I received both my MSc (1983) and PhD (1986) degree in physics from the University of Antwerp. In 1987 I joined the Philips Research Laboratories, and participated in different areas of research, among which optical design of displays, processing of liquid crystalline polymers and functionality of personal care devices. In 1999 I became head of the research activities on visual perception of display and lighting systems, which currently is my core field of expertise. I’m studying what people see, how to optimize their viewing, and how that affects their performance and well-being. In 2005, I have been appointed Guest Research Professor at the Southeast University of Nanjing (China) and Part-time Professor at the Delft University of Technology. In 2013, I joined the Human-Technology Interaction group of the Eindhoven University of Technology, and later in 2015 became dean of its Industrial Engineering and Innovation Sciences (IE&IS) department.
Addressing multidisciplinary industrial or societal challenges has always been in the core of my research, and is the driving force behind much of the research we do within the IE&IS department as well. Engineering Resilience for an industrial or societal context intrinsically requires perspectives from multiple disciplines, and therefore I fully support the 4TU Resilience Engineering Center that creates a network and facilitates collaboration across four universities.