The Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering of the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) has an open PhD position on the topic of “Automation of tool wear measurement and data driven RUL estimation for sustainable machining operations”.
Nowhere in the text, it is explained what the abbreviation RUL stands for.
The position is funded in the context of the project MADE React co-funded by the Innovation Fund Denmark. The PhD student will be working in the framework of the ongoing collaboration between DTU Construct, and Danish companies with interest in implementing solutions for effective tool wear management. This position offers unique opportunities with respect to high level research, training and innovation within manufacturing engineering, in an exciting combination of academic and industrial environments. The selected candidate will receive strong guidance from academic supervisors as well as from industrial experts.
Responsibilities and qualifications
In the domain of high precision machining, tools are prematurely discarded to avoid the risk of costly non-conformities. This creates a large loss of value of strategically valuable raw materials and waste of energy related to material, cutting tools and parts production.
The PhD project will therefore focus on the development of an integrated system combining direct and indirect tool wear monitoring for reliable residual life estimation of rotating tools. Direct tool wear characterization will be based on optical measurement systems and data processing to achieve wear feature recognition and quantification. Indirect tool wear monitoring will be based on real time data streaming from the machine numerical control. The project will cover all the aspects related to the implementation and automation of the tool life cycle management thus including sensing systems, tool condition features selection, algorithms for automated signal preprocessing, feature extraction and decision making based on ML and AI. An integral part of the project will be the development of physics enhanced data driven methods to achieve reliable prediction of residual usable life of milling tools.
The approach will be validated by application to industrial production at a partner company.
The position includes both theoretical and experimental work and carries project as well as academic responsibilities. The scientific work conducted must be positioned relative to current literature and published in conference and journal articles.
You are required to have an excellent academic background and must have a strong knowledge of production engineering technologies and manufacturing systems for subtractive manufacturing. Strong knowledge of process monitoring, manufacturing metrology, and programming tools such as Matlab is highly desirable. You should have good analytical skills as well as good communication skills in English.
You should have completed a two-year master's degree (120 ECTS points) in Mechanical, Production, Materials, Industrial or Robotics Engineering, Computer Science, or related discipline, or a similar degree with an equivalent academic level.
Approval and Enrolment
The scholarship for the PhD degree is subject to academic approval, and the candidate will be enrolled in one of the general degree programmes at DTU. For information about our enrolment requirements and the general planning of the PhD study programme, please see DTU's rules for the PhD education
.
Assessment
The assessment of the applicants will be made by Associate Professor Giuliano Bissacco according to the qualification requirements stated above.
We offer
DTU is a leading technical university globally recognized for the excellence of its research, education, innovation and scientific advice. We offer a rewarding and challenging job in an international environment. We strive for academic excellence in an environment characterized by collegial respect and academic freedom tempered by responsibility.
Salary and appointment terms
The appointment will be based on the collective agreement with the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations. The allowance will be agreed upon with the relevant union.
The period of employment is 3 years. It is expected that you will be able to start in the position as soon as possible according to mutual agreement.
You can read more about career paths at DTU here http://www.dtu.dk/english/about/job-and-career/working-at-dtu/career-paths.
Further information
Further information may be obtained from Associate Professor Giuliano Bissacco (gibi@mek.dtu.dk
+45 45254895).
You can read more about Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering at www.construct.dtu.dk.
If you are applying from abroad, you may find useful information on working in Denmark and at DTU at DTU – Moving to Denmark
. Furthermore, you have the option of joining our monthly free seminar “PhD relocation to Denmark and startup “Zoom” seminar
” for all questions regarding the practical matters of moving to Denmark and working as a PhD at DTU.
Application procedure
Your complete online application must be submitted no later than 16 July 2025 (23:59 Danish time)
. Applications must be submitted as one PDF file
containing all materials to be given consideration. To apply, please open the link "Apply now", fill out the online application form, and attach all your materials in English in one PDF file
. The file must include:
You may apply prior to obtaining your master's degree but cannot begin before having received it.
Applications received after the deadline will not be considered.
All interested candidates irrespective of age, gender, disability, race, religion or ethnic background are encouraged to apply. As DTU works with research in critical technology, which is subject to special rules for security and export control, open-source background checks may be conducted on qualified candidates for the position.
DTU Civil and Mechanical Engineering
develops and utilizes science and technical knowledge for the benefit of society and sustainable development. We undertake research, education, innovation, and scientific advice of the highest quality within building design and processes, building construction and safety, building energy and services, solid mechanics, fluid mechanics, materials technology, manufacturing engineering, engineering design and thermal energy systems.
Technology for people
DTU develops technology for people. With our international elite research and study programmes, we are helping to create a better world and to solve the global challenges formulated in the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals. Hans Christian Ørsted founded DTU in 1829 with a clear mission to develop and create value using science and engineering to benefit society. That mission lives on today. DTU has 13,500 students and 6,000 employees. We work in an international atmosphere and have an inclusive, evolving, and informal working environment. DTU has campuses in all parts of Denmark and in Greenland, and we collaborate with the best universities around the world.