2019 Speakers

As vice president of newbuilding and refurbishment, Trevor Young is currently coordinating the 13 new building projects that are currently part of MSC Cruises’ fleet expansion plan. He also coordinates all refurbishment projects in the Company’s existing fleet. Trevor’s career started with him earning a diploma of business and hospitality management, along with a certificate in hotel and catering Management which lead him to the cruise industry in 1996.

Tolù is the visionary behind Adẹ̀kọ́ & Co. He takes a holistic approach to design, collaborating with artisans, craftsmen, and makers who are the best in their field to create a unified aesthetic that is timeless yet globally contemporary. Every facet of every project is carefully considered and chosen for a reason—to tell a unique story. 

Tolù has held several senior positions at renowned interior design firms, including David Collins Studio. He has worked on several prominent residential and international hospitality projects, from hotels to resort islands, as well as restaurants, bars, cruise ships, and superyachts. Selected projects include Restaurant Gordon Ramsay Maze Grill; The Ritz, Edition, W, Hilton, and Marriott hotels; and MSC, Norwegian, and Viking cruise lines.

Born in Nigeria, Tolù moved to London in 1995. In his teens, he was mentored by Sir Terence Conran on furniture design and honed his artistic flair at Camberwell College of Arts, London. He later attained his Interior Design BA Hons degree at Bournemouth University and developed a distinctive aesthetics, characterized by a classic luxury with attention to detail, craft, and functionality.

Tolù is a proud member of the British Institute of Interior Design (BIID) and The Society of British and International Interior Designers (SBID).

www.adeko.co

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Joanna Gonzalez-Guerra is Associate Vice President of Architectural Design for Royal Caribbean Group, she oversees design and project development for the Silversea Brand as well as the development of other prominent portfolio projects across all RCG Brands including Innovation “Ignition” Studio, Virtual Design Construction team, and RCG’s in-house Commodities Studio.

Joanna joined Royal Caribbean Group in February of 2020, but her career has been tied to ship design since 2007 as part of the design team behind the Royal Caribbean Oasis Class and Quantum Class as well as Celebrity Cruises’ Solstice Class ships, to name a few.

She has 25 years’ experience in the design industry which covers a diverse range of new construction, renovation, expansion and planning of complex hospitality, residential, office and mixed-use projects. Joanna previously led and managed CRTKL’s interiors studio and her portfolio encompasses some of the biggest names in the commercial and hospitality industry.

Joanna has a degree in Architecture from Catholic University of America but fell in love with creating interiors spaces and crafting of experiences. She enjoys designing memorable places that entice guests and serve as a true reflection of the client’s brand.

Her passion is creative problem-solving and being a part of a team that develops projects leading the industry in design, sustainability, and innovation.

Captain Prestigiacomo is an accomplished master mariner with 25+ years of demonstrated leadership experience obtained across the maritime industry. Well-rounded seagoing expertise encompasses passenger vessels, including cruise line ships, large crude oil carriers, ro-ro vessels, and chemical tankers.

Forward-thinking professional with the hands-on knowledge required to lead vessel operations see while creating opportunities to further align with the bigger picture. Highly skilled in building and leading successful team that meet the strategic goals and objectives of the organization. Offers a proven ability to innovate and deliver results in the most cost-effective and transformative manner.

Today he is the Key Account Manager for the Cruise and yacht segments within the DNV Miami Cruise Center, from where he is also leading the Americas Maritime Academy.

Stephen is a native of Ireland who left shortly after University, moving firstly to England. Since then he has lived and worked in Hong Kong, Australia and Italy. At University he studied Architecture and later undertook post graduate studies in Project Management.

He has been involved in the cruise industry for over 20 years during which time he has been fortunate to have worked on new build, refurbishment and major conversion projects for some of world’s leading cruise lines. Stephen’s main area of expertise is in interior fit-out works and over the years has gained vast experience and knowledge in Project Management of cruise ship construction projects.

He now lives in Florida, mainly because that is where the work is, but also because he dislikes cold weather.

Michele Masini is the Director of the Refurbishment business unit at De Wave Group. He is based in Genoa, Italy, where he graduated as a Marine Engineer and Naval Architect at the Genoa University in 2007.

After graduating Michele took a six-month internship at RINA S.p.a. and then in 2008 joined Demont S.r.l, a leader in cruise ship interiors new building and refurbishing – first as assistant than as project manager in the refitting division.

