E-CAM interview with Massimo Noro, Director of Business Development at STFC

In 2019, Massimo Noro was invited by the CECAM Headquarters at EPFL (E-CAM coordinator) to give a lecture in the framework of the CECAM/MARVEL Mary Ann Mansigh Conversation Series, entitled “Computer modelling for industrial applications”. E-CAM interviewed Massimo Noro at that occasion.

Particularly active in applying atomistic and coarse-grained simulations to study the interaction of nano-objects and surfactants with lipid bilayers for industrial applications (e.g. soaps, detergents, etc.), Massimo Noro has made considerable contributions to the development and application of the Dissipative Particle Dynamics (DPD) simulation technique to study soft condensed matter systems.

Former science leader of the High Performance Computing division at Unilever and current Director of Business Development at the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), with a focus on the Daresbury Campus (see short bio below). Massimo is also a member of E-CAM’s Executive Board. In this interview, he will talk about his journey from academic research, to work in Unilever and now at STFC, and will share his insights on the use of simulation and modelling in industry and the role of STFC and research in this regard.

Watch Massimo Noro’s reply to three key questions of this interview:

Tell us about your journey from academic research, to work in Unilever and now at STFC

What are the key ingredients for the successful relationship between STFC and Industry

What do you think are the most important HPC needs for industry

Full video interview is available here, with the following outline:

Minute:Second (with direct link to the video)Q&A#Question
00:211Tell us about your journey from academic research, to work in Unilever and now at STFC
02:192Could you tell us about STFC and in particular its activities related to simulation
04:503What are the key ingredients for the successful relationship between STFC and Industry
08:134Can you give us an example of how simulation solved an industrial problem
09:265What do you think are the most important HPC needs for industry
12:186Do you think machine learning approaches combined with experiment will impact industrial R&D
14:057What is the role played by research software engineers
15:208What do you think are the barriers to enter an industry job
17:519What is the importance of open innovation in industrial R&D
20:0410What is the importance of diversity on the work space

Massimo Noro

Massimo Noro is the Director of Business Development at the Science & Technology Facilities Council (STFC), with a focus on the Daresbury Campus. His role is to ensure the continued growth and success of the Daresbury Laboratory at the Sci-Tech Daresbury Campus.

Massimo joined STFC in February 2018, following a successful industrial R&D career at Unilever with a proven track record as program and people leader in a corporate environment – Unilever is a large multinational and a market leader in home care, personal care, refreshments and foods products. He gained considerable experience in managing high-budget projects and in leading teams across sites and across complex organisations. Massimo leads on strategic partnerships with industry and local government; he manages a wide team to deliver innovation, to develop strong pipelines of commercial engagements and to provide a range of offerings for business incubation.

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