Plenary Speakers
Mike Burnard
Deputy Director of the InnoRenew CoE
Assistant Professor at the University of Primorska
Adhesion and Wood: Insights from a Bibliometric Analysis of Published Literature
Mike grew up in the forest sector in the Pacific Northwest of the US, first following his father and grandfather around the family sawmill and later working for the company, which became noted for its innovative products, marketing, and operations. He returned to academia in 2010 and completed a Master’s of Science degree in Wood Science at Oregon State University in 2012.
Greeley Beck
Senior Development Chemist
Dynea
Adhesive systems – for future structural and non-structural wood applications
Greeley obtained his Master’s degree in Wood Science and Engineering from Oregon State University in 2014 and then moved to Norway to pursue his PhD in Wood Technology at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences. His Master’s and PhD work involved protecting wood from biodegradation with his PhD focused on understanding the role of moisture for decay resistance in acetylated wood.
Joseph Jakes
Research Materials Engineer
US Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory
Using Advanced Experimental Tools to Accelerate Wood Adhesive Development
Since 2010 Joseph Jakes has been a Research Materials Engineer in the Forest Biopolymer Science and Engineering group at the USDA Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory in Madison, WI. He received a BS in Chemical and Biological Engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2005.
Charles Markessini
R&D Director
Chimar Hellas SA
Adhesive Systems used in the European, Asian, and African Particleboard, MDF, and OSB Industries
He has completed his Chemical Engineering studies at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (AUTH), Greece, in 2002. In his final thesis he studied the design of a pilot unit producing urea-formaldehyde resins under continuous flow conditions.
In 2007 he has completed a two-year master’s course in “Applied Informatics, specialization in Computer Systems” at the University of Macedonia, Thessaloniki.
Nayomi Plaza
Materials Research Engineer
US Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory
Using Advanced Tools to Accelerate Wood Adhesive Development
Nayomi Plaza is a Materials Research Engineer at the US Forest Service Forest Products Laboratory (FPL). She received her PhD in Materials Science from the University of Wisconsin Madison in December 2017. Her doctoral dissertation focused on neutron scattering studies on the nanoscale wood-water interactions to elucidate the role of these interactions in the durability of forest products.
Lisa Podesto
Senior Business Development Manager
Lendlease Design-Build Americas
Mass Timber Opportunities: Through the Eyes of a Developer/General Contractor
Lisa serves as Lendlease’s US based Timber and Innovation Specialist, responsible for advising construction, development, and design-build projects nationwide where the use of mass timber and componentized solutions are being considered.