In 2013 after the spin-off from Demont s.r.l. he moved to De Wave s.r.l. becoming the project coordinator for all the refurbishment business of the company in 2016.

After the merger between De Wave, Spencer and Precetti Michele became director of the Refurbishment business unit of De Wave Group in 2019.

He’s currently covering this position in the head office based in Genoa (Italy) leading a large team of specialised project managers and designers relying on the multiple skills and experience of the companies merged in De Wave group.

John Paul Brigneti has more than 35 years’ experience in the cruise marine industries. He started his professional career as an engineer with Carnival Cruise Line on board of the TSS Mardi Grass. Later in USA he was working for the USN Navy projects: LSD-41 in the Test Engineering Dept and MHC-51 Head of Q.A., Procurement and Logistics New Building. He was also Director of Procurement and Logistics for Renaissance Cruises New Building Programs.

Since 2001 working VP and Director of sales for 3 top cruise line logistics provider he was coordinating more than 25 DD all over the world and global fleet provisioning. In 2019 he opened JPB GLOBAL TRADE SOLUTIONS to offer to his clients Supply Chain Consulting linked with Supply Chain Finance solutions to reduce cost and improve the necessary capital asset to be able for his clients to maintain a sustainable operation and finance capability that has become a real challenge for many global MSME in the last few years.”

Jason has been serving the cruise industry for 30 years originally from the UK but now from the US.

For the past 12 years Jason Dodd and Associates has supplied carpets from Hammer/EGE, laminates from Pfleiderer, decorative lighting from Chelsom as well as fabrics from Sekers and Bautex.

All products are supplied from Europe with IMO certificates.

Design Director in Steen Friis Design with extensive expertise within the cruise and ferry industry. At Steen Friis Design we embrace our influential role in the ecosystem and the responsibility we have as designers.

To help assist shipowners in making conscientious choices for their vessels’ interiors Steen Friis Design has developed The Sustainable Design Strategy – a data-driven design approach calculating the carbon dioxide emissions of the accommodation which enables us to make a documented difference by selecting the least harmful materials available on the market.

With this sustainable study, we hope to encourage innovative and responsible thinking in the selections of the interior and put forward thoughts and ideas to motivate more stakeholders.

Trond Sigurdsen is Senior Architect, Partner and Chairman at YSA Design. Trond joined the firm in 2016 having worked previously at Y&S since 1995.

Trond’s projects have been for Seabourn, Regent Seven Seas, HAL, RCI, Princess, Disney, Hapag Lloyd and MSC Cruises.

YSADESIGN is a world leader in Revit BIM design for Cruise Ships.

Under the creative direction of Lauren Somers Pelusio, Richloom Contract has developed an unmatched understanding of how individual designers and brands conceptualize interiors, bringing their visions to fruition through fabrics and finished products. Before transitioning over to hospitality, she spent 15 years designing residential fabrics.

With degrees in Marketing and Interior Design, she enjoys all aspects of Design and approaches it from a broad perspective. Lauren lives in Hoboken, NJ with her husband and two children. They are actively involved in their community and with their church, Hoboken Grace. In her free time she can be found skiing, at the beach, or using her infrared sauna blanket.

Thomas Westergaard is a hospitality management professional with extensive experience from Hotel & Cruise Operations. He has been with Hurtigruten Group for eight years in various senior management positions. Thomas is responsible for designing onboard concepts and interiors in the fleet through refurbishment and New Build programs.

Thomas has four children and is currently based in Oslo, Norway.

Sascha Lang is Vice President, Architectural & Design – New Build and Innovation, Royal Caribbean Group, and is assigned to the Royal Caribbean International brand. Sascha joined Royal Caribbean Group in September 2019.

He has over 25 years’ experience in hotel design management and has worked with leading hospitality groups in Europe, the Middle East, India, Africa and Asia-Pacific. Well-regarded by professional associates within the hospitality industry for his ability to creatively integrate the development of hotels and interior design concepts, Sascha has extensive experience in hotel and mixed-use development, acquisitions and due diligence, project development and management, concept development, interior design and technical services.

A Swiss national, Lang has a degree in architecture and studied building construction and structural engineering. He holds a degree in business administration as well as a diploma in hotel management from the Belvoirpark Hotel Management School in Zurich.

Yohandel Ruiz’s bio will be available shortly.

