The Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) is an independent professional association for civil engineers based in London. ICE has over 97,000 members, of whom three-quarters are in the UK, while the rest are located in more than 150 other countries. The ICE aims to support the civil engineering profession by offering professional qualification, promoting education, maintaining professional ethics, and liaising with industry, academia and governments.

On the 10 January 2025, its senior representatives David Porter, ICE Senior Vice President (2026 President), and Séan Harris Obe, Deputy Director General, toured CERN key facilities to witness the vital role of civil engineering in delivering CERN’s groundbreaking experiments.

The VIP itinerary included a visit of the ATLAS cavern, the magnet facility, the CERN control room, and the Science Gateway. Hosted by John Osborne, Head of SAM-FS section, the visitors also enjoyed lunch with Mike Lamont, CERN’s Director for Accelerators and Technology, and engineers from SCE department: Ellen Ingram, Duncan Tarry, and Liam Bromiley.

Both Porter and Harris expressed amazement at the scale and complexity of CERN’s infrastructure, emphasizing how civil engineering underpins its scientific achievements. The visitors extended gratitude for CERN’s warm hospitality, while ICE representatives left inspired by the collaboration between engineering and science.