Secure one of ten exclusive seats with Professor Alan Lau, Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research Performance and Development), Swinburne University of Technology where he will give his insights on the growth of aviation business in the Asia Pacific Region and what opportunities are there.

The aviation industry is growing rapidly in the Asia Pacific Region. In China, it has been predicted that over 50 new airports will be built and over 30,000 new airplanes will be supplied to world’s airlines in coming 10 years to satisfy the demand of air traffic passenger growth. Due to such an increase within a short period of time, the need of professionals, including pilots, air traffic controllers, airport asset managements, aircraft maintenance technicians and engineers and others have increased subsequently. The challenge is to make the most of this opportunity, to support the growth of this industry in the future.

Professor Alan Kin-tak Lau is Swinburne’s Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research Performance and Development). His research focuses on materials science, particularly bio-composites, smart composites and nano-composites. He holds a PhD from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University and degrees in aerospace engineering from RMIT University.

Since 2014 Professor Lau has served as International Vice-President of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers – the first scholar elected to the role outside the UK. He is a fellow with the Royal Aeronautical Society, the Institution of Materials, Minerals and Mining, the Hong Kong Institution of Engineers, Engineers Australia, the Institution of Engineering Designers and the European Academy of Sciences and Arts. Professor Lau has also been an Independent Non-executive Director of Kingsflair International (Holdings) Limited (Stock Code 6822) since 2015.

With an outstanding research record that includes six books and over 250 articles, Professor Lau has received numerous awards including the Young Scientist Award (2002), Young Engineer of the Year Award (2004), the Faculty Award for Research and Scholarly Activities (2005), the Award for Outstanding Research in Nanocomposites for Space Applications (2006), Most Cited Paper Award – Chemical Physics Letter (2003-2007), the Ernest L Boyer International Award for Excellence in Teaching (2009) and Outstanding Contribution in Education (2014). He has also chaired international conferences on materials science and engineering in Hong Kong, Australia, China and Korea.