Petra, originally from Sweden, has been practicing Interior Design in multiple geographical locations. Starting her career with land-based projects working for Wilson Associates in North America and for HBA in London. The introduction to ship design came via Tillberg Design of Sweden which led her to heading up the design department for P&O Australia for the last 6 years in Sydney. Petra just embarked on a new journey starting her own design firm called STUDIO BERG+.Petra’s Bio will be available shortly.

My is the Director of Interior Design for HA Group and leads the design department overseeing three prominent cruise brands: Holland America Line, Princess Cruise Line and Seabourn. My’s design experience is diversified across Refurbishment and Newbuild.

As a globally recognized thought leader, My’s repertoire of achievements span both land and sea. She is known for her internationally acclaimed award-winning designs as well as being a public speaker on topics close to her heart such as Sustainability and Leadership.

On the topic of inspiration, My says, “inspiration to me is not a noun. It’s more of a mindset. I’m as inspired seeing the colors of leaves while walking in my neighborhood as I am looking at fashion in different cities that I visit around the world. The key is to always keep your eyes open and not have tunnel vision. That mindset assures you will always feel inspired”.

Marketing Manager and responsible for sustainable business development at Dansk Wilton.

Lone is managing the Cradle-to-Cradle certifications of Dansk Wilton’s Colortec carpet solutions and is driving the ongoing recycling initiatives within the company.

For her, it is important to see sustainability as a journey and not a destination. Embracing sustainability requires continuous development and improvements.

After spending six years at sea in Hotel Operations, Lawrence came ashore to join the startup management team at Royal Viking Line. He next joined the startup exploration cruise line, Pearl Cruises of Scandinavia, as Senior Vice President of Fleet Operations. Here he had full responsibility for all aspects of ship operations including Maritime, Technical, Hotel, Entertainment, and Shore Excursion operations.

Later he joined the startup team at Seabourn Cruise Line as Vice President Hotel Operations. When Seabourn merged with Cunard Line, Lawrence also took on the responsibility for Cunard’s Hotel Operations. This included construction of QM2, at the time the world’s largest liner. Then, as Vice President Fleet Operations for Seabourn he oversaw the construction of a new generation of ships that ensured the brand’s on-going success.

Today Lawrence serves as a newbuilding and operations consultant to the cruise industry. Clients include Royal Caribbean, Azamara, Windstar Cruises, Viking Ocean Cruises, SeaDream Yacht Club and others.

Javier Calle, USGBC LEED, is a recently reincarnated design professional.
After 24 years in the retail design world, Javier followed his instincts,
“cut the cord,” and took the plunge into the entrepreneurial world, as a
founding partner of Studio DADO, a Miami-based design firm that
specializes in creating memorable interior spaces on cruise lines and in
the hospitality industry.

In his previous life, Javier worked as a senior associate at RTKL Associates,
Washington, D.C., during which time he travelled the world, practicing and
perfecting his craft.

A graduate of Southern Polytechnic State University, Marietta, Georgia,
Javier started as a retail specialist, and cut his teeth on many large-scale,
highly visible projects, such as the exclusive Mexico City-based
departmental store, El Palacio de Hierro. In another challenging project,
he was a part of the designing team behind Royal Caribbean’s behemoth
vessel, The Oasis of the Seas.

Javier’s drive for excellence is strongly marked by his passion for achieving
the right balance between his love for classic, timeless design that has the
fluidity to adapt to the demands of the present and the need for being
anchored in functionality and industry standards.

The same passion shapes his life outside work. Javier takes great pride in
providing a wonderful life for his children, and is a generous mentor for
young designers. An avid outdoorsman, Javier is a huge soccer fan and an
avid bicyclist.

Helena Sawelin has been with TDoS for more than 25 years. During this time, Helena has has worked with some of the largest and most prestigious clients in the marine business, working also with high-end hotels, yachts, and high street boutiques.  

As Partner of TDoS, she is currently Business Director and also Head of the Design Studios.

Greg Walton, AIA, NCARB, LEED AP is founding partner of Studio DADO, a Miami-based design studio specializing in cruise ship and hospitality interiors, which has established itself as an integral part of the cruise design industry. Greg has designed projects such as Royal Caribbean International’s Oasis class ships and the “Seven Seas Explorer” for Regent Seven Seas Cruises.

