Professor Wang is the Head of the UNSW School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering and an elected Fellow of the Academy of Technological Science and Engineering (FTSE). He joined UNSW in 2016 as a SHARP (Strategic Hires and Retention Pathways) Professor in recognition of his world-leading research and leadership. Previously he held appointments as the Head of Advanced Composites Technologies at the Defence Science and Technology Organisation between 1995 and 2009, and the Director of the Sir Lawrence Wackett Aerospace Research Centre at RMIT University between 2009 and 2016. He received his Bachelor’s degree from Huazhong University Science and Technology in 1985 and PhD from the University of Sheffield in 1991, where he carried out his post-doc research until 1993.
Currently he leads a research group focused on multifunctional composite materials for sensors, actuators, energy storage, and high-performance structures under extreme environments. Over the past five years at UNSW, he has secured over $20 million external research funding to support discovery research and to translate research into practical outcomes through strong partnerships with a diverse range of companies.
He serves on the Editorial Advisory Boards of a number of professional journals, including Composites Science and Technology and Composites Part A. He also served on the ARC College of Experts (2013-2015), as the Chair of the National Committee on Applied Mechanics (2013-2015) and President of the Australian Fracture Group. He has chaired and co-chaired several international conferences, including the 11th International Fatigue Congress (Melbourne Australia, 2014) and the 22nd International Conference on Composite Materials in 2019.