Forum Topics

• 21st Century Operations: Where IT, OT, and ET Converge
• AI and Machine Learning
• Asset Performance Management
• Smart Infrastructure
• MES End User Success Stories
• Automation Innovations
• Cybersecurity for the Connected Industrial World
• Digital Twins and Connected Smart Machines
• Digital Workforce and Culture
• Industrial IoT Platforms, Edge Infrastructure, and End Devices

Featured Speakers

The following executives are featured speakers at the Forum.

Junpei Tsuji

Executive Officer, Secretary General, Carbon Neutral Strategy Council
General Manager, Research Planning & Coordination Dept.
Sumitomo Chemical

Junpei Tsuji graduated with an M.S. in Catalysis Chemistry from Hokkaido University. In April 1994, he joined Sumitomo Chemical Co., Ltd. and worked at its Petrochemicals Research Laboratory. His experience includes several positions in the Petrochemicals Research Laboratory and the Planning & Coordination Office in Petrochemicals & Plastics Sector, including work on the Rabigh Project between 2007-2009. He became General Manager of the Planning and Coordination Office in the Petrochemicals & Plastic Section in 2013, and held the equivalent position in the Energy & Functional Materials Sector in 2015. In 2020, he became Associate Officer and General Manager of the Research Planning and Coordination Dept. He became Secretary-General of the Carbon Neutral Strategy Council in 2021, and became Executive Officer, in addition to Secretary-General of the Carbon Neutral Strategy Council, and General Manager of Research Planning and Coordination Dept., in 2022.

Mohan Kalyanaraman

Technology Acquisition Advisor, Strategic Planning
ExxonMobil Technology and Engineering

Mohan holds a Ph.D. in Materials Science and an MBA and has 26 years of experience in catalysis, commercialization, and business development. He is currently a technology acquisition advisor for ExxonMobil Technology and Engineering Company and serves as the Marketing and Outreach co-chair for the Open Process Automation Forum.

Mohd Musabri Shaharom

Head of Smart City Section, ICT Division
Perbadanan Putrajaya

With a background as a systems analyst in local authorities and technology driven sectors, Musabri now leads the coordination and execution of the Putrajaya Smart City Blueprint, which consists of seven domains and 93 initiatives. He is responsible for developing solutions and strategies around the role of technologies for sustainable urban development, and for coordinating, educating, and building bridges between multiple departments and agencies. Musabri and the Perbadanan Putrajaya team have played a central role in many smart city projects in Malaysia’s administrative capital, such as the Putrajaya Command Centre, Smart CCTV, Panic Button, Centralized Electronic Bulletin, City Mobile App, Innovation Programme, Smart Meter, Digital Infrastructure, Public Information System, and Integrated Environment Monitoring System.

Vivek Gupta

Joint Vice President and Head of Instrument & Digital
DCM Shriram Limited

Vivek has over 33 years of experience in the field of Control & Instrumentation (C&I). From 1988-2006 he worked with Instrumentation Limited. Since 2006 he has been with DCM Shriram Limited at Kota, Rajasthan. He is responsible for automation and digitalization of power plant, fertilizer plant, chlor alkali plant, PVC plant, calcium carbide plant, and Fenesta Building Systems. Vivek has completed the HARVARD Manage Mentor course, attended Leadership Effectiveness Program from IIM-Bangalore, and a Leadership program arranged by Sri Sathya Sai Seva Organizations, India. In 2016 he was awarded Distinguished Instrumentation Professional under District 14 of ISA. Vivek is currently a member of the Steering Committee of ARC’s Digital Transformation Council, USA and the ISA-Delhi, and a member of Working Group of CII for Smart Manufacturing. Vivek holds a B.E (Electrical) from MNIT, Jaipur.

Dai Yuanshen

Head of Operations Integration
BASF Global Battery Material

With over 17 years of work experience in BASF, Dai focuses mainly on operations technology and digitalization. In 2016 he established the BASF Greater China Smart Manufacturing Team, and this digital team has completed 200+ digital projects for ~30 chemical sites in BASF’s Greater China region. At BASF he worked as Global Technology Manager at the headquarters in Ludwigschafen, Germany, responsible for the technology of ten factories in USA, Germany, Korea, and China; later, he also worked as Cluster Plant Manager of Shanghai BASF Polyurethane Company. Dai has 20 international patents (the first patent holder), and these technologies are used in BASF factories globally. He is also one of the expert committee members of the Intelligent Manufacturing Think Tank of CPCIF. Dai holds a Ph.D from Zhejiang University, major in control engineering, with focus on chemical industry data mining research.

Yuji Yasui

Executive Chief Engineer, Innovative Research Excellence, Computer Science Domain
Honda R&D

Dr. Yuji Yasui received B.E. and M.E. degrees in mechanical engineering from Tokyo University of Science, Japan, in 1992 and in 1994, and a Ph.D. degree from Sophia University, Japan, in 2012. He joined Honda R&D Co., Ltd in 1994 and has been researching in areas including powertrain control for low-emission vehicles and HEVs, traction control for F-1 racing cars, transmission control and device control by using adaptive control, model predictive control, neural networks, etc. He realized the world’s first ULEV (Ultra Low Emission Vehicle) and SULEV (Super Ultra Low Emission Vehicle) in 1997 and 1999, respectively. He is currently an executive chief engineer in the research area for automated driving and advanced driving assistance systems using AI and advanced control technologies.

Divyang Shah

Group Lead, Instrument Reliability in Center of Excellence
Reliance Industries Limited

Divyang has 29 years’ experience in instrumentation and control.  He has been with Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) since 1995.  In 2014 he moved to the Center of Excellence in Mumbai and is responsible for control systems, rotary controls, cybersecurity functions, and open process automation.  The CoE oversees engineering and reliability of instrumentation assets. Divyang’s activities include publishing best maintenance practices, handling obsolescence, upgrades, and reliability issues across all RIL sites (Refinery, Petrochemical, and Polyester).  

Jordan Amir-Hekmat

Senior Project Analyst
Protium Green Solutions

Jordan speaks German fluently with a serious ambition to make a difference in sustainable development and design. He’s a self-motivated engineer who thrives in teamwork and aims to solve today's complex challenges by developing the solutions of tomorrow. His focus areas are hydrogen fuel technology, renewable energy, flood resilience, and zero-emission transport. Jordan’s skills of communication, leadership, team-building and strategic planning will ensure success in a wide variety of working environments. Jordan holds a Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering with German from The University of Sheffield.

Dominic De-Kerf

Plant Systems and Controls COE Lead
Cargill

Dominic started his career in 1991 as a local automation engineer, and then became a part of central engineering, where he was involved in building factories in Turkey, Germany, and China. After his company was acquired by Cargill in 2003, he became the best practice lead for automation for the starch business in Europe and moved into corporate roles related to automation. Dominic has more than 30 years’ experience in the industry and is involved in ISA, NAMUR and other industry associations.

Jamie Rossato

Information Security Director
Lion

Jamie is the Information Security Director at global beverage company Lion, which runs operations in New Zealand, UK, USA, and at its home base in Australia. Prior to joining Lion, he held CISO positions at Bank of New Zealand and Orica, as well as leadership roles in National Australia Bank’s cybersecurity team. Jamie has served as a non-executive director at the Information Security Forum – a not-for-profit dealing with information security and risk management solutions. He currently serves on the board advisory panel of the Australian Information Security Association as well as on several academic panels, most notably the development of the Australian Certificate IV and Advanced Diploma in Cybersecurity.

List of Executive Speakers