EWeek2026 | Jamaica Institution of Engineers

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Engineering continues to play a transformative role in shaping Jamaica's future through resilient infrastructure, technological advancement, sustainable development, and innovative solutions that address local challenges while creating global opportunities. This conference will provide a platform for the exchange of ideas, showcase engineering excellence, and foster collaboration between academia, industry, and government.

CONFERENCE THEME

ENGINEERING JAMAICA'S FUTURE: BUILDING RESILIENCE, DRIVING INNOVATION, CREATING GLOBAL IMPACT

schedule

Week's Schedule

9:00 am Opening Church Service. Mona Baptist Church. 4-6 University Crescent.

6:00 pm Sponsors Reception. Lillian's, University of Technology

9:00 am Engineers' Week Conference, Day 1. LT49 & LT50, University of Technology

9:00 am Engineers' Week Conference, Day 2. LT49 & LT50, University of Technology

9:00 am Students' Competition - Engineers Tank. LT50, University of Technology

Day 1 — Tuesday, September 15, 2026

8:30–9:00 REGISTRATION & EXHIBITION OPEN

9:00–9:10 Official Welcome

10:00–10:10 Q & A

Morning Plenary

9:00 - 9:15 am - Dr. Kevin Brown | Host's Address

9:15 - 9:25 am - Dr. Balvin Thorpe | JIE Address

9:25 - 9:30 am - Glaister Ricketts, PE | PERB Address

9:30 - 10:00 am - Hon. Robert Nesta Morgan, MP | Keynote Address

10:10 - 10:25 am - Oneil Gayle | Title Sponsor's Address

10:30–10:40 MORNING COFFEE BREAK

ROOM 1

Morning Session

Resilient Infrastructure & Asset Management

10:40–11:05 David Smith – Hurricane Melissa: Kingston Landfall Scenario

11:05–11:10 Transition / Q&A / Speaker Change

11:10–11:35 Oswald Smiley – Restoring Resilience: Technology-Driven Grid Recovery and Sustainable Development Following Hurricane Melissa in Jamaica

11:35–11:55 SPONSOR / EXHIBITION SPOTLIGHT

11:55–12:20 Romario Francis – Building Electrical Asset Resilience through Digital Reliability Engineering

12:20–12:25 Transition / Q&A / Speaker Change

12:25–12:50 Romaine Smith - Artificial Intelligence for Decision Support in Structural Engineering.

12:50–12:55 Transition / Q&A / Speaker Change

ROOM 2

Morning Session

AI, Digital Engineering & emerging Technologies

10:40 - 11:05 Dr. Balvin Thorpe – Enhancing Wireless Communication Reliability and Coverage in Jamaica

11:05 - 11:10 Transition / Q&A / Speaker Change

11:10 - 11:35 Saul Sato – Reliable Maintenance Engineering

11:35 - 11:55 SPONSOR / EXHIBITION SPOTLIGHT

11:55 - 12:20 Kemayia Willis – Solar Highway Corridors as Multi-Energy Infrastructure: A Feasibility Concept for Jamaica’s South Coast Highway

12:20 - 12:25 Transition / Q&A / Speaker Change

12:25 - 12:50 Dr. Balvin Thorpe: Improving Short-Duration Phoneme Classification for Hearing Aid Applications

12:50 - 12:55 Transition / Q&A / Speaker Change

1:00–1:45 LUNCH & EXHIBITION

ROOM 1

Afternoon Session

Climate Disaster & Water Resilience

ROOM 2

Morning Session

AI, Digital Engineering & emerging Technologies

1:45–1:50 AFTERNOON SESSION RESET

1:50–2:15 Kenardo Matherson – Investigating the Derivation of Historical Surface Water Elevation Time Series Using Super-Resolved Satellite Imagery and Deep Learning

2:15–2:20 Transition / Speaker Change

2:20–2:45 Sean Harrison / Elisha-Jon Henry – Techno-Economic Optimisation of a Solar PV–Battery Powered Reverse Osmosis Desalination System for Water Security in Jamaica

3:00–3:15 SPONSOR / EXHIBITION SPOTLIGHT

3:15–3:40 Carlnenus Johnson – Evidence-Based Standards to Drive Engineering Planning & Design in the Caribbean

3:40–4:00 MJ TOOLS DEMO / DELTA

1:50 - 2:15 Sherika Anderson – From Rubble to Renewal: A Circular Engineering Roadmap to Rebuild Jamaica Post-Melissa

2:15 - 2:20 Transition / Speaker Change

2:20- 2:45 Tandose Sambo – Optimization of a Low Temperature , Jamaican Bayer Process Operation for Gallium Extraction

3:00 - 3: 15 SPONSOR / EXHIBITION SPOTLIGHT

3:15 - 3:40 Luo Ming – An Introduction to Seismically Isolated Systems

3:40 - 4:00 MJ TOOLS DEMO / DELTA