One of the aims of ISSMO is to bring together researchers and practitioners in our field by means of international meetings having high scientific standards, up-to-date conference facilities, and affordable costs to all members of the Society.  Along these lines, ISSMO has held bi-annual World Congresses of Structural and Multidisciplinary Optimization since 1995: WCSMO1 was held in Goslar, Germany, 1995; WCSMO2 in Zakopane, Poland, 1997; WCSMO3 in Buffalo, NY, USA, 1999; WCSMO4 in Dalian, China, 2001; WCSMO5 in Lido di Jesolo, Italy, 2003; WCSMO6 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 2005; and WCSMO7 in Seoul, Korea, 2007.  Please click on the menu “Conference” link above for more information about the previous WCSMOs.

ISSMO is an Affiliated Organization of IUTAM (the International Union of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics).  ISSMO co-organized with IUTAM a Mini-Symposium on Structural Optimization at the 19th International Congress of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics (ICTAM) held in Kyoto in 1996.  Since then the ICTAM conferences have included a Pre-Nominated Session on Structural Optimization (20th ICTAM, Chicago, 2000, and 21st ICTAM, Warsaw, Poland, 2004).  This continues with a similar session at the forthcoming 22nd ICTAM to be held in August 2008, in Adelaide, Australia.

Already since 1994, ISSMO has co-sponsored biannual Symposia on Multidisciplinary Analysis and Optimization held jointly with AIAA (Panama City, FL, 1994; Seattle, WA, 1996; St. Louis, MO, 1998; Long Beach, CA, 2000; Atlanta, GA, 2002; Albany, NY, 2004; Portsmouth, VA, 2006).  In addition, ISSMO has co-sponsored a large number of scientific meetings and conferences with other non-profit organizations.

The Journal of the Society is Structural and Multidisciplinary Optimization (SMO).  The aim of SMO is to provide a vehicle for disseminating information about all aspects of structural and multidisciplinary optimization through a single medium, which has obvious advantages for research, literature search and society activities.  Information is available by clicking on the "SMO Journal" link under the “Publication” link above.

ISSMO/Springer Prize.  Any paper presented at WCSMO by a "young" researcher (under the age of 35) can be proposed as a recipient of the ISSMO/Springer Prize by any participant of that congress.  The work should be entirely or primarily the young researchers; hence, a supervisor might also be on the paper, but the first author must be the nominee.  The prize-winning paper will be selected by the ISSMO Executive Committee.  Proposals, including a 50-word justification, are to be submitted to the e-mail address of the ISSMO Secretary General.  For the previous awards, see the "ISSMO Prize" link under the “About ISSMO” link above.

A database of ISSMO “Members” with postal and e-mail addresses is available by clicking on the "Membership" link above.  If you wish to see how you may become a member of ISSMO, click first the "Membership" link above and then click on "Join ISSMO".  There is no separate membership fee, but 10% of the registration fee for ISSMO WCSMO is used as a membership fee.  Members of ISSMO will be able to register for the ISSMO co-sponsored conferences, such as AIAA MAO, ASME IDETC/CIE, and ASMO, at the member pricing registration fee.

The day-to-day running of ISSMO is handled by the Executive Committee that is elected at 4-year intervals at a WCSMO.  The current EC (see the "Executive Committee" link under the “About ISSMO” link above) members were elected at the WCSMO7, who will hold office until 2011.