“I’ve always been fascinated by the key role played by the [energy] industry in our lives. And I believe that this rings even truer today, given the digital revolution, which has found its enabling factor in energy”.
Having cultivated her interest in the world of energy during her studies at the Politecnico, her career began with a period working as a researcher in the world of renewable energies in Denmark, in a project funded by the European Union.
“Denmark is a pioneering country in the energy sector, with a significant wind power production”; Bona tells Forbes. “This encouraged me to want Italy to contribute to the energy transition too, and become a real ambassador in the green revolution”.
In 2019, the Alumna joined the team in Bain where she has since been working in the Energy & Natural Resources practice, mainly in the field of renewable energies.
ITALY AND RENEWABLE ENERGIES: HOW ARE WE DOING?
As far as renewable energies are concerned, in Italy we are not starting from scratch, but the real opportunity - continues Bona - is proposed with the NRRP . It has allocated 75% of the total resources available to infrastructural works, providing a unique opportunity to create a platform for boosting our efforts to generate an ecological transition.
“We’re now at a turning point: Italy is finally ready to put our plans into action, but first we need to intervene on our processes and superstructures, both in great need of simplification, and on streamlining our bureaucracy. We then need to focus on the stability of our regulatory context in order to facilitate investments. We are facing a pathway of gradual transformation that must boost the sustainability of our energy system”.
And finally, a promise and a hope for the future of women in the industry:
“I intend to continue working hard and using all my technical expertise to help face these challenges. At the same time, I would like to see more women join this industry which, like many other industrial sectors, has been characterised by a lack of women professionals for years. Instead, today, it is finally full of opportunities”.
The Politecnico di Milano’s team, composed of Professor Mara Tanelli – Alumna in Computer science engineering 2007 – Dr Valentina Breschi, Dr Jessica Leoni – Alumna in Biomedical engineering 2019 – and Dr Eugenia Villa – Alumna in Mathematical engineering 2020-, wins with the project POLIMonitor una challenge promossa dall’azienda Leonardo a challenge promoted by Leonardo company on the innovation scouting platform Solvers Wanted.
Credits: https://diversityandinclusion.polimi.it/
The challenge, set on the basis of the “Technology and Innovation Needs”, tied to the “map of requirements” the company has singled out, required the development of a Pilot Performance Monitoring solution able to monitor an aircraft pilot’s psychophysical condition, considering, for example, stress, fatigue and level of attention.
I am proud to be among the winners of the exciting #SolversWanted innovation challenge, and doubly proud to present my team of all-female engineers Valentina Breschi Jessica Leoni and Eugenia Villa
We look forward to start working soon with the colleagues from Leonardo and Leonardo Aircraft on the project of active monitoring of the pilot’s psychophysical condition.
Thanks to this win, the Polimi team is awarded a contract of collaboration with Leonardo to implement its solution, and it will have the chance to join the “Leonardo Team for Innovation”.
Thus Leonardo expands its ecosystem for encouraging research and innovation processes with Open Innovation initiatives, involving the academic world and start-ups, enlarging the network of organisations sharing the same vision.
“Collaboration with research centres, universities and start-ups is an accelerator driving innovation and the company’s competitiveness”, emphasised Franco Ongaro, Chief Technology & Innovation Officer of Leonardo and Alumnus Aeronautical Engineering 1986. “Solvers Wanted is a further tool supporting Leonardo’s open innovation strategy to fuel the innovation supply chain in Italy”.
Artificial intelligence, lasers, cancer treatment, nanoparticles and space travel: this is what the five research projects of Politecnico selected by the European Commission are about to receive funding of 150 thousand euros each. These are the ERC “Proof of Concept”, research grants intended to strengthen already consolidated European projects which, after having obtained promising results, are ready for phase two: exploring the possibilities of practical application.
Credits: www.isc.cnr.it/erc/
AN INFALLIBLE MEMORY
Secure hardware with advanced nonvolatile memories , aka SHANNON , is the title of the project of Daniele Ielmini , from the Department of Electronics, Information and Bioengineering. It aims to develop a new type of encryption circuit based on the concept of non-clonable physical function. The encryption keys are generated by random memory states that are completely invisible to an external inspection, thanks to a new algorithm and a new cell structure , making this solution very interesting for the security of Internet systems of Things. Ielmini deals with characterization and modeling of non-volatile memories: we talked about it on MAP 6 at this link .
