Practical
Thursday, 10 September, 2026 up to and including Friday, 11 September, 2026
- 09:00 until 17:00
VUB Main Campus Etterbeek
Pleinlaan 2
1050 Elsene
Room P2.0.01 - Bungalows main campus
Pleinlaan 2
1050 Elsene
Room P2.0.01 - Bungalows main campus
€300 (Waived for VUB MSc students)
Registration until
General information
What to expect
The Summer school program is designed to help you understand how the open-source community
operates and how to write open-source code so that it can be used by other researchers and engineers. Summer school attendees will receive the full source code of the courses.
The summer school will present 4 different workshops spread over 2 days, whether you are interested to strengthen your Python skillset in times of AI. Or whether you are interested into a deep-dive in the particular topics within Structural dynamics, flavored with the expertise of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel in Structural health monitoring.
Target audience
The target audience is PhD or MSc students working in the field of structural dynamics and mechanical engineering and professionals with an interest in structural dynamics and Structural Health Monitoring.
Prior knowledge
The summer school will be based on the Python programming language. Basic knowledge of
Python is assumed, but Matlab users should be able to catch up quickly. If you are interested to speed up your experience in Python, this is the course to attend.
A laptop, preferably with Python pre-installed, is required to attend the course. An account on Github is required.
Day 1 : OpenSD common track
The first morning focuses on bringing you up to speed in Python and Open Source. This focuses on an introduction to Python, numerical methods and signal processing. Experienced Python users can already dive in their first workshop.
Morning (From 09:00)
- Welcome
- Round table and getting started
- A first dive into Python for structural dynamics (introduction workshop)
Afternoon (From 13:00): Two parallel tracks
- Workshop 1 : An intro to Python for Engineers in a time of AI
- Python fundamentals
- Python testing for Engineers; getting your code properly 'covered'!
- Coding collaboratively; a Hands-on intro to GIT and open-source
- Setting up environments using uv
- Workshop 2: Signal processing for SHM
Deep dive in signal processing for SHM, incl. pyOMA
Those interested can join the Conference Dinner.
Day 2: Local track
The second day focuses on the local flavour. Each participant can join the workshop of their preference, each taking a half-day workshops. Each workshop combines hand-on work with an introduction to the topic. Some workshops are organised twice to allow you to mix and match.
Morning (from 09:00): Two parallel tracks;
- Workshop 2: Signal processing for SHM
Deep dive in signal processing for SHM, incl. OMA - Workshop 3: Introduction to py-Fatigue:
Efficiently perform cycle-counting and fatigue calculations for large datasets.
Afternoon (from 13:00): Two parallel tracks;
- Workshop 3 Introduction to py-Fatigue:
Efficiently perform cycle-counting and fatigue calculations for large datasets. - Workshop 4: The role of AI in SHM
How can AI be used to spot issues in structural dynamics?.
Practical information
General
Lunch and drinks is provided and included in the registration. Paying attendees can also join the optional conference dinner (indicate your interest during registration). Free registrations are free to join the conference dinner at their own expense.
The summer school will take place in the cozy building P2 of the VUB main campus.
Registration
Registration is possible through the online form listed above. A registration fee of €300 is requested, VUB Msc students can join the course free of charge.
There are up to 60 spots availabe (first-come, first-serve).
More information
For more information about the OpenSD initiative, Summer Schools organised in other locations and the bi-annual OpenSD conference visit, OpenSD.
For more information about the current edition contact the organisers via mail: wout.weijtjens@vub.be