Markus Sunela appointed as Professor of Practice of Management of Water and Wastewater Networks

The Aalto University School of Engineering has appointed Markus Sunela (b. 1985), Ph.D., as professor of practice for a five-year period, starting 1 August 2022. The position is located in the Department of Built Environment, and the field of the appointment is management of water and wastewater networks. Sunela will continue to serve as chief technology officer and chair of the board for Fluidit Oy, which he is also a founder of.

Sunela has a wealth of experience of software development as well as planning and consulting. He has over ten years of practical experience modelling water and district energy systems in addition to special expertise in topics such as heat capture from wastewater networks, which he has studied in the JV-LÄMPÖ research project, in which Aalto University has participated in.

'Markus Sunela's ability to connect academic research with engineering practice in the field of water and environmental engineering will be of great benefit to our students.  His expertise on the hydromechanics of pipe networks, their modelling and management can also be brought to bear in the development of applied research projects', said Dean Gary Marquis of the School of Engineering.

'The professor of practice position is a great opportunity for me to participate in developing the education offered by Aalto University from a working perspective and to act as a link between the university, water utilities, cities and planners. Entrepreneurship, research and education complement each other very well, especially in a field as technological and multidisciplinary as this one. Companies have to stay at the cutting edge, while research institutions benefit from having their results implemented into practice and receiving feedback. I hope I can also encourage students to consider starting their own companies as an option', said Markus Sunela.

Markus Sunela graduated as Master of Science in Technology in 2010 in the field of water and waste management technology from the Tampere University of Technology. He completed his doctorate in hydromechanics at the Tallinn University of Technology in 2017. During 2016–2021, he worked at the University of Tampere as a visiting researcher, teacher and post-doctoral researcher.

After completing his doctoral degree, Sunela has worked in close collaboration with universities and supervised or co-supervised several master's theses. He is an experienced and inspiring teacher, also having participating as visiting lecturer on courses such as WAT-E2110 Design and Management of Water and Wastewater Networks at Aalto University.

Professor of practice positions are fixed in term and part-time in nature, intended to bring in leaders and experts from companies or the public sector to act as developers and bridge builders between the university and relevant industries. The job profile is weighted toward teaching.

Contact:

Markus Sunela, Professor of Practice
Aalto University
School of Engineering
Department of Built Environment
[email protected]
[email protected] (starting 1 August 2022)