POCKET ACCELERATOR
PANTANI is the acronym, which winks at speed, of the proton, electron and neutron sources for non-destructive testing and investigations and treatment of materials project by Matteo Passoni , of the Department of Energy. It wants to develop a laser source compact and multi-radiation, more flexible and with lower costs than the existing solutions, with use in numerous applications of industrial and social , such as the analysis of materials of historical and artistic interest, environmental monitoring, the sterilization of biomedical instruments and the detection of illegal substances inside containers at airports and customs . If you want to go deeper into the theory, we talked about it on MAP 5 on page 31 .
ENGINEERING IN THE HAND OF THE SURGEON
Paola Saccomandi , from the Department of Mechanics, works on the development, technological validation and market analysis of a device for laser removal of tumors , much less invasive than the tools we have today. It would also be able to control the treatment in real time and assist the doctor in selecting the therapeutic parameters. The project is called LEILA : closed-loop and multisensing delivery tool for controlled laser ablation of tumors . Saccomandi deals with measuring the temperature distribution in biological tissues subjected to ablative treatments, developing a therapeutic platform that sees the use of lasers for minimally invasive treatments , optical fiber sensors and biomedical imaging techniques , for monitoring clinical procedures and physiological parameters. Discover the "previous episodes" at this link .
NANO SIZE, ULTRA PERFORMANCE
With the TCOtronics project, acronym of transparent conductive oxide nanocrystalline films for electronics and optoelectronics via low-cost solution processing , Francesco Scotognella wants to manufacture thin layers based on metal oxide nanoparticles that can be used as optical filters or transparent electrodes for solar cells and light emitting diodes . An important goal of TCOtronics is the use of non-toxic elements and abundant on the planet. Scotognella, from the Department of Physics, is an expert in ultrafast photophysics of organic compounds, nanomaterials and fabrication and characterization of photonic crystals. If you are curious to know more about its nanocrystals for more efficient solar cells, read here .
DEEP SPACE POLITECNICO
Francesco Topputo aims to develop a autonomous navigation sensor for satellites in space deep. Thanks to SENSE: a sensor for autonomous navigation in deep space project,the satellites themselves will be able to estimate their position without the need to communicate with grou nd stations; this will cut navigation costs for space exploration, making space accessible to universities, research centers and small businesses. Topputo, , from the Department of Aerospace Sciences and Technologies, deals with flight dynamics, autonomous driving, navigation and control of spacecraft. Find out more at this link and at this link.
A LITTLE GLOSSARY
These five projects were funded by grant (ie research grants) of the European Research Council (in Italian European Research Council) or ERC. It is a body of the European Union that has the task of supporting the work of the best researchers in all scientific, technical and academic sectors.
ERC loans can be of various types and concern sums between 150 thousand and 12 million euros ( here we see all those obtained by Poli ). They are among the most prestigious grants dedicated to basic research in Europe. In particular, the ERC promotes a so-called " investigator driven " or " bottom-up " approach, ie the free initiative of the best European scientists, who follow projects. research of excellence, innovative and high-risk, key elements for achieving the sustainable growth objectives set by the Union.
WE BUILD THE FUTURE OF THE WORLD
The ricerca di base è indipendente dalle priorità che di solito guidano, per esempio, la ricerca industriale. È ricerca pionieristica e identifica nuove opportunità e direzioni, aprendo campi di ricerca a volte ancora inesplorati, altre volte attuali e urgenti.
Ad oggi in totale sono 48 i grant ERC ottenuti da ricercatori del Politecnico di Milano. Per un ateneo, accogliere ricercatori ERC significa avere la possibilità di assumere nuovi dottorandi e post doc, creare una base di giovani che lavorino costantemente su ricerche di altissimo livello e avere risorse da investire in infrastrutture e laboratori all’avanguardia, iniettando nuova linfa nel sistema universitario. Questo si riflette sull’intero sistema, con ricadute positive anche sulla didattica.
Update May 12, 2023: Luca Rossettini, aerospace engineer, ceo and founder of D-Orbit has been named among the finalists for the European Inventor Award an award dedicated to outstanding inventions patented at the European Patent Office (Epo)
Disclaimer: this is a long article. So first...
