Prof. emeritus Nedjeljko Perić and Prof. Stjepan Picek are recipients of the National Science Award for 2024, presented by the Committee for the Awarding of National Science Prizes, appointed by a decision of the Croatian Parliament.

Prof. emeritus Perić received the Lifetime Achievement Award in the field of technical sciences, while Prof. Picek was awarded the Annual Science Award in the same field.

We congratulate our professors on this exceptional recognition and well-deserved success, which confirms their long-standing excellence and dedication to scientific work!
 

From Industry to Academia: A Lasting Contribution to the Development of Control Systems

Prof. emeritus Nedjeljko Perić received the award for his long-term contribution to the development and promotion of technical sciences, particularly in the field of automation, as well as for his significant impact on the development of Croatian universities and the strengthening of cooperation between academia and industry.

During his extensive professional career, he spent nearly twenty years at the "Rade Končar" Electrical Engineering Institute, where he made significant contributions to the research and development of microprocessor-based control systems. He developed a number of innovative solutions that found wide application in industry and contributed to the modernization of complex technical systems and processes.

After joining the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing at the University of Zagreb in 1993, he continued his scientific, teaching, and professional work in the field of automatic control systems for complex plants and processes, with a special focus on advanced control strategies, estimation, and optimization. Over the past two decades, a significant portion of his research has been directed toward control systems for renewable energy sources.

He left a particularly strong mark on the development of higher education. Guided by a vision of advancing Croatian universities, he contributed to improving study programs, introducing new courses, and developing teaching and research capacities. As a visiting professor, he lectured at universities in Osijek, Split, Rijeka, and Mostar. He is the author or co-author of 19 textbooks and teaching materials, and has mentored numerous students, doctoral candidates, and young researchers. At FER, he established several laboratories and practical training facilities, including the internationally recognized Laboratory for Renewable Energy Systems – LARES.

He founded the Innovation Center Nikola Tesla (ICENT), which he led from 2015 to 2022. The vision of ICENT was clear: to connect the research strength of FER and the University of Zagreb with the development needs of industry, and to accelerate the transfer of knowledge, technology, and innovation into industrial applications.

Over more than 50 years of scientific, teaching, and professional work, Prof. emeritus Perić has left a significant mark on the development of automation, control systems, and technical sciences in Croatia and beyond. His work connects scientific excellence, engineering application, higher education, and innovation development, making him a valuable example of a lasting contribution to Croatian science and society.

Among the World’s Leading Researchers in Computer Security

The status of one of the world’s leading researchers in computer security and the application of machine learning has been confirmed by the awarding of the Annual Science Award to Prof. Stjepan Picek for outstanding achievements in 2024.

During that year, he published a total of 39 papers, including 13 in journals indexed in international databases and 21 papers at internationally peer-reviewed conferences. He also served as editor of two scientific proceedings.

According to Google Scholar, he has achieved a total of 5,691 citations, with as many as 1,406 in 2024 alone, along with several papers published in high-impact journals.

His position was further confirmed in 2024 when the German Federal Office for Information Security cited as many as 19 of his papers in its guidelines on the application of machine learning in implementation attacks. In the same year, his research team included 16 doctoral students and one postdoctoral researcher, while six of his PhD students have completed their dissertations so far (three of them in 2024). He is also actively mentoring undergraduate and graduate students, around 30 annually.

From 2021 to 2024, he has been continuously included on Stanford University’s prestigious list of the top 2% most cited scientists in the world, and in 2024 also on the career-long citation impact list.