Gennaro Senatore

About

Gennaro Senatore PhD habil. MRes MSc MEng (Hons) www.gennarosenatore.com Gennaro Senatore is Director of Research - Adaptive Structural Systems at the Institute for Lightweight Structures and Conceptual Design (ILEK), University of Stuttgart. He holds the venia legendi (habilitation) for Full Professor in Adaptive Structural Systems and Computational Structural Mechanics, conferred by the University of Stuttgart in August 2025, and the Italian National Scientific Qualification as Associate Professor in Structural Mechanics (08/B2 – Scienza delle Costruzioni), awarded in June 2022. Previously, he held research leadership roles at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL), University College London, and Expedition Engineering in London. He has led interdisciplinary teams, supervised doctoral and postdoctoral researchers, and managed research projects funded by major European agencies and industry partners, while building strategic collaborations and contributing to successful multi-partner funding proposals. His research integrates computational design synthesis, structural optimization and control systems engineering to create ultra-lightweight, low-carbon, resilient and adaptive structural systems — pioneering novel methods and solutions for the built environment. He has published over 30 articles in top-tier peer-reviewed scientific journals in the fields of computational structural mechanics, structural optimization, and adaptive structural systems. These methods have been validated through the design, fabrication, and testing of near-full-scale physical prototypes. He has advanced teaching practices through courses on ultra-lightweight construction, design through component reuse, and algorithmic modelling in computational design workflows. To broaden accessibility to structural design and optimization, he developed PushMePullMe, an interactive educational tool that combines game mechanics with numerical methods to support intuitive understanding of structural behavior. In practice, he has contributed to high-profile international projects through advanced computational workflows for the conceptual design of complex structural systems. As part of his commitment to knowledge transfer and methodological innovation, he served as a Lead Expert appointed by the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre to develop the New European Bauhaus Self-assessment Method, a policy-aligned framework integrating performance across environmental, functional, aesthetic, technological, social, governance, and economic dimensions.

Work

University of Stuttgart
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Director of Research

Germany

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Joint Research Centre
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Lead Expert

Italy

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EPFL - École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne

Switzerland

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University College London
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Research Associate

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

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Expedition Engineering
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Research & Development

United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

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Education

University College London
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

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PhD

University of East London
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

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MSc Architecture, Computing and Design

Architectural Association School of Architecture
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

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MSc Emergent Technologies and Design

Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II
Italy

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MEng (Hons)

Publications

Application of Self‐Diagnosis and Self‐Repair on a Truss Prototype That Adapts to Loading Through Shape Morphing

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Structural Control and Health Monitoring

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Investigation of Retrofit Strategies to Extend the Service Life of Bridge Structures through Active Control

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Journal of Bridge Engineering

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Global optimal actuator placement for adaptive structures: New formulation and benchmarking

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Journal of Intelligent Material Systems and Structures

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Topology Optimization of Adaptive Structures: New Limits of Material Economy

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Computer Methods in Applied Mechanics and Engineering

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Design and Control Benchmark of Rib-Stiffened Concrete Slabs Equipped with an Adaptive Tensioning System

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Journal of Structural Engineering

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Design and control of high-speed railway bridges equipped with an under-deck adaptive tensioning system

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Journal of Sound and Vibration

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Bridge State and Average Train Axle Mass Estimation for Adaptive Railway Bridges

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IEEE/ASME Transactions on Mechatronics

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Multi-scale experimental testing on variable stiffness and damping components for semi-active structural control

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Composite Structures

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Multi-scale experimental testing on variable stiffness and damping components for semi-active structural control

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Composite Structures

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Correction: MILP-based discrete sizing and topology optimization of truss structures: new formulation and benchmarking

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Structural and Multidisciplinary Optimization

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MILP-based discrete sizing and topology optimization of truss structures: new formulation and benchmarking

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Structural and Multidisciplinary Optimization

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Editorial: Design and Control of Adaptive Civil Structures

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Frontiers in Built Environment

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Seismic control performance of a three‐story frame prototype equipped with semi‐active variable stiffness and damping structural joints

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Earthquake Engineering & Structural Dynamics

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Design of adaptive structures through energy minimization: extension to tensegrity

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Structural and Multidisciplinary Optimization

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Design and fabrication of a reusable kit of parts for diverse structures

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Automation in Construction

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Minimum energy adaptive structures – All-In-One problem formulation