…ITS SUMMARY
It was announced a few days ago that the start-up D-Orbitwould soon go public on the Nasdaq through Spac Breeeze Holdings, with an agreement valuing the company at USD 1.3 billion. This was discussed, inter alia, on Corriere della Sera , Startup Italia and Forbes. Founded in 2011 by Luca Rossettini, Alumnus in Aeronautical Engineering and PhD, together with Renato Panesi (CEO and CCO, respectively), D-Orbit is based in Fino Mornasco, in the province of Como. It provides products and services for the new space market.
Last year the company reported 3.4 million dollars in revenues, with an expected growth to 22 million dollars in 2022. It currently has an order portfolio of $12.5 million, though has ongoing negotiations for additional $167 million. The company expects to become profitable on an EBITDA basis by 2024, so its revenues need to grow to approximately $445 million. The company has made headlines both because of the speed of growth of the now former start-up and because of the growing interest in the commercial and pioneering aspects of space exploration.
The Alumni editorial staff met Rossettini to ask him some questions. We ended up learning a lot about the new space markets and the Italian effects of this expanding industry. Let us tell you about them.
PUT IT SIMPLY: WE ARE SPACE COURIERS, DELIVERING SATELLITES RATHER THAN PARCELS
The Falcon 9 rocket, which took off from Cape Canaveral on 13 January, also carried the ION Satellite Carrier di D-Orbit. Once in orbit, ION took care of the 'last mile' delivery, carrying satellites to their respective operational positions. “In the new space, this is called last mile delivery”, says Rossettini. “A bit like a courier truck, we go around space delivering packages door-to-door, i.e. carrying satellites where they are needed”. This service has radically changed the way satellites are sent into orbit: “it saves up to 85% of time and up to 40% of costs”.
D-Orbit was the first company to offer this type of service in space logistics, though this is only one of its activities. “Once the packages are delivered, we have a fully functioning 'truck' in orbit,” continued Rossettini. “Instead of making it return, the satellite can be used for other things, such as in-orbit demonstration and validation operations.” It can normally take years to get a piece of technology into orbit; D-Orbit ensures testing within a few months. This is an example of how advanced space logistics services represent a go-to-market accelerator for many high-tech companies, and beyond. “The end-users of our services come from a wide range of sectors, from oil and gas to services and agriculture”.
Courtesy of D-Orbit
ORBITING SERVICE STATIONS WHERE YOU CAN FIND FUEL, MECHANICS, SPARE PARTS. ONLY A BAR IS MISSING
Since he comes from the Veneto region, jokes Rossettini, he likes concrete examples: a satellite is a bit like a pig, nothing gets thrown away.
"Another goal we are working on is to create a cloud network in which each of these ION satellites, after completing their deliveries, will remain in orbit and act as a node to offer services to all the satellites needing them. We are not there yet, but in the near future our IONs will be able to exchange information with other satellites, carry out repairs, refuelling, reallocation, whatever can extend the life of our customers’ satellites. When they reach their very end, rather than destroy them by plunging them into the atmosphere as we do today, we can dismantle them and build service stations in orbit to store spare parts and raw materials. Once we have these capabilities, we will be able to get closer to our vision: a logistics and transport network connecting Mars, the asteroid belt, the Moon and Earth, allowing settlements on other planets to be maintained at a sustainable cost.”
Ready for the leap toward the latest frontier.
“UNCLE SCROOGE” MODEL: ENABLING TECHNOLOGIES, GREAT RISKS, GREAT REWARDS
How come ‘new space’ is growing so rapidly? What good can it do us and what are the risks of this new gold rush? “All high-tech sectors are growing tremendously and many traditional companies are moving towards digitisation, Industry 4.0, Big Data and predictive information. Agriculture is becoming agritech, finance is becoming fintech, automotive is becoming autonomous driving and so on. To support this transformation, we need evolved information. And it all comes from satellites.”
More than 80% of the technology we use on earth is space-derived. Hence, space control has become an enabling requirement for technological and economic transformations on earth. Also the satellite market has changed, and D-Orbit understood this at an early stage, thus gaining a strategic advantage.
Courtesy of D-Orbit
“In the past, a big satellite would be launched every now and then, costing 800 million and taking 15 years to produce; now, instead, much smaller satellites are being launched, which are up to 400 times cheaper. They also last less, but it doesn’t matter, since technology becomes rapidly obsolete. Besides, we need to move quickly and accurately. Logistics thus becomes an enabling infrastructure. I am reminded of Uncle Scrooge, who became rich not by panning for gold, rather by selling axes to gold diggers. That's what logistics is all about: we enable others to do better what they have to do, and it's them who decide how to use the tools we give them.” The risks are clear: space is difficult, it is a hostile environment, with unbearable temperatures, where anything wants to kill you. Things can go very wrong. Substantial amounts of capital are needed. You never know if the launcher will make it or explode But the rewards are great.
