James O’Donnell
Managing Director
James O’Donnell is the Managing Director of Building Energy Informatics Ltd. He is also a Full Professor, having joined the University of Limerick in September 2025. Prior to this, he served as an Associate Professor in the School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering and as Associate Dean for Engineering at University College Dublin (UCD). Earlier in his career, he was a Senior Scientific Engineering Associate in the Building Technology and Urban Systems Department at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL).
He focuses on developing and deploying interoperable and BIM-based solutions to support multi-scale energy modeling, from individual buildings to national building stocks. He contributes to the building’s Building Energy Modelling IDM Expert Panel in this capacity. In addition to technical research and consulting, James teaches modules focusing on building physics and building energy modeling.
Previously, he taught courses at Stanford University, the National University of Ireland Galway, and University College Cork on building performance analysis, building physics and HVAC analysis, respectively. He also worked as a Postdoctoral Scholar at the National University of Ireland Galway (NUIG). James has a civil and environmental engineering degree and a PhD in holistic building performance analysis from University College Cork (UCC). He is an Associate Editor for the Elsevier Journal of Building Engineering and an Editorial Board Member for the Elsevier Journal of Advanced Engineering Informatics.
Sobia Bano
Project Manager for Building Energy
Sobia Bano is a Project Manager for Building Energy, Life Cycle, and Embodied Carbon Analysis and a PhD Researcher at University College Dublin (UCD). Specializing in web and research software development, Sobia’s expertise lies at the intersection of sustainable building design, energy efficiency, and advanced technology. As a leader at Building Energy Informatics, she navigates the complexities of sustainable development and champions the effective management of embodied carbon. Her technical prowess, leadership skills, and unwavering commitment to environmental responsibility have established her as a visionary force, consistently steering her projects toward innovative solutions for a more sustainable future.