Digital Defense Competence Centre

Before moving to Lithuania from Sakartvelo, Shorena Gudzhabidze already had a clear vision of what a modern study environment should look like. That vision was influenced by listening to the stories of students from universities across Europe, whom she met while participating in her school’s STEM academy. The Civil Engineering programme at Vilnius TECH ticked all the boxes, and it didn’t take long for her to decide and move abroad. This is a story about one young engineer who discovered her passion at the crossroads of architecture and engineering.  The road to Vilnius As a high school student, Shorena participated in international engineering competitions—including Intel ISEF and ECUSYS—where she met students from universities all over Europe. “Hearing firsthand about their labs, courses, and research environments genuinely raised my expectations for what a university experience could be,” she recalls.  When it was time to decide where to study, Vilnius TECH emerged through her school’s Alumni network. The Civil Engineering programme met all her requirements. Shorena applied, received a scholarship, and made the move. “At that point, it felt like a straightforward decision,” she says. Learning to think like an engineer Soon, Shorena realised that Civil Engineering is larger than most people think. “What surprised me most wasn’t the difficulty — it was the scope,” she explains. “A bachelor’s degree is about training your mind to think in a certain way. For me, that was engineering thinking — learning how to approach problems, break them down, and develop solutions.” Two experiences had the greatest impact on her. The first was her thesis project: “It was the moment when four years of knowledge finally came together into something clear. You don’t fully realise how much you’ve learned until you have to use it all at once.”  The second was her mentor, Dean Dr Remigijus Šalna. “What I learned from him was professionalism in the truest sense — deep expertise and a genuine attention to detail. In engineering, and in any technical field, the difference between good work and great work often lies in the details. That’s something I carry with me.” Living in dormitories, adapting to a new country, and overcoming the challenges of starting an independent life also left their mark. “There were moments that felt truly overwhelming,” Shorena admits. “But looking back, that’s just part of starting an independent life, and those moments shaped me as much as anything else.” Between studies and early career  By her third year, Shorena’s curriculum required a professional internship. She chose Staticus — one of Europe’s largest façade contractors — despite façade engineering not being part of her career plans. It didn’t take long for that to change. “You’re exactly at the crossroads of architecture and engineering,” she says. “And it turned out to be more compelling than I expected.”  Shorena was employed before she finished her studies. Balancing her final-year coursework with a professional role was challenging, but Shorena sees it practically: “That’s where you learn real-time management, not just the theoretical kind. You quickly figure out your priorities because you have no choice. I wouldn’t call it easy, but I would say it’s worth it.” Joining the Staticus team initially meant having limited domain knowledge. However, engineering education provided her with the essential tools to fill that gap. “What my studies truly gave me — and what mattered more in that scenario — was an engineering mindset. The ability to examine something unfamiliar and work through it methodically.”   The moment of pride: the Landspitali project  Shorena spent her first three years at Staticus as a 3D Design Engineer specialising in Building Information Modelling (BIM). She developed complex façade models in Revit and created parametric building components used directly in manufacturing and installation. Her project portfolio expanded to include the Oxford Life and Mind Building Campus, Høsnord Hospital in Denmark, and the Hero project in Lithuania.  But one project stands out the most: Landspitali, a 30,000 m² hospital in Reykjavik, Iceland. “The challenges it posed were on a whole different level,” Shorena says. “Beyond the massive scale, Iceland’s extreme weather and seismic activity added layers of engineering complexity that most projects don’t face.” The façade alone included static seismic testing to meet American AAMA standards — a first for Staticus. “Seeing how a project of that complexity gets coordinated and delivered across different disciplines teaches you things that smaller projects simply can’t.”  Taking a fresh direction After three years, Shorena experienced a surprising career shift. She took on the role of Product Manager at Staticus XD — the company’s all-in-one, cloud-based façade project management platform designed to offer full project visibility and seamless collaboration from bid to handover.  “Construction and façade engineering, in particular, remains a rather traditional industry — many processes could be smarter, more connected, and more transparent, but they still aren’t,” she explains. “That gap is actually exciting when you’re in a product role because the potential is huge.” What motivates her is seeing real impact: when something the team produces genuinely changes how someone in design, production, or project management performs their role. She also mentions that the role draws on everything she has developed. “It’s not a role where you can fake one or the other — the engineering background or the product thinking. I find that combination truly interesting to work in.”  The right call If you ask Shorena where she sees herself in five years, she’ll answer honestly. “If you had asked me the same questions three to five years ago, my reply would have been completely different from where I actually ended up. I didn’t picture myself in product management or façade engineering, and yet here I am, and it all makes perfect sense now.” The advice she would share with her younger self — and any student facing similar challenges — is grounded in that hard-won self-awareness: “I believe the one thing that carried me through was always trusting myself and my abilities. Not that there weren’t difficult moments — there were many — but I never truly lost that core confidence that I’d figure it out. Trust yourself sooner and more often than you might feel natural. The rest usually falls into place.”  For students from Sakartvelo or elsewhere considering the leap to study abroad, her message serves as both a warning and an invitation: “It’s probably the hardest decision you’ll ever make — and also the best one. Both can be true at the same time. There will be moments when you’re homesick and question everything. But you’ll stay — because deep down, you’ll know it’s the right call.” 

