“Distinguished fellow” is new category created in 2019 and described as follows in WFEO’s Constitution “A Distinguished Fellow shall be an individual who has engineering qualifications and made an outstanding contribution to engineering.”

  • Dr. Vilas Mujumdar (1941-2023)

    Vilas Mujumdar has been an independent consulting engineer since 2009. Previously he was CEO, President and Partner in many large engineering firms and at highest-level in the public sector; Chief of Operations, Division of State Architect, State of California; Director, Engineering Research Centers Program at the National Science Foundation (NSF). His professional experience included Design, Project Management, Teaching, and Research Management in Asia, Europe, Canada and the US.

    Vilas Mujumdar was a recipient of many awards and recognitions nationally and internationally. He served on American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) board of Direction and has served on the Board of Direction of many other Professional Societies He was recognized internationally for his leadership and contribution to integrated trans-disciplinary work in reducing natural hazard risks, and was proactively involved in addressing resilience and sustainability issues facing the global society.

    An author of two books, 85 papers, and keynote speaker for over 30 international conferences, Vilas Mujumdar’s leadership experience in the field of engineering was immense. He holded his doctorate in public administration and public policy (seismic risk), a master’s degree in structural engineering, and a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering. Mujumdar also received a master of business administration in finance.

    Vilas Mujumdar was awarded the WFEO Medal of Engineering Excellence in November 2019.

  • Prof. Dr. Jürgen Kretschmann

    Dr. Kretschmann is full Professor and President of the TH Georg Agricola University (THGA), Bochum, Germany, a WFEO associate.

    He is also an the Managing Director of DMT Society for Teaching and Education (DMT-LB) and an external Professor at RWTH Aachen University. In these respects, his role is both in Engineering Research and in Knowledge Transfer, specifically in the post-mining area. A proof of his significant work is that on 9 May 2020, the THGA was awarded the European banner by Europa-Bochum, acknowledging the commitment of the German university “in and for Europe”.

    Dr. Kretschmann has been long time active in WFEO Working Groups, thus highlighting the importance of international cooperation in engineering. He stands out by far to promote the Engineering Profession as a fundamental tool to achieve sustainable development and green environment in support of the UN SDGs.

    The FEANI community has known Dr. Kretschmann since many years in the context of his active support for the FEANI German National Monitoring Committee. He successfully advocated for a closer relationship of engineering graduates and the FEANI organization, in particular the FEANI EUR ING Professional Title. THGA is also a strong partner within the FEANI initiative “Engineers for Europe”.

  • Santiago Sotuyo Blanco

    Eng. Sotuyo Blanco is an Industrial Engineer and has a professional career of more than 30 years, specialized in maintenance engineering and reliability engineering. He held various positions in maintenance, engineering, logistics and industrial management in companies in Uruguay, in areas of engineering, agribusiness, leather, food.

    As a senior technical contributor to ARMS Reliability, Eng. Santiago Sotuyo Blanco regularly participates in and contributes to the evolution of the Reliability Engineering Intellectual Property, know-how and approach.

    Having the experience across several industry verticals, Eng. Santiago Sotuyo regularly contributes the global asset management community through conference presentations and panel participation. Eng. Sotuyo Blanco constantly support the development of our engineering resources, sharing his experience and expertise across our dedicated engineering team.

    He is former President of the Uruguayan Society of Maintenance, Asset Management and Reliability (URUMAN) and former President of the Pan American Committee of Maintenance Engineering (COPIMAN). He has an outstanding participation in the Pan American Union of Engineering Associations (UPADI), and is former member of the Board of Directors of the Association of Engineers of Uruguay (AIU) and currently member of the board of directors of the Latin America chapter of the Society of Maintenance and Reliability Professionals (SMRP).