Engineering in Antarctica

This month’s guest is Billy Thursfield, Bam sub-agent for the British Antarctic Survey (BAS), who joined us from Rothera Research Station in Antarctica.

He has spent seven seasons living and working on infrastructure projects on the southernmost continent.

He told NCE news editor Lee Kenny about the aims of the wider Antarctic Infrastructure Modernisation Programme (AIMP), the partnerships involved in delivering it and the role of British Antarctic Survey (Bas) as a client.

His early seasons were focused on the wharf works, dealing with the many engineering and logistical challenges of operating in Antarctica. More recently, he has worked alongside teams in Scotland and Cambridge, supporting delivery alongside Hugh Broughton Architects, Ramboll, Sweco and the Bas team.

He discussed his work at Rothera and detailed the Discovery Building project to replace a number of ageing buildings with one centralised modern facility.

He talked about how the building has evolved over the different construction seasons, from enabling works and earthworks, through to steel erection, fit-out and commissioning, as well as off-site manufacture and sustainability.

He discussed the pre-mobilisation process and the amount of preparation involