Clack, clack, clack. I continue writing my thesis. Clack, clack, clack. I look up. One of my colleagues passes my desk—wearing slippers. We make eye contact, and, like always, a smile spreads across his face. When I, Lena, first met Sayyid, what stood out most to me was his relaxed vibe. Sayyid has a talent for staying calm and optimistic while getting things done productively—no stress, only going with the flow like a fish in the water.

Rick agrees. Asked what comes to mind when thinking of Sayyid, he mentions his friendliness. On Sayyid's very first day at the LIT CPS Lab—01.03.2021—he brought batik shirts from Indonesia as gifts for Rick and Alois.

And this streak continues. No matter who you talk to, conversations about Sayyid always come with a story—usually a funny one. Maybe it's how he made us laugh with his candid comments or how attentively he listened to a joke before bursting into laughter. Sayyid brings sunshine with him.

He is also a valued expert in areas such as variability management and product line engineering—and not least, a trusted source for the best Germknödel recipes. His research on delta modeling in IEC 61499 has made a significant contribution to advancing our understanding of reusability and flexibility in industrial automation.

Rick adds: "What I appreciate most about Sayyid is his ability to learn and grow—both professionally and personally. I'm proud of how much he has developed over the past four years with us. I also truly value his sense of humor."

So today, we are happy and proud to say that Sayyid has successfully defended his PhD dissertation!

Thank you for bringing so much competence, kindness, and joy to our lab.

Wherever you go, we wish you nothing but the very best—clack, clack, clack…

On October 29, 2024, the ÖWGP doctoral prizes were awarded at the Graz University of Technology as part of the autumn conference of the ÖWGP, the Austrian Scientific Society for Production Engineering, at its ÖWGP doctoral colloquium.

Eleven excellent PhD theses in the field of production science, written at Graz University of Technology, University of Innsbruck, Montanuniversität Leoben, Johannes Kepler University Linz and Vienna University of Technology, were presented at the colloquium of the doctoral prize, which is awarded annually, and then evaluated by a jury of experts from various disciplines.

We would like to congratulate our Lisa Sonnleithner on winning the 3rd place for her work "Analyzing and Improving Control Software Quality in Cyber-Physical Production Systems".