Marius M Balas Editor

Prof. Robert J. Howlett is the Executive Chair of KES International, a non-profit organization that facilitates knowledge transfer and the dissemination of research results in areas including intelligent systems, sustainability and knowledge transfer.  He is a Visiting Professor at 'Aurel Vlaicu' University of Arad, Romania, and Bournemouth University in the UK. Professor Howlett's technical expertise is in the use of intelligent systems to solve industrial problems. He has been successful in applying artificial intelligence, machine learning and related technologies to sustainability and renewable energy systems; condition monitoring, diagnostic tools and systems; and automotive electronics and engine management systems.  His current research work is focused on the use of smart microgrids to achieve reduced energy costs and lower carbon emissions in areas such as housing and protected horticulture.

Prof. Lakhmi C. Jain, Ph.D., M.E., B.E. (Hons), Fellow (Engineers Australia), is with Liverpool Hope University, UK and was formerly with the University of Technology Sydney, Australia. Professor Jain founded the KES International for providing a professional community the opportunities for publications, knowledge exchange, cooperation and teaming. Involving around 5,000 researchers drawn from universities and companies worldwide, KES facilitates international cooperation and generates synergy in teaching and research. KES regularly provides networking opportunities for professional community through one of the largest conferences of its kind in the area of KES.

Dr. John R. Littlewood graduated in Building Surveying, holds a Ph.D. in Building Performance Assessment of Zero Heating Housing, and is a Chartered Building Engineer. He is Head of the Sustainable and Resilient Built Environment research group in Cardiff School of Art & Design at Cardiff Metropolitan University (UK). He coordinates three Professional Doctorates in Art & Design, Engineering and Sustainable Built Environment. John’s research is industry focused, investigating methods to optimise the fire safety, production, and thermal performance for existing and new dwellings during the design, manufacture, construction, operation, or during and after retrofit stages. The outcomes of John’s research enhance occupant quality of life and increase the environmental sustainability and resilience of the built environment. He has authored and co-authored 155 peer-reviewed publications. 

Dr. Marius M. Balas, IEEE Senior Member, is a Professor at the Engineering Faculty of Aurel Vlaicu University of Arad, Romania. His research topics are in Systems Engineering, Electronic Circuits, Intelligent and Fuzzy Systems, Adaptive Control, Greenhouses, Modeling and Simu­lation. He is author of 16 books and book chapters, 120 indexed papers and 7 invention patents. His main contributions: the fuzzy-interpolative systems, the passive green­houses, the intelligent rooftop greenhouses, the constant time to collision traffic optimization, the rejection of the switching controllers’ instability by phase trajectory analysis and the Fermat neuron.