Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to announce that the winners of the Applied Sciences 2023 Early Career Investigator Award are Dr. Franco Concli and Dr. André Furtado.

Dr. Franco Concli (World’s Top 2% Scientists della Stanford University 2021-2022) is an Associate Professor of the Faculty of Engineering at Free University of Bozen-Bolzano, Bolzano, Italy. Dr. Franco Concli’s research interests focus on gears, FEM, fatigue, lubrication, efficiency, and tribology. Dr. Franco Concli received his PhD in 2013 and has an outstanding publication record, comprising over nine publications in peer-reviewed international journals in the past two years and one international patent. Dr. Franco Concli’s Scopus Scientific Citations number is 1906 and his Hirsch index is 29. He is clearly a rising star in the field of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering. Dr. Franco Concli has secured funding of more than EUR 7,473,479 since 2009. This is an outstanding achievement in today’s competitive environment. Please join us in congratulating Dr. Franco Concli for his outstanding achievements.

Dr. André Furtado (World’s Top 2% Scientists list across all fields in 2021, according to the Stanford University) is an Assistant Professor of Structural Engineering at Instituto Superior Técnico, Portugal. Dr. André Furtado’s research interests focus on seismic engineering, structural engineering, experimental testing, numerical modelling, masonry infill walls, reinforced concrete structures, seismic vulnerability assessment, retrofitting, and energy efficiency. Dr. André Furtado received his PhD in 2020 and has an outstanding publication record, comprising over seven publications in peer-reviewed international journals in the last two years. Dr. André Furtado’s Scopus Scientific Citations number is 1447 and his Hirsch index is 23. He is clearly a rising star in the field of Structural Engineering. Dr. André Furtado has contributed in securing funding of more than EUR 3,754,716 since 2013. This is an outstanding achievement in today’s competitive environment. Please join us in congratulating Dr. André Furtado for his outstanding achievements.

As the awardees, Dr. Franco Concli and Dr. André Furtado will each receive an honorarium of CHF 1000, an offer to publish one paper free of charge in Applied Sciences after peer review before the end of 2024; and an electronic certificate.

We would like to thank all the nominators from various fields of study for their participation and all the Award Committee Members for their evaluation of the many excellent nominations.

Prof. Dr. Takayoshi Kobayashi
Editor-in-Chief, Applied Sciences