Dr. Massimiliano Manfren is a MEng PhD and Lecturer in the Sustainable Energy Research Group (SERG) within the Faculty of Engineering and Physical Science of the University of Southampton (UK). His research interest focuses on analytics and predictive models for energy systems design and operational optimisation at multiple scales, from individual users to communities, acknowledging the possibility of deploying models as platforms and web services tailored for specific uses. He graduated in Civil Engineering at the University of Padua in 2006. Later, his research within the group “Innovative technologies to manage energy in the construction industry” at Politecnico di Milano during his three-year PhD program (2007–2010) was funded by the Italian Ministry of Environment and focused on urban-scale policy and technology integration for high-efficiency multi-energy systems. His research aims to establish a convergence between scientific disciplinary knowledge in energy demand modelling at multiple levels, energy efficient technologies and advances in machine learning and operation research techniques, through an integrated use of simulation, optimisation, statistics and data mining on case studies.

Karla Magali Gonzalez Carreon is a current postgraduate research student studying interpretable data-driven building energy analytics at the University of Southampton as part of the Energy and Climate Change Division. The primary approach of her PhD is to achieve an interpretable data-driven energy consumption modelling and to build a digital twin for real-time analysis. She earned her bachelor’s in mechatronics engineering with a finance diploma and is currently earning her second degree in economics from the National Autonomous University of Mexico. She earned a master’s degree in engineering focusing on energy economics with honours from the same institution. She has worked in areas like R&D on product design and business analytics based on a technological approach, sustainability and developing different projects with innovative insights. She is thoroughly interested in sustainable development focused on energy efficiency and renewable energy.

Professor Patrick AB James is a Professor of Energy and Buildings within Engineering and Physical Sciences at the University of Southampton. He is a Felllow of the Chartered Institute of Building Service Engineers (CIBSE) and a Chartered Engineer (CEng). He is the Director of Programmes for postgraduate taught energy, overseeing the MSc Energy and Sustainability and MSc Sustainable Energy Technologies programmes. He is an Associate Editor of the IET Renewable Power Generation Journal and an energy-based research assessor for several national funding agencies. He is the external examiner at Heriot-Watt University for their MSc Energy programme. He specialises in energy in the built environment, where he teaches modules related to energy performance assessment, climate change and settlements, energy resources and bioclimatic design. He is a co-author of the recently released “Future (P)Roof Building resilience of roofing technologies in a changing climate” for the NFRC Charitable Trust.