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A.P. Sakis Meliopoulos was awarded the title of Doctor Honoris Causa (Honorary Professor) of the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) at the National Technical University of Athens in Athens, Greece. This award recognizes a distinguished alumnus and was last presented by this university three years ago. 

Meliopoulos graduated from the National Technical University of Athens in 1972 with his Diploma in Electrical and Mechanical Engineering, and he was presented with the title of Doctor Honoris Causa at a ceremony on November 1, 2019. Andreas G. Boudouvis and Nectarios G. Koziris, the rector of the university and the dean of the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering respectively, both gave speeches at the award ceremony. Costas Vournas, a professor in ECE at the university, gave a presentation of Meliopoulos’ work and career accomplishments in the electrical energy arena. Meliopoulos then delivered a speech entitled “From Automation to Autonomy: Opportunities and Challenges” and was awarded a medal by Boudouvis.

Meliopoulos is the Georgia Power Distinguished Professor in the Georgia Tech School of ECE, where he has been a member of the faculty since 1976. He received his M.S.E.E. and Ph.D. degrees from Georgia Tech in 1974 and 1976, respectively. He is the Power Systems Engineering Research Center site director for Georgia Tech and associate director of the Institute for Information Security and Privacy.

Meliopoulos has almost 50 years of experience in power system analysis, design, and automation. He has developed analysis tools for safe ground designs, lightning protection, three-phase power flow, short circuit analysis, dynamic bus design, transients, protection against abnormal conditions, and protection of energy automation systems against cyber attacks. The safety software and smart ground multimeter that he has developed are used by more than 120 utilities, consulting firms, and vendors, both in the U.S. and abroad. 

Meliopoulos leads four field demonstration projects at four different utilities and has written three textbooks, as well as three manuscripts that are used as textbooks in power systems courses. He has published over 360 technical papers and has taught over 300 short courses/continuing education programs to practicing engineers through the IEEE and Georgia Tech Professional Education, in addition to teaching undergraduate and graduate courses at Georgia Tech. He has consulted with most major utilities in the U.S. and abroad.

In addition to being presented with the Doctor Honoris Causa title, Meliopoulos is a Fellow of the IEEE and received the International George Montefiore Award in 2010 and the IEEE Richard Harold Kaufmann Award in 2005. He is a two-time recipient of the Georgia Tech Professional Education Award.