March 22nd marks World Water Day, an annual reminder of one of humanity's most vital resources – fresh water. However, today the conversation is increasingly not just about water scarcity, but also its quality. One of the less visible, yet extremely dangerous threats is landfill leachate. The World Bank estimates that around 2.1 billion tonnes of municipal solid waste are generated globally each year, a figure that could exceed 3 billion tonnes by 2050. In Lithuania, about 1.3 million tonnes of municipal waste are generated annually. This scale has a direct impact on human health and the environment: the soil, the air, and especially the water. Landfill Leachate – A Threat to Fresh Water and Human Health Leachate is the wastewater produced as water percolates through the waste in landfills. It accumulates various hazardous organic and inorganic pollutants that can enter the groundwater, posing a danger not only to nature but also to human health. According to Dr. Saloua Biyada, a scientist at the VILNIUS TECH Civil Engineering Research Centre and the Department of Chemistry and Bioengineering, this problem has long been underestimated. Only in recent years has the understanding grown that untreated leachate can have long-term consequences for both aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. "Leachate is one of the most complex and dangerous problems of landfills. Its pollutant composition is constantly changing, which is why traditional treatment methods often become ineffective. Water should sustain life, not threaten it, so leachate treatment must become one of the top environmental priorities today," emphasizes the scientist. Why Don't Conventional Solutions Work? The leachate treatment methods used to date face serious challenges. Chemical methods are not sufficiently effective and can cause additional pollution, while advanced technological solutions like reverse osmosis often require a lot of energy and are expensive. "The biggest problem is that most of the treatment methods applied in Lithuania have more disadvantages than advantages, as they are focused on only one parameter. For this reason, such methods are relatively unreliable – the leachate itself is unstable and complex, so comprehensive solutions are needed," says Dr. S. Biyada. VILNIUS TECH Scientists Are Developing a Prototype Landfill leachate is characterized by particularly high concentrations of chemical oxygen demand (COD), nitrogen, and chlorides. The leachate treatment methods currently used in Lithuanian landfills have their shortcomings. These methods are designed to remove a specific pollutant indicator, making them ineffective – especially given the unstable composition of leachate. For this reason, VILNIUS TECH scientists began to search for a solution that would allow them to affect several pollution indicators at once. "In search of more effective solutions, the university's scientists have united and, using the infrastructure of the newly established Competence Centre for Smart and Climate-Neutral Manufacturing Processes, Materials and Technologies, have committed to solving the challenges of leachate in Lithuanian landfills in a consolidated manner," says Simonas Barsteiga, the director of the competence centre. Currently, scientists from the VILNIUS TECH Department of Chemistry and Bioengineering, together with the startup "Clean4Planet, MB," are developing an innovative leachate treatment method based on biological processes. "Microorganisms have an exceptional ability to break down even the most complex organic substances. They adapt to changing conditions, making them a very promising, ecological, and cost-effective solution for leachate treatment," explains scientist Dr. S. Biyada. The use of a microbial consortium in biological treatment systems allows for the simultaneous treatment of several pollution parameters in a single system without chemical additives. "The world of microorganisms is a very promising area of research where, upon achieving significant results, it would be possible to solve not only the problem of leachate but also many other challenges related to water and environmental pollution," adds the scientist. [caption id="attachment_108836" align="alignnone" width="671"] 'Figure illustrates the prototype combined biological and physical treatment developed to overcome the challenge associated with leachate in Lithuania'[/caption] Combined Treatment Methods Are Needed for Landfill Leachate In developing a combined treatment prototype, not only is the ability of microorganisms to break down persistent substances being utilized. The project also uses biofilters made from recycled mineral materials that act as adsorbents (due to the silicon aluminum in their composition) and absorbents (due to the biofilm formed during treatment). These adsorbents are being developed together with the VILNIUS TECH Institute of Building Materials and the Faculty of Environmental Engineering. The adsorbent created by three female scientists – Dr. Ina Pundienė, Dr. Jolanta Prackevičienė, and Prof. Dr. Aušra Mažeikienė – will help ensure that the treated leachate complies with Lithuanian wastewater discharge regulations. The combined technology is currently being tested in laboratories, but it will soon be possible to test it under real conditions at Lithuanian landfills. The new prototype will sustainably address the challenges associated with leachate pollution, especially the removal of nitrogen and chlorides, and the treated leachate will be reusable for various other purposes. "This is a real circular economy model that aligns with the long-term 2050 vision of the European Union and Lithuania, and the approach of promoting a global circular and well-being economy where nothing is thrown away, and all by-products serve as raw material for new production. This will undoubtedly help to restore our environment and protect nature and people from pollution," states Dr. S. Biyada. On World Water Day, VILNIUS TECH scientists emphasize that awareness alone is not enough. "If we want to preserve our freshwater resources, we must move from words to actions – to develop technologies and implement sustainable solutions, and this can only be achieved by working together," says Dr. S. Biyada.

ESA BIC Lithuania is inviting startups to apply for its spring incubation program. If you are developing innovative solutions in the space technology sector or applying space technologies in other industries, this program can help accelerate the growth of your idea. Participants can receive up to €50,000 in funding (with an additional €10,000 available for startups based in Vilnius), along with expert mentorship, technical support, and access to the international network of the European Space Agency (ESA). The program offers an opportunity not only to further develop your technology but also to strengthen your startup’s credibility and readiness to grow in international markets. Application deadline: April 20, 2026Application process: https://esabic.lt/apply-now/