PhD student ‘A holistic 4D Digital Twin: automated progress monitoring and multi-domain safety assessment for civil engineering’

Background

The Construction Engineering Research Group (CERG) is an emerging research group within the Faculty of Engineering Technology of UHasselt. The research activities mainly focus on the design and mechanical behaviour of structures and structural components made of concrete, masonry, steel, timber, and composite and hybrid structural solutions. In recent years, more attention has been given to the durability assessment of such solutions, as well as their long-term behaviour and circular building solutions. With expertise in probabilistic analyses, the group also focuses on the safety assessment of structures, incorporating information from various data sources, including monitoring data. Moreover, CERG also actively conducts research on road infrastructure and safety, with a particular focus on digitalization in road design, data-driven safety assessment, and the integration of AI and simulation tools to improve traffic safety and infrastructure performance. This area highlights the group’s commitment to leveraging modern technology for smarter, safer, and more sustainable civil engineering solutions.

The Digital Future Lab (DFL) is a research centre of Hasselt University and a core lab of Flanders Make. DFL brings together researchers with expertise in computer science. This research will be embedded within the Visual Computing research unit of the Faculty of Engineering Technology at DFL. The activities of the Visual Computing group focus on geometrical digital twin reconstruction and visualization, large-area tracking and mapping, light fields, extended reality (XR) technologies, sim-to-real, synthetic data generation, and advanced computer vision and machine learning techniques. In addition, the group works on industrial applications such as automated visual product inspection and quality assessment.

In the scope of a joint UHasselt-financed research project, CERG and DFL wish to recruit a full-time PhD student.

Job content

As a doctoral researcher, within this project, you will develop an analytical-computational framework for a “living” 4D Digital Twin (3D + time) to enable automated progress monitoring and multi-domain safety assessment in civil engineering applications. The project focuses on the development and implementation of this framework covering the following scales: i) dynamic vision- and geometry-based reconstruction, ii) structural quality and reliability, and iii) construction mobility safety. To achieve the proposed goals, you will perform a literature review of application of 4D Digital Twins in civil engineering, after which you will perform research targeting three main objectives: (1) automated reconstruction of a visual and geometrical 4D Digital Twin based on visual computing; (2) usage of information from digital imaging techniques for estimation and prediction of current and future structural quality and reliability; and (3) usage of digital image information for assessment of construction road safety. By combining these three objectives, a Digital Twin will be created that serves as a comprehensive, risk-based decision-support tool for structural reliability assessment and infrastructure safety management, allowing both domains to inform a unified safety perspective.

As a doctoral researcher, you will be encouraged to valorise your contribution to the state-of-the-art through scientific publications in journals with a high impact factor and in topic-related conferences with international reach. Moreover, as a member of the Construction Engineering Research Group (CERG) and the Digital Future Lab (DFL), you will support the teaching activities of the education program on Engineering Technology of the Faculty of Engineering Technology of Hasselt University.

Profile

• Master of Engineering Technology, Master of Engineering Sciences, Master of (Applied) Sciences (or equivalent)
• You are collegial, and you can work well in a team.
• You have a proven ability to conduct scientific research.
• You have a background in structural engineering; Or at least a strong interest.
  You have a background in computer engineering and visual computing; Or at least a strong interest.
• Dual profiles, with experience in both civil engineering and computer engineering, are an added value.
• A strong proficiency in diverse research methodologies (ranging from numerical techniques like FEM to analytical applications of design standards) is highly valued, as is a proactive commitment to mastering these tools.
• An interest in computer vision, visual computing, 3D visualization, or related domains, with a particular affinity for geometric and model-based approaches to 3D understanding, is considered an asset.
• You have a proactive and independent working attitude.
• You can report clearly, both orally and in writing.
• You have analytical and critical thinking skills.
• You have a good command of English, both verbally and in writing: proof of English proficiency at a C1 level according to the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR), demonstrated through internationally recognized tests such as IELTS or TOEFL, or via an MSc degree completed in English.

Offer

You will be appointed and paid as PhD student.

You will receive a doctoral fellowship for a period of 2 x 2 years (with intermediate evaluation after 2 years): you will receive a fellowship for 2 years, after which, with a positive evaluation, an extension of 2 years is possible. The planned start date is October 1, 2026 (or to be determined by mutual agreement).

Selection procedure

You can only apply online up to and including 31 May 2026.

The selection procedure consists of a preselection based on application file and an interview.

Further information

Prof. dr. ir. Eline VEREECKEN, +32-11-292184, eline.vereecken@uhasselt.be
Prof. dr. Nick MICHIELS, +32-11-268417, nick.michiels@uhasselt.be
Prof. dr. ir. Ali PIRDAVANI, +32-11-292183, ali.pirdavani@uhasselt.be
For questions about the selection procedure, please email jobs@uhasselt.be.