AiDAPT Lab, TU Delft’s Artificial Intelligence Lab for Design, Analysis, and Optimization in Architecture & Built Environment, invites applications for one Postdoc position in the interdisciplinary domain of deep learning for building energy retrofit planning.

The abundance of data and the ever-increasing computing power enables us to scale up the analysis of buildings at different data layers and scales. We are looking for candidates highly motivated to work at the confluence of data science, computer vision, and building technology to address the energy transition needs of our aging and growing buildings at the urban scale.

The candidate will work on the development of novel datasets and computer vision deep learning architectures that enable us to support building intervention decisions, with an emphasis on cities in the Netherlands and Rotterdam in particular. This research will produce new databases of visual data and baseline computer vision models that advance our capabilities to streamline retrofit resources for real-world buildings. The research will further seek to couple imagery data with other types of climate, building performance, and social data for the training and evaluation of deep learning models towards automatic analysis of diverse building stocks. 

This postdoctoral research is linked to the DE-CIST project, funded by a granting scheme conducted by Google to foster data-driven environmental and climate action at the local level. The project’s goal is to develop scalable, transferable, and automated data-driven methods, able to bolster energy transition through optimal retrofit planning in the city of Rotterdam.

As part of AiDAPT Lab, the successful candidate will hold a joint appointment at the Chair of Design, Data and Society and the Chair of Structural Design & Mechanics, in the Faculty of Architecture & Built Environment, and will be supervised by Dr. Khademi and Dr. Andriotis. (S)he will further work in a team closely collaborating with stakeholders, researchers, and research groups associated with DE-CIST. The position is funded for a duration of 2 years, during which the appointed candidate will (i) undertake research and commit to project deliverables and (ii) assist with the supervision and research tasks of AiDAPT and the host Chairs.

• D. in Computer/Data Science, AI, or alternatively at Architecture Engineering;
• Strong skills in data structures and data pipelines;
• Experience with creating efficient and scalable databases and deep learning benchmark datasets;
• Excellent programming skills with Python, and SQL;
• Familiarity with deep learning frameworks such as Pytorch, and Tensorflow;
• Interest in the application of deep learning in building energy performance;
• Excellent oral and written communication skills in English proven by a minimum score of 100 in TOEFL or IELTS of 7.0 per sub-skill (writing, reading, listening, speaking). For more details please check the Graduate Schools Admission Requirements; 
• Ability to work in a team, take initiatives, and be results-oriented. 

Salary and benefits are in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities (based on scale 10: € 2.960,00 - € 4.670,00). The employment contract is agreed for 1 year, with a possibility of extension for another year. The position is open for 38-40 hours per week. The TU Delft offers a customisable compensation package, a discount on health insurance and sport memberships, and a monthly work costs contribution. Flexible work schedules can be arranged.

For international applicants, TU Delft has the Coming to Delft Service. This service provides information for new international employees to help you prepare the relocation and to settle in the Netherlands. The Coming to Delft Service offers a Dual Career Programme for partners and they organise events to expand your (social) network.

Delft University of Technology

Delft University of Technology is built on strong foundations. As creators of the world-famous Dutch waterworks and pioneers in biotech, TU Delft is a top international university combining science, engineering and design. It delivers world class results in education, research and innovation to address challenges in the areas of energy, climate, mobility, health and digital society. For generations, our engineers have proven to be entrepreneurial problem-solvers, both in business and in a social context.

At TU Delft we embrace diversity as one of our core values and we actively engage to be a university where you feel at home and can flourish. We value different perspectives and qualities. We believe this makes our work more innovative, the TU Delft community more vibrant and the world more just. Together, we imagine, invent and create solutions using technology to have a positive impact on a global scale. That is why we invite you to apply. Your application will receive fair consideration.

Challenge. Change. Impact!

Faculty Architecture & the Built Environment

The Faculty of Architecture and the Built Environment has a leading role in education and research worldwide. The driving force behind the faculty’s success is its robust research profile combined with the energy and creativity of its student body and academic community. It is buzzing with energy from early in the morning until late at night, with four thousand people studying, working, designing, conducting research and acquiring and disseminating knowledge. Our faculty has a strong focus on 'design-oriented research’, which has given it a top position in world rankings.

Staff and students are working to improve the built environment with the help of a broad set of disciplines, including architectural design, urban planning, building technology, social sciences, process management, and geo-information science. The faculty works closely with other faculties, universities, private parties, and the public sector, and has an extensive network in the Netherlands as well as internationally.

Click here to go to the website of the Faculty of Architecture and the Built Environment.

AiDAPT is TU Delft’s AI-Lab for Design, Analysis and Optimization in the Faculty of Architecture & Built Environment, directed by Dr. Seyran Khademi and Dr. Charalampos Andriotis. At AiDAPT, we harness and shape AI to support long-term, adaptive, and evidence-based abstraction and synthesis of structural and architectural choices, towards a more sustainable and resilient built environment (AIDAPT). The host Chairs of the Postdoc position, Structural Design & Mechanics (Prof. Mauro Overend) and Design, Data and Society (Prof. Georg Vrachliotis), lead research and education on structural analysis, design, and digitalization in the Faculty of Architecture & Built Environment, and have strong links with other Faculties within TU Delft, such as CEG and 3mE, and EEMCS.