Niels-Jørgen Aagaard new Head of Department at DTU Civil Engineering

Niels-Jørgen Aagaard joins DTU from a position as head of research at the Danish Building Research Institute (SBi), Aalborg University, where he initially had responsibility for Construction Technology and Design before taking charge of Construction and Health in 2008. He began his career at COWI consultants, where he spent 20 years working as a project manager, development manager, and head of knowledge management.

Niels-Jørgen Aagaard brings with him a deep pool of experience, not just in the area of consultant engineering and research management, but also in the field of teaching. For example, he has been employed as an external associate professor on the ‘Optimization, resources and environment’ course at DTU Civil Engineering since 2004. On account of his comprehensive knowledge of topics such as construction technology, safety and climate adaptation in the context of construction, he has played a leading role as an expert on a number of Danish and European councils and committees.

“Niels-Jørgen Aagaard is an extremely experienced manager with impressive professional expertise in the field of construction and construction processes. He has an impressive track record in the areas of research management, reinforcing shared technological property in construction, and advising public sector authorities. He also has significant teaching experience. I am convinced that he is the right person to lead DTU Civil Engineering forward as a department distinguished by excellent research, highly prized scientific advice, and increased student applications,” says DTU President Anders Bjarklev.

Niels-Jørgen Aagaard is 59 years old, married, with two children. He devotes much of his free time to sailing his boat on the sea and to working on the family farm at a remote location in Sweden—which often needs the attentions of a skilled handyman ...