Computational Applied Mechanics

Univ.-Prof. Dr.-Ing. habil. Jaan-Willem Simon

Room: HD.01.17e

Phone: +49 202 439 4104

E-Mail: jaan.simon[at]uni-wuppertal.de

 

The goal of Jaan-Willem Simon's research projects, some of which are conducted jointly with the NASA Glenn Research Center and several national and international partners from academia and industry, is to optimize materials and structures both, in composition and in the production process, in order to minimize the use of materials. His current research focus is in the area of material modeling of composites based on renewable resources.

Jaan-Willem Simon completed his diploma degrees in Civil Engineering and in Physical Engineering Sciences at the TU Berlin, after a stay abroad at MIT, in 2005 and 2006, respectively. Then, he moved to RWTH Aachen University where he worked as scientific co-worker at the Institute for General Mechanics (Faculty of Mechanical Engineering) and finished his PhD with distinction in 2011. Thereafter, he has been working as lecturer and group leader of the research group Composite Materials and Structures at the Institute of Applied Mechanics (Faculty of Civil Engineering) at RWTH. There, he finished his habilitation in 2018 and was promoted to supernumerary Professor in 2019. Since 2022, he is the head of the Computational Applied Mechanics chair at University of Wuppertal.

His publication record includes mostly papers in international journals with rigorous peer review. He is reviewer of numerous journals and recipient of many awards and prizes including the Johannes A. van den Akker Prize in Paper Physics.

Degree programme:

  • 10/1998-04/2005 Civil Engineering, TU Berlin
  • 10/2001-02/2006 Physical Engineering Sciences (with distinction), TU Berlin
  • 10/2004-03/2005 Stay abroad for diploma theses (both with distinction), Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, USA 

Doctorate:

  • 08/2011 Ph.D. in Mechanics (with distinction), Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, RWTH Aachen University

    Supervisors: Prof. Dr. Dieter Weichert, Prof. Dr. Stefanie Reese

Stages of academics and professional career

  • 05/2026-07/2026 Research stay (Visiting Professor), Department of Mechanical Design in Sarajevo, BiH
  • 10/2022 Full Professor, Computational Applied Mechanics, University of Wuppertal
  • 09/2019 Appointed as Full Professor (supernumerary), Faculty of Civil Engineering, RWTH Aachen University
  • 02/2018 Appointed as Associate Professor, Habilitation in Mechanics, Faculty of Civil Engineering, RWTH Aachen University
  • 03/2017 Offer of a Full Professorship and Head of Institute, Chair of Lightweight Construction, Vienna University of Technology, Austria (not taken due to family reasons)
  • Since 08/2015 Frequent research stays (Visiting Professor), Columbia University, Civil Engineering and Engineering Mechanics, NYC, USA
  • 02/2014-03/2014 Research stay (Visiting Scientist), NASA Glenn Research Center, Structures & Materials Division, Cleveland, OH, USA
  • 06/2011-09/2022 Senior Engineer, Founder and Head of Research Group, Composite Materials and Structures Group, Institute of Applied Mechanics, RWTH Aachen University
  • 02/2006-05/2011 Scientific Co-worker and Doctoral Researcher, Institute for General Mechanics, RWTH Aachen University

 

Special Positions

  • Since 03/2026 Accounts Auditor in the European Mechanics Society, EuroMech

  • Editorial Board Member in Nature Portfolio Journals
    Since 03/2026 Scientific Reviews
    Since 09/2025 Scientific Reports

  • 04/2024-03/2028 Elected Member of the DFG Review Board 4.12-02 Mechanics
  • Tappi International Paper Physics Commitee
    05/2023-05/2025 Elected Chair
    20/2020-05/2023 Elected Vice Chair
    05/2019-10/2020 Elected Secretary
  • 11/2021-09/2022 Steering Committee of RWTH Center for Young Academics
  • International Association on Direct Methods
    Since 07/2014 Co-Initiator and Founding Member
    07/2014-06/2016 Elected Secretary
  • 01/2014-01/2018 ECCOMAS Young Investigators Committee
  • 10/2013-09/2017  Deputy speaker, Aachen Center for Young Researcher
  • 11/2012-10/2019 Junior Research Group Leader, Graduate School, Aachen Institute for Advanced Study in Computational Engineering Science (AICES)