LET'S GET BACK TO EARTH...
…and ask Rossettini the reason for D-Orbit going public just now. “When you establish a high-tech company you have to think about a form of exit for investors. So you can either be taken over or become a joint-stock limited company. We have always strived to achieve the second option. Why now? Because it is time to grow fast to maintain our leadership.” This is a very different business model from the one traditionally associated with the Italian context, marked by a constellation of SMEs and family businesses.
Are you telling us that our context is not suitable for high-tech industries?, we ask. “I am not an economist, my opinion is based only on my experience and relationship with investors and customers, from a high-tech point of view and as an Italian from the Veneto region (where most effective SMEs are based). The Italian model is based on short-term ROI: make a profit as soon as possible because that is what sustains the entrepreneur and his family. If you go public, the shares go away in big packages for small amounts. It is a model based on a regional market, which is somewhat protected and manageable. In the high-tech world you can never start from a protected market, you compete in the international arena from the very first day. You immediately compete with much better funded players than in Italy. Profit is no longer a way to remunerate investors, it is not the year-end dividends that interest them, rather the company’s exponential growth. So it is a different model, I don't know which one is better. The high-tech model is very recent, while the Italian one has proven to be solid in the long run. But the context was rather different in the past. We’ll see”.
IN THE SHOES OF ROSSETTINI-ENTREPRENEUR: AN ITALIAN, FROM THE VENETO REGION, IN THE WORLD
What good is it for Italy to have success stories like yours? “Many great companies started from scratch, made it and are now a source of national pride, we do not wish to be an example to anyone. We try hard and do our best together with our local suppliers, who have become almost our partners. This moment has attracted for us a lot of media attention but we wish to convey the message that we are at the beginning of a new path. At local level, this will certainly have an impact on employment, reputational and practical benefits and an important drive for the wealth of the ecosystem around us.”
This is no small success if you consider that when you knock on an investor's door, the first question you are asked is: why should I invest in your company rather than in one of your colleagues in Silicon Valley? How to answer that question? “In terms of technology, Italy is second to none. In particular, we have always been pioneers in the space sector. In terms of technology, Italy is second to none. In particular, we have always been pioneers in the space sector: we were the third country in the world to launch a satellite into orbit, in the middle of the Cold War, after the USA and the USSR, with the billions of dollars they were investing. Our supply chain covers the whole value chain and we have a very good launcher, Vega. We also have other advantages, one of which is undoubtedly the quality of our engineers and our graduates in general, who are less specialised than others though more flexible. An Italian engineer, when faced with a problem, will certainly be able to give you good answers in a short time. This is an advantage especially for start-ups, which haven’t enough capital to hire a large team right away, thus seeking more versatile people.
Luca Rossettini
D-Orbit could not have been established in another country:it is thanks to the creativity, resilience and willingness not to give up, typical of us Italians, that we have solved one problem after another. Another strength of the Italian model is that it is not over until it is over. In the Silicon Valley model, instead, the 'fail fast' mantra applies. The principle is correct: if you don't have a market, you shouldn't persist, but in most cases, giving up at the first opportunity means that you are not doing your duty as an entrepreneur".
Several factors contributed to this result, such as the excellence of the teaching, the dedication of the students , but the collaboration of the Alumni was essential .
Indeed, one of the most significant indicators is the Global Employer Survey , in which participants are asked to express their opinion on the quality of graduates
We would like to receive the opinion of our Alumni in this regard again this year.
The Department of Architecture, Construction Engineering and Built Environment and the Politecnico di Milano Foundation, which together lead the Joint Research Platform on Healthcare Infrastructures , are trying to answer this question.
This platform of excellence is aimed at companies and institutions in the health field to develop innovative projects that will lead to the creation of a 4.0 hospital.
HOSPITAL 4.0: WHAT DOES IT ENTAILS?
Mario Cucinella Architects, Philips, Politecnica Ingegneria e Architettura, Eredi Rossini Domenico, Siemens SpA and Tecnicaer Engineering , Together with Politecnico, will develop a sustainable “user center” healthcare model, which puts the patient and not the hospital at the center.