With a Masters in Architecture from Georgia Tech, and an MS in International Business from Johns Hopkins, Greg has mentored cruise ship design students at Florida International University since 2007 and sits on the 2019 Cruise Ship Interiors Expo advisory board. Greg watches trends: he sees technology as a key driver of industry change and reminds emerging designers to consider the continual advancements in how we interface with and control our built environment. In his free time, Greg is a tireless world traveler who is rarely seen without his Italian greyhound, Enzo.

On Completing a career as a Chief Engineer, Graeme joined Lloyd’s Register (LR) in 1996 as a Ship Surveyor, working on almost all types of existing ocean-going vessels in New York were the activities also included undertaking surveys on Equipment and components for new and existing vessels.

Graeme Transferred to Philadelphia were after becoming a Senior Surveyor, he began working on the classification of equipment and components, materials; also undertaking Quality Schemes for Equipment and Components and Materials.

Subsequently, Graeme became senior Surveyor in charge of the port of Philadelphia and Baltimore as well as regional Coordinator of the Quality Assurance for Engineering Systems operated within the Americas.

Graeme in December 2015 changed roles to become the Americas Type Approval – Business Development Manager as Lloyd’s Register recognised the importance of having a dedicated Technical matter expert who could undertake supporting role for the Equipment and component manufacturers and the steel mills, foundry’s, forging companies, etc. who support the shipbuilding and existing shipping industry.

Focus today is the continual improvement of the Type Approval process, Certification and Alternative methods such as the Quality Assurance for Engineering Systems QAES which allows companies flexibility for Certification, supply chain management and also certification of unique innovative products for Marine and Offshore use.

Graeme holds a B. Eng. in Mechanical System and Design Engineering from the University of Liverpool in Liverpool United Kingdom. He has also qualified as a Chartered Engineer, a member of the Engineering Council within the UK and a Member of Institution of Marine Engineering, Science & Technology (IMarEst).

George Scammell is Director, Interior Asset Management, Fleet Operations – Holland America Group, serving Princess Cruises, Holland America Line, Seabourn and P&O Australia.  He is responsible for leading the in-house design team in managing all interior design initiatives, supporting interior revitalization, refurbishment, and maintenance for Princess’ fleet of 17 International ships.

A global hospitality design leader, George has extensive experience in the hospitality, cruise, and leisure entertainment industry.  Leadership positions include VP of Global Design for Wyndham Worldwide, Principal for CORE architects, VP of Design for ForrestPerkins, and Design Management for Walt Disney World Resorts.

George earned his bachelor’s degree in Interior Design from Florida State University, is a licensed Interior Designer, and a Professional Member of both the American Society of Interior Designers, and the International Interior Design Association.

After serving in a consult role for three years, Dee Cooper officially joined Virgin Voyages in 2015.  As a founding member of the Virgin Voyages team, Dee’s creative vision has helped guide the brand since its inception. As Senior Vice President of Design, Dee is helping curate an Epic Sea Change by leading the brand’s Design Creative Collective, a team of some of the world’s most noteworthy modern interior designers– none of whom have ever designed for the cruise industry before.

Dee carefully handpicked each designer and tasked them with reimagining how a holiday at sea could look and feel. The Virgin Voyages Design Creative Collective as well as Dee’s internal design management team are responsible for the interior design of the ship’s 48 public spaces as well as a multitude of cabin categories. With Dee’s expertise in delivering a superior customer experience, the brand also looks to her to guide the design and approach of many on board and land-based touch points of the sailor experience. 

Before joining Virgin Voyages, Dee led the design and experience for all aspects of Virgin Atlantic, from airport lounges to aircrafts, earning the airline a multitude of awards in both design and service. Having worked with Virgin Atlantic for more than 16 years, she led most of the airlines innovative successes, including the Upper-Class Wing, Clubhouses and the famed £105M Upper Class Cabin and Seat. As an expert in design and smart disruption of business, following her time with Virgin Atlantic, Dee spent many years running her own consultancy agency, Decide. As an independent consultant she worked across the technology, hospitality and banking sectors, using her unique understanding of brand, design and service to create differentiated customer experience.

Andy has over 25 years’ experience in design and has worked internationally on many large-scale leisure developments. His continued drive and enthusiasm for innovative relevant design keeps SMC fresh, dynamic, and relevant. Passionate about good design, he is adept at combining years of experience with innovative and new thinking to produce unique and challenging creative solutions for clients. Andy believes that SMC’s success is down to its people and their approach to design, both of which continue to strengthen the company and benefit clients around the world.