International Academic Advisor
Prof Iris D. Tommelein, PhD
College of Engineering
University of California at Berkeley
Berkeley, California, USA
Iris D. Tommelein, PhD is Professor of Engineering and Project Management, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, College of Engineering, University of California at Berkeley, USA. She is also director of the Project Production Systems Laboratory (https://p2sl.berkeley.edu/) at UC Berkeley. Her interests are in developing principles and methods of project-based production management for the architecture-engineering-construction (AEC) industry, what is termed Lean Construction. Her pioneering research in Lean Construction includes teaming up with design specialists, general- and specialty contractors, owners and suppliers to increase team-, process- and product-development performance. Her current research focuses on takt planning.
Professor Tommelein is an expert on Lean Construction, site logistics, layout, operations and methods design, materials management, and supply-chain management. Her work involves computer-aided design, planning, scheduling, simulation, and visualization of construction processes. She is developing digital twins and related decision-support systems, enabled through the use of information technology systems that leverage IoT sensor data, heuristic- and mathematical optimization as well as artificial intelligence (AI), and graphical and interactive user interfaces.
Professor Tommelein served 4 years on the Executive Committee of the American Society of Civil Engineers' (ASCE) Technical Council on Computing and Information Technology (TCCIT). She was a member of the TCCIT's Database and Information Management Committee and TCCIT's Expert Systems and Artificial Intelligence Committee. She is a member of the Construction Division's Construction Research Council. Professor Tommelein is among the leaders of the International Group for Lean Construction (IGLC) and served as IGLC Secretary General from 2015 until 2017. She was among the founders and until 2017 served on the Board of Directors of the Lean Construction Institute.
Professor Tommelein is the recipient of the 2012 Walter L. Huber Civil Engineering Prize from the American Society of Civil Engineers "for her research on civil engineering computing for managing project-based production systems in the engineering-architecture-construction industry."
She received the 2014 Peurifoy Construction Research Award from the American Society of Civil Engineers "for her contributions in developing Lean Project Production theory, methods and tools, and for successfully disseminating these theories, methods and tools into multiple large, complex projects in the US and worldwide."
She was recognized with the Lean Pioneer Award 2015 from the Lean Construction Institute (LCI), as "an individual (or organization) who has moved the design and construction industry forward in embracing and implementing Lean tools and techniques on capital projects."
In 2019, she was inducted into the National Academy of Construction (NAC) in the United States. The NAC is one of America’s esteemed construction industry institutions characterized by its extensive and diverse expertise, proven leadership, and trusted judgment. The Academy elects its members based on nominations of recognized construction industry leaders. The mission of the NAC is to recognize and honor individuals for their distinguished contributions to the industry and to share this reservoir of expertise as a service to the nation.
Iris holds a PhD in Civil Engineering (Construction Engineering and Management) from Stanford University (1989); MS in Computer Science (Artificial Intelligence), Stanford University (1989); MS in Civil Engineering (Construction Engineering and Management), Stanford University (1985); and Civil Engineer-Architect (5-year degree) from Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Brussels, Belgium (1984). Professor Tommelein can be contacted at tommelein@berkeley.edu.
Profile posted December 2021