Organization of Scientific Events

  • Conference Chairman of the International Paper Physics Conference 2024 in Wuppertal

  • Chairman of the Mechanics Roundtable Discussion Meeting 2024 in Wuppertal

  • Conference Chairman of the 3rd ECCOMAS YIC 2015 in Aachen

  • Organizing Committee of the 92nd Annual Meeting of the International Association of Applied Mathematics and Mechanics (GAMM) 2022 in Aachen

  • Mini-Symposia at International Conferences:
    WCCM-ECCOMAS 2026, ComPlas 2025, SSDM 2024, ECCOMAS 2024, SSDM 2023, USNCCM 2021, WCCM 2020, ASC 2018, WCCM 2018, ECCM 2018, GACM 2017, ECCOMAS 2016

  • Scientific Committee at International Conferences:
    IPPC 2023, YIC 2023, PPPS 2020, YIC 2019, EUROMECH Colloquium 592, YIC 2017

Academic Distinctions

  • 05/2023 Sustainability Award GAMM100 presented at the 93rd Annual Meeting of the International Association of Applied Mathematics and Mechanics (GAMM) 2023
  • 10/2021 Johannes A. van den Akker Prize for the best paper in Paper Physics published in the years 2018-2020
  • 09/2020 Best Presentation Award, Online-Conference Progress in Paper Physics PPPS2020
  • 01/2016 Teaching Award RWTH Aachen 2015 awarded by the rectorate of RWTH Aachen University for the best academic in teaching in 2015
  • 08/2015 Nomination for the Heinz Maier-Leibnitz-Prize of DFG by RWTH Aachen University and North Rhine-Westphalian Academy of Sciences, Humanities and Arts
  • 07/2015 Heinrich Hertz-Scholarship of the Heinrich Hertz-Foundation
  • 01/2015 Member of the "Junges Kolleg" of the North Rhine-Westphalian Academy of Sciences, Humanities and Arts
  • 07/2014 RWTH Lecturer, Distinction of the RWTH Aachen University for extraordinary teaching and research
  • 02/2014 Theodore von Kármán Fellow of the RWTH Aachen
  • 02/2014 PostDoc-Scholarship of the Daimler and Benz Foundation
  • 11/2012 Friedrich-Wilhelm-Award of the Friedrich-Wilhelm-Foundation at RWTH Aachen University for the best PhD thesis in the Department of Mechanical Engineering
  • 09/2012 Young Researcher Best Paper Prize as single author at the 11th International Conference on Computational Structures Technology CST 2012
  • 06/2012 Borchers-Medal of the “Freunde und Förderer der RWTH Aachen” for the exceptional PhD thesis
  • 10/2005 Ernst-Trapp-Award of the “Gesellschaft von Freunden der Technischen Universität Berlin” for outstanding achievements in the studies of civil engineering

Academic Distinctions of Co-workers in the Research Group

  • 05/2025 Best Presentation Award, Progress in Paper Physics Seminar PPPS2025 in Sundsvall (Sweden) for Greta Kloppenburg
  • 06/2024 Publication Award of University of Wuppertal for Birte Boes
  • 02/2023 Best Paper Award in the joint research project SFB/TRR280 for Domen Macek for the best paper published by PhD-students in the year 2022
  • 11/2022 Friedrich-Wilhelm-Award for Nadir Kopic-Osmanovic for the best Master thesis in 2021 in the Faculty of Civil Engineering at RWTH Aachen University
  • 11/2018 Friedrich-Wilhelm-Award for Bertram Stier for the best PhD thesis in 2017 in the Faculty of Civil Engineering at RWTH Aachen University
  • 08/2015 Humboldt Research Fellowship of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation for Evan Pineda (NASA Glenn Research Center)
  • 01/2015 Theodore von Kármán Fellowship for Evan Pineda (NASA Glenn Research Center)

ORCiD

 

ResearchGate