Irene Fassi holds a Ph.D. (2001) in Industrial Technologies and a MSc degree in Mechanical Engineering – Robotics and Automation (1997) from Politecnico di Milano. Since 1998 she is a full time researcher at CNR-ITIA (now CNR-STIIMA), where she leads the research group MEDIS. She has been involved with research and management role in various regional, national and European projects. She undertakes teaching activities in the field of robotics, precision engineering and advanced manufacturing systems at University of Brescia and Politecnico di Milano. She serves as an independent expert evaluator for various national and international funding agencies. She is a member of the Executive Board of SIRI (Italian Robotics and Automation Association), of AITeM (Italian Association of Manufacturing Technologies), of the ASME/DED Technical Committee on Micro and Nano Manufacturing, and of the Executive Committee of the International Institution for MicroManufacturing. She is a reviewer for international journals and conferences, and author of more than 180 scientific papers.