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Computers & Structures

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Minimum energy adaptive structures - All-In-One problem formulation

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Computers & Structures

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Optimum Design of Frame Structures From a Stock of Reclaimed Elements

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Frontiers in Built Environment

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Optimum Design of Frame Structures From a Stock of Reclaimed Elements

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Frontiers in Built Environment

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Optimum Design of Frame Structures From a Stock of Reclaimed Elements

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Frontiers in Built Environment

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Force and Shape Control Strategies for Minimum Energy Adaptive Structures

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Frontiers in Built Environment

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A proof of equivalence of two force methods for active structural control

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Mechanics Research Communications

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Extended integrated force method for the analysis of prestress-stable statically and kinematically indeterminate structures

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International Journal of Solids and Structures

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Extended integrated force method for the analysis of prestress-stable statically and kinematically indeterminate structures

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International Journal of Solids and Structures

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Vibration Suppression Through Variable Stiffness and Damping Structural Joints

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Frontiers in Built Environment

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Vibration Suppression Through Variable Stiffness and Damping Structural Joints

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Frontiers in Built Environment

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Force and Shape Control Strategies for Minimum Energy Adaptive Structures

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Frontiers in Built Environment

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Design of Structures That Adapt to Loads through Large Shape Changes

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Journal of Structural Engineering

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Design of Structures That Adapt to Loads through Large Shape Changes

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Journal of Structural Engineering (United States)

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A proof of equivalence of two force methods for active structural control

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Mechanics Research Communications

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Design and characterization of variable stiffness structural joints

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Materials and Design

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Design and characterization of variable stiffness structural joints

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Materials & Design

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Environmental impact minimization of reticular structures made of reused and new elements through Life Cycle Assessment and Mixed-Integer Linear Programming

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Energy and Buildings

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Environmental impact minimization of reticular structures made of reused and new elements through Life Cycle Assessment and Mixed-Integer Linear Programming

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Energy and Buildings

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Minimum energy adaptive structures – All-In-One problem formulation

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Computers and Structures

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Synthesis of minimum energy adaptive structures

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Structural and Multidisciplinary Optimization

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Synthesis of minimum energy adaptive structures

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Structural and Multidisciplinary Optimization

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Design of Truss Structures Through Reuse

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Structures

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Design of Truss Structures Through Reuse

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Structures

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Experimental testing of a small-scale truss beam that adapts to loads through large shape changes

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Frontiers in Built Environment

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Experimental Testing of a Small-Scale Truss Beam That Adapts to Loads Through Large Shape Changes

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Frontiers in Built Environment

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FORM FOLLOWS AVAILABILITY - DESIGNING STRUCTURES THROUGH REUSE

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Journal of the International Association for Shell and Spatial Structures

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Form Follows Availability – Designing Structures Through Reuse

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Journal of the International Association for Shell and Spatial Structures

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Form follows availability - Designing structures through reuse

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Journal of the International Association for Shell and Spatial Structures

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Structural adaptation through stiffness tuning

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Spool

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Structural Adaptation through Stiffness Tuning

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SPOOL

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Energy and Cost Assessment of Adaptive Structures: Case Studies

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Journal of Structural Engineering

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Energy and Cost Assessment of Adaptive Structures: Case Studies

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Journal of Structural Engineering (United States)

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Exploring the application domain of adaptive structures

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Engineering Structures

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Exploring the application domain of adaptive structures

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Engineering Structures

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Shape control and whole-life energy assessment of an ‘infinitely stiff’ prototype adaptive structure

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Smart Materials and Structures

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Shape control and whole-life energy assessment of an 'infinitely stiff' prototype adaptive structure

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Smart Materials and Structures

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Corrigendum to “Interactive real-time physics: An intuitive approach to form-finding and structural analysis for design and education” [Computer-Aided Design 61 (2015) 32–41](S0010448514000311)(10.1016/j.cad.2014.02.007)

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CAD Computer Aided Design

Summary

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Designing and Prototyping Adaptive Structures—An Energy-Based Approach Beyond Lightweight Design

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book-chapter

Interactive real-time physics: An intuitive approach to form-finding and structural analysis for design and education

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CAD Computer Aided Design

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Interactive real-time physics

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Computer-Aided Design

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Adaptive structures for whole-life energy savings

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Journal of the International Association for Shell and Spatial Structures

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