We’re delighted to confirm that Leonardo Rodrigues has joined XAIS Asset Management on a permanent basis as Senior Infrastructure Analyst Consultant.
In his new role, Leo will specialise in crafting and analysing Petri Net models to optimise systems and processes. By working closely with engineers and stakeholders, he will refine models with real-world insights to enhance efficiency and performance.
He will also engage with clients to expand their Petri Net module usage, manage projects, and ensure clear documentation is always at hand.
Leo’s career began with a PhD in Civil Engineering from the University of Minho, where he delved into the probabilistic and numerical modelling of timber structures with the aim of improving their resilience against earthquakes and mitigating the risks of progressive collapses.
Following his doctorate, he then embarked on a three-year postdoctoral research stint at the same university where he immersed himself in the TimQuake project, funded by the Portuguese Science Foundation (FCT), focusing on the connections in heavy-timber structures. During that time his responsibilities expanded to mentoring emerging researchers, drafting proposals for new research initiatives, disseminating findings through publications and conferences, and overseeing budgets and laboratory test planning on structural sub-assemblies.
Transitioning from academia to industry, Leo served as a Knowledge Transfer Partnership Associate from March 2022 to March 2024, collaborating with XAIS and the University of Nottingham. This role enabled him to apply stochastic Petri Nets for the lifecycle analysis of infrastructure assets – leveraging his doctoral expertise in uncertainty analysis and risk-based approaches.
It was a unique opportunity to witness first-hand how university research can be directly implemented into real-world projects, bridging the gap between academic theories and practical applications. This experience was instrumental in facilitating his transition into the corporate world – aligning his academic pursuits with tangible societal benefits.
Commenting on the appointment, Leo said: “I’m excited to be able to help local authorities solve infrastructure management challenges. It’s gratifying to play my part in keeping infrastructure fit for community use – especially working within the budget challenges faced by many authorities.
“I believe my ability to improve existing approaches with innovative solutions will be fundamental to success in the role. Through critical thinking I can bring fresh perspectives from a number of different fields and, while change may sometimes bring complexities, those are challenges I embrace because of the meaningful improvements they inevitably bring for our clients and the industry.”
