The Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) has announced that the Forth Bridge, Hydroelectric power in Scotland, and The Falkirk Wheel amongst the top 200 influential people and projects, past and present, which illustrate how civil engineering has shaped the world and transformed people’s lives for the better.
To mark the ICE’s 200th anniversary, and to support the UK Government’s Year of Engineering and the Scottish Government’s Year of Young People, the Institution is highlighting 200 inspirational and world-changing projects from around the world throughout 2018. Nominated by the ICE’s members and selected by an expert panel, the chosen projects illustrate the breadth and depth of civil engineering’s impact.
The 2,467m long Forth Bridge was completed in 1890. The iconic railway crossing is used by 200 trains a day and is a UNESCO World Heritage site. The bridge replaced ferry services across the river and made moving people and goods around easier, boosting the Scottish economy.
Hydroelectric generation in Scotland started early in the 20th century – kick-started by the need for power to drive aluminium smelting plants at Kinlochleven and Lochaber in the Highlands. Scotland now has 85% of the UK’s hydroelectric energy resource, much of it developed in the 1950s. It brought ‘power from the glens’ into Scottish homes. By 1965, 54 main power stations and 78 dams had been built, providing a total generating capacity of over 1,000MW.
The Falkirk Wheel is the only fully rotating boat lift in the world. It was built as part of the £85.4m Millennium link project to reunite the Forth and Clyde and Union Canals in Scotland. The canals had previously been linked by a staircase of 11 locks, taking nearly a day to pass through. It now takes about 10 minutes for a boat to be lifted from the Forth and Clyde Canal to the aqueduct 24m above that leads to the Union Canal. Since its opening in 2002 more than 5.5 million people have visited it – benefiting tourism and the local community.
The Forth Bridge, Hydropower in Scotland, and the Falkirk Wheel join the 200 projects which will be published throughout the year on the What Is Civil Engineering? pages of the ICE website. What is Civil Engineering? will not only host these projects but can also be used as a career guidance tool for those hoping to pursue a career in civil engineering. Once inspired by the projects being produced each month, there is comprehensive advice and guidance on how to become a civil engineer no matter what level of education someone has, or what stage in their career they have reached.
This platform has been designed to help promote the career of civil engineering after it was revealed that only 45% of adults know what the career entails and only 35% of young people could tell you what a civil engineer does.