Aris Chatzidakis is the New President of the European Council of Civil Engineers. He took over Presidency of ECCE on 23rd October 2018, during the 68th ECCE General Meeting, that was held in London, UK. Aris Chatzidakis will serve a three year term for the Period 2018 – 2021. Aris Chatzidakis had been appointed ECCE Vice President/ President Elect on 22nd October 2016, during the 64th ECCE General Meeting in Athens, Greece.

Aris Chatzidakis is a Civil Engineer. He graduated, in 1974, from the National Technical University of Athens. During 1975-1976, he attended the post-graduate course (D.E.A.) “Aménagement du Territoire”, at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure d’ Hydraulique, at the University of Grenoble. He speaks English, and can communicate in French and Italian.

Personal profile

As an independent Civil Engineer he has been mainly involved in the structural design and the supervision of many private works, especially multi-storey housing and commercial buildings. He has been involved, as a structural and a geotechnical engineer, in many infrastructure projects such as bridges, road works of art and retaining walls, waste water sanitation installations and the design of dams. He has specialized in the structural analysis and design, for the restoration of traditional buildings and monuments.

He has participated, for many years, as a member and as the 1st Vice President, on the Directing Board, of the Association of Civil Engineers of Greece (ACEG) (1981-2009). For many years, he has also been a member of the National Assembly, of the Technical Chamber of Greece (TCG) and also a member of many of its scientific and professional committees. He has been the Coordinator of the Standing Committee, on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs issues in the international relations division of the Technical Chamber of Greece for the period 2010-2016. He was member of the group of experts of the TCG dealing with the general Directive1989/48 and the later 2005/36 and the matters arising for the mobility of engineers and equivalence of diplomas and titles. Since 1986, he has participated at the European Council of Civil Engineers, ECCE, first as a member of the directing board of ACEG and then as a TCG representative. He participated in the Steering committee of ECCE for the general Directive and mobility of engineers. He has also taken part in various occasions in the Greek delegation in the FEANI and ECEC Assembly, and in other occasions such as the 2nd and 3rd European Engineers’ Day and the deregulation issues. He is the ECCE representative in the Engineering Association of Mediterranean Countries (EAMC).

He has taught principles of structural analysis and design for the restoration of monuments, at seminars organized by the Technical Chamber of Greece, the Greek Architect’s Association and the Greek Civil Engineer’s Association. He has participated in congresses, conventions and meetings organized by ICOMOS, the Technical Chamber of Greece, the committee for Medieval Monuments of Rhodes etc., the Earthquake Planning and Protection Organization (EPPO), the Consiglio Nationale degli Ingenieri and ECCE, in Naples, etc. He has written the book titled «The Masonry Bridges in the Prefecture of Rethymnon», in collaboration with the civil engineer Zoe Evdou, published by the Technical Chamber of Greece / Western Crete Department, in 2003. He has published many articles about the history of constructions and civil engineers. He is also member of the Board of the Organization of the Development of Crete SA and member of Executive Board and Deputy President of EEPO.