Prof. Pierre Schembri-Wismayer
Prof Pierre Schembri-Wismayer is a qualified MD from the University of Malta. He pursued a PhD in Oncology at the Beatson Institute for Cancer Research, Glasgow University. He is an academic member of the Faculty of Medicine and Surgery, where he teaches anatomy. He researches pluripotent stem cells, having recently been a finalist at the Berlin Science Week 2020 Falling Walls event. He also researches cancer immunotherapy, virotherapy and differentiation therapy as well as anatomical biomechanics, often using cadaveric labs to test. In the latter successful area of research, he has been involved in patenting a hip prosthesis (MaltaHIP) of which he was the lead. As project lead of the MaltaKnee project he is the lead expert on the device and on the anatomical and surgical point of view of the device.
Dr. Arif Rochman is a senior lecturer at the University of Malta. He has an MSc. and PhD in polymer engineering. He is an academic member of staff of the Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering. His research activities include mainly polymer processing, simulation of polymer processing, additive manufacturing and characterisation of polymer materials and products. Currently he is also involved in two other MCST TDP projects (BioSA and LASeeeR Project). His expertise in polymer processing and materials will be valuable during material selection of the proposed device, selecting a processing technique for the manufacturing of the device and in the design of moulds and device.
Prof. Ing. Joseph Buhagiar is an Associate Professor at the University of Malta and is an academic member of staff of the Department of Metallurgy and Materials Engineering. His research activities centre around the development of biomaterials, orthopaedic implant development, material characterisation, corrosion science, surface engineering, additive manufacturing and corrosion-wear. His expertise on orthopaedic materials and devices used for load bearing applications and experience with similar projects such as the MaltaHIP project will be invaluable for this project. In the last eight years he has published 26 peer reviews articles in the field of orthopaedic biomedical materials. In the orthopaedic omplant field, Prof. Ing. Buhagiar and Prof. Schembri-Wismayer have filed two initial patent applications and one PCT application. The two academics have been collaborating together for more than 8 years.
Prof. Ing. Pierluigi Mollicone
Prof. Pierluigi Mollicone is an Associate Professor at the University of Malta and is an academic member of the Department of Mechanical Engineering. His research and teaching activties revolve around the application of Finite Element Analysis (FEA) for the analysis, assessment and design of structural components and thermo-mechanical processes. Prof. Mollicone has experience in management of research projects, having successfully coordinated or co-investigated in projects funded by UM, MCST, EU and industry. His expertise and experience with similar projects such as the MaltaHIP project will serve as a valuable contribution in the MaltaKnee project in the aspects of mechanical engineering analysis, design and development, i.e. the mechanical design of the device, including the structural integrity and mechanical performance. His previous collaboration with Prof. Schembri-Wismayer and Prof. Buhagiar has been successful on the academic and commercialisation fronts and has provided a showcase for MCST funded research in Malta.
Mr Manuel Pavia
Manuel Pavia started in 1985 as a self-employed small manufacturer, where in 1998 he expanded to a larger facility and in 2003 Empav Engineering Ltd was registered as a company. This expanded into many different sectors including the oil industry, mould manufacturing, printing press parts, pharmaceutical tooling and structural repair parts for aviation. Empav facilitates from designing, manufacturing, welding and material treatment. In 2018 he was involved in the MaltaHIP project. His manufacturing and machining expertise was an asset to this project allowing the complex production of all parts for the device. For this, he was presented the 2019 Industrial Excellence Award.
Dylan Abela carried out his undergraduate studies at the Faculty of Engineering, University of Malta, where he was awarded a degree in Mechanical Engineering. He thereafter started his Masters studies on "Influence of Interlayers on the Corrosion and Tribocorrosion Response of DLC-coated Biomedical Alloys", with the Department of Metallurgy and Materials Engineering, University of Malta, where he was awarded a Distinction for his studies. As of 2021, he has been working as a Research Support Officer II on the MaltaKnee project, while conducting his doctoral studies related to the project.