November 5, 2024, Eighty Four PA:

Professor Antonio Gens, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, is serving as chair of the International Society for Micropiles (ISM) 16th International Workshop on Micropiles. The workshop is being held September 24-26, 2025, in Valencia, Spain.

Gens is a professor of geotechnical engineering at the Technical University of Catalonia in Barcelona. He has been involved in geotechnical research, consulting and education for over 40 years and has made significant contributions in several areas of soil mechanics and geotechnical engineering such as unsaturated soils, argillaceous rocks, coupled numerical analyses, dams, tunnelling and nuclear waste disposal. He has also given geotechnical advice on several landmark projects and forensic investigations, both at home and abroad. 

Professor Gens is a Fellow of the UK Royal Academy of Engineering and holds Doctorates Honoris Causa from the University of Grenoble and the Technical University of Bucharest. He has received numerous awards such as the UK ICE’s Telford Medal (twice) and George Stephenson Medal (also twice). He delivered the 2007 Rankine Lecture, and he was awarded the International Society for Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering (ISSMGE) Kevin Nash Gold Medal in 2017. In 2019, he was named Laureate Engineer by the Royal Academy of Engineering of Spain, and in 2022, he delivered the Terzaghi Oration at the 20th ICSMGE International Conference in Australia. He was ISSMGE vice president for Europe from 2013-2017 and he is currently the president of the Spanish Society for Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering. Gens graduated from the Technical University of Madrid and obtained M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees from Imperial College, London. 

Gens is being supported by Technical Program Chair Natalia Maca of Ischebeck Titan Polska and Host Chair David Pérez Marcos of Ischebeck Ibérica. 

The theme of the workshop is The Art and Science of Micropiles. The workshop includes lectures, discussions, panel sessions on all aspects of micropile technology, and social events. The workshop also features 12th Lizzi Lecture, the 10th Lizzi Scholarship and the 5th World Cup of Micropiles Competition.