The ambition of the JRP Healthcare Infrastructures is to define the new paradigms for the Hospital of the Future. It 's the first example in Italy for which the world of research, business and institutions activate a joint working table that aims to address the social, epidemiological and technological challenges related to innovative and sustainable healthcare infrastructures. The JRP is a new multidisciplinary initiative by Politecnico di Milano that will generate multiple frontier actions with important spin-offs for the world of healthcare
says Stefano Capolongo, Professor of Hospital Design at Politecnico di Milano and Scientific Coordinator for this initiative.
Credits: Fondazione Politecnico di Milano
In fact, it has been shown that user centered hospitals improve the satisfaction of patients and the healthcare personnel who work there, increasing productivity, reducing management costs, reducing the risk of falls and infections.
The new hospital will be designed "by developing, validating and testing design models for the different functional areas of the hospital (Operating and Critical Patient Area, Diagnostic Area, Emergency Area, Outpatients Area, Inpatients Area, General, Logistic and Technical Services Area) or the strategic characteristics (flexibility, resilience to major emergencies, sustainability) ".
On a national level, current guidelines all focus on investing in healthcare by creating people-centred systems. With JRP Healthcare Infrasctractures we promote a new vision of Hospital 4.0 and best practices in healthcare. As a foundation, we know that, in order to create valuable services for citizens, it is essential to understand the needs of society through dialogue with all stakeholders and to connect the industry sector with that of academia and the institutions. With this project we bring together major players in the healthcare sector, academia and the institutions in order to share the direction of development in healthcare infrastructures
says Andrea Sianesi, President of Fondazione Politecnico di Milano.
The A2A Life Company Group and il Politecnico di Milano have started up collaboration for the development of innovation, research and training initiatives in the Energy & Utility sector, to support Italy’s ecological transition. The recently signed partnership model is based on two agreements with a otal value of 8 million euros and a duration of 5 years.
Specifically, the agreement calls for the establishment of a Joint Research Platform to implement multidisciplinary experimental projects on specific topics such as sustainable mobility, development of renewable energy and hydrogen, batteries recycling, and the study of new technologies for waste treatment and material and energy recovery, for a total of 5 million.
At the same time, the partnership will give rise to a Joint Research and Innovation Centre inside the Innovation District which Politecnico di Milano is developing at the former Bovisa gasometer park and in which A2A will take part with a total investment of 3 million euros. The Joint Centre will be entirely dedicated to innovation in the following thematic macro-areas: "Technologies for the environment and energy" and "Technologies for sustainable mobility", also touching on the themes of energy transition and the circular economy.
The agreement was signed by the Rector of the Politecnico, Ferruccio Resta and by Alumnus Renato Mazzoncini, CEO of A2A, n the presence of the President of A2A, Marco Patuano, the Mayor of Milan Giuseppe Sala eand the President of Regione Lombardia, Attilio Fontana.
The JRP - Joint Research Platform proves to be one of the most valuable tools to strengthen the understanding between universities and business. To activate an ever-closer synergy on issues of common interest and meet the challenges that the JRP poses to our country: from energy transition, to sustainable mobility, to renewable energy. These are some of the objectives of the agreement that sees the Politecnico di Milano alongside A2A. A company among the most active in encouraging this shared growth path. Ready to support joint research in an open and supply chain perspective. In fact, this agreement represents the common will to give life to a real ecosystem of innovation that goes beyond applied research projects for the development of a flagship project on which the Politecnico will focus in the coming years
have declared Ferruccio Resta.
Innovation is a strategic factor that affects all our activities: we deal with the environment, energy and water, sectors for which A2A is committed on a daily basis to building innovative infrastructures essential for the ecological transition. For our Group, this agreement with the excellence that is the Politecnico, is an opportunity for sharing a common path: becoming protagonists of the decarbonisation process and making Italy increasingly competitive, in line with the provisions of European directives
have commented Marco Patuano.
Innovation is a strategic factor that affects all our activities: we deal with the environment, energy and water, sectors for which A2A is committed on a daily basis to building innovative infrastructures essential for the ecological transition. For our Group, this agreement with the excellence that is the Politecnico, is an opportunity for sharing a common path: becoming protagonists of the decarbonisation process and making Italy increasingly competitive, in line with the provisions of European directives
have commented Renato Mazzoncini.
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