) and University of Coventry (United Kingdom) in 1997.
June, 12 at 9.45 - Sustainable Powertrains for People's Mobility
André Casal Kulzer is Professor at the Institute for Automotive Powertrain Systems, University of Stuttgart since January 2022. Prof. Kulzer received a MSc. degree in Mechanical Engineering from Technical University of Lisbon in 1999 and a PhD. degree from University of Stuttgart in 2004. For his PhD. thesis he received the TR100 Award in 2004 from MIT’s Technology Review - „one of the world’s top young innovators under 35“. After receiving is PhD. he held the position of Senior Researcher and various Management positions at Robert Bosch GmbH in Schwieberdingen till 2011. From 2012 till 2021 he was Manager for Advanced Development Powertrain, together with Synthetic Fuels and Electrified Powertrain Concept Development at Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG in Weissach. His former and actual research interests range from electromobility, hybridisation, combustion, emissions, powertrain systems virtual development, artificial intelligence, and Life-Cycle-Analysis over to hydrogen and E-Fuels topics.
June, 12 at 17.15 - Stellantis Dare Forward Plan
Daniele Chiari was born in Rome on May 18th 1966. Has a Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering from Rome’s “Università della Sapienza”.
Starts his career in the FIAT Group in 1995 covering several roles within Sales & Marketing and Purchasing.
Between 1997 and 2007 his roles have grown in responsibility in the Fiat Powertrain Technologies, the company of the Group dedicate to the development, production and supply of engines and transmissions on a worldwide level.
In January 2007 he is appointed the role of Head of Product Portfolio Management, reporting directly to the CEO.
For a short parenthesis in 2011 he went back to FPT Industrial as Head of Marketing &Product Management, returning in 2012 once again to the automotive world as Head EMEA of Product Planning & Institutional Relations of FCA Italy SpA reporting directly to the COO.
In 2016, he became EMEA’s Head of Vehicle Safety & Regulatory Compliance, while still maintaining his role in PP & IR.
In 2015 he is elected President of GDF (Gruppo Dirigenti Fiat).
With the merger of PSA Group and FCA Group in 2021 he has maintained the role of Senior Vice President covering the role of Enlarged Europe Regional Planning and Public Affairs Italy.
June, 13 at 08.35 - Life Cycle Analysis: A Level Playing Field for Road Transport Environmental Regulations
Professor Zissis Samaras, former Director of the Lab of Applied Thermodynamics, Aristotle University, has spent his entire career carrying out research work dealing with engine and vehicle emissions testing and modeling.
He coordinated a number of large European projects, including “Characterisation of Particulate Emissions from Road Vehicles”, “Impact of ICT on road emissions”, “OBD systems and limits for Euro 6/VI”, “ Measuring exhaust particles down to 10nm”. He was elected Vice Chairman of the European Road Transport Research Advisory Council, and he provided expert advice to a number of organisations, including the World Bank, ACEA, Concawe. He co-authored more than 300 publications, with more than 7700 citations (author h index 48) and holds four international patents. He is the co-founder of three spin-off companies Exothermia (exhaust aftertreatment simulation), Emisia (transport emission inventories) and Bio2CHP (biomass gasification).
June, 13 at 09.00 - Resources Challenges to Green Mobility and Related R&I,
Dipl.-Ing. Christof Schernus is Vice President for Research & Innovation at FEV Europe GmbH, Aachen, responsible for the development of collaborative research projects in the European scene, and, since 2019, President of the European Automotive Research Partners Association, EARPA.
After receiving his Diploma in Mech. Eng. from RWTH Aachen University, he worked in FEV dealing with ICE thermodynamics in experiment and simulation, hybrid propulsion, and project management. Christof represents FEV in European Platforms and Partnerships like ERTRAC, 2Zero, CCAM and Batteries for Europe, in the VDMA working group P2X4A (Power-to-X for Applications), and in FVV.
His research interests range from sustainable propulsion and mobility, driving automation and safety to harvesting and supply of renewable energy in international collaboration
June, 13 at 09.25 - Future Powertrain Solutions
Maurizia Bagnato has an extensive industry background, having held a number of different positions in project management, sales as well as business development across international markets. Her career has been marked by up-to-date experiences in automotive technology, leading to her position as Director of Bosch Mobility Solutions, initially in the UK and later in Italy, where she oversees sales and innovation in new car technologies. She also holds a Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University Polytechnic of Turin
June, 13 at 12.15 - Could Ducted Fuel Injection with Low-Lifecycle-CO2 Fuels Be An Easier Path to Sustainability?
Dr. Mueller is a Distinguished Member of the Technical Staff in the Applied Combustion Research Department at Sandia National Laboratories’ Combustion Research Facility in Livermore, California, USA. He has been working at Sandia since receiving his Ph.D. degree in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Michigan in 1996. His research group uses optical and conventional diagnostics to better understand the processes occurring within modern mixing-controlled compression-ignition engines, and how they are affected by fuel changes. He is an SAE Fellow and serves as an associate editor of the SAE International Journal of Fuels and Lubricants.
June, 13 at 17.10 - EU decarbonisation and industrial policy agenda and challenges ahead
Maria Linkova-Nijs is the Executive Head of Policy & Strategy at the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA), representing Europe's car, truck, van, and bus manufacturers. She leads a team of policy experts in trade, industrial, and transport policy, as well as public affairs managers, communications&statistics professionals, to ensure ACEA's thought leadership and proactive engagement with EU decision makers and stakeholders on key issues.
With 15 years of public affairs experience in Brussels, Maria has worked across consultancies, think tanks, and trade associations. Prior to joining ACEA, she spent nearly seven years at the European Chemical Industry Council (Cefic) as Communications Director. Maria holds a Master’s degree in European Studies, began her career as a broadcast journalist, and speaks English, French, Dutch, and Russian. She is also an avid AI explorer and frequently discusses the application of AI in public affairs.
June, 13 at 17.30 - What now?
Dr. Kelly Senecal is a co-founder of Convergent Science, an industry-leading computational fluid dynamics software company. He is a visiting professor at the University of Oxford, an adjunct professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and a co-founder and director of the Computational Chemistry Consortium (C3). Dr. Senecal is a Fellow of the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), and the Combustion Institute (CI). He is currently Chair of the executive committee of the ASME ICE Division. Recent accolades include the 2019 ASME ICE Award, the 2023 SAE John Johnson Diesel Engine Research Medal, and the 2024 ASME Dedicated Service Award.
Dr. Senecal has long been an advocate of creating cleaner propulsion systems, with a particular focus on using CFD and HPC to enable faster design. Starting with his TEDx talk in late 2016, he has promoted a diverse mix of transportation technologies through invited talks, articles, and social media. Dr. Senecal is co-author of the book Racing Toward Zero: The Untold Story of Driving Green, winner of the 2022 Independent Press Award for Environment.