José Costa, EUR ING, is a metallurgical and materials engineer with a PhD in Metallurgical and Materials Engineering from the Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto, FEUP. With over fifteen years of experience at the intersection of advanced manufacturing research and industrial applications, he serves as an Invited Assistant Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at FEUP and as an integrated researcher at INEGI and LAETA. His expertise focuses on metal Additive Manufacturing (AM), advanced materials, and the optimization of design and manufacturing processes.

His research addresses the transformative potential of metal AM for metallic materials, with particular emphasis on Laser Powder Bed Fusion and material extrusion processes, including Fused Filament Fabrication and Fused Granular Fabrication. He combines experimental process development with powder and microstructural characterization, as well as mechanical performance assessment, supported by Design for Additive Manufacturing and topology optimization methodologies. Recent activities include the implementation of AM infrastructure at FEUP, the development of workflows that link process parameters to component performance and sustainability metrics, and the use of digital tools for design, simulation, and optimization in collaboration with industrial partners in the tooling, automotive, and energy sectors. His scientific output comprises peer-reviewed journal papers, a book chapter, and conference contributions on metal AM, process benchmarking, and DfAM.

At FEUP, José teaches in the Master’s program in Materials Engineering and in specialized training initiatives on additive manufacturing and advanced materials. His teaching portfolio encompasses additive manufacturing and powder metallurgy, advanced materials and processing, computer-aided engineering, and simulation of technological processes. He adopts a project-oriented learning approach that integrates numerical simulation, experimental work, and industrial case studies, and he supervises Master’s dissertations and Bachelor's projects closely aligned with industrial needs.

Before his full-time integration into academia, he developed a substantial career in the automotive industry. At Yazaki Europe, he progressed from project and process engineering roles to European Technical Manager and Deputy Director of the Monozukuri Innovation Centre in Regensburg, where he led international engineering teams, managed significant investment programs in advanced manufacturing and automation, and implemented additive manufacturing and Industry 4.0 solutions across several regions. Previous positions at Continental Mabor and CaetanoBus strengthened his experience in logistics, procurement, and process optimization, reinforcing his ability to align technological innovation with operational and business objectives.

Senior Member and Specialist in Metallurgy of the Ordem dos Engenheiros, and a member of FEANI and the Sociedade Portuguesa de Materiais, José’s professional profile is characterized by the articulation of scientific rigor, industrial relevance, and strategic vision for the integration of metal additive manufacturing and advanced materials into competitive and sustainable industrial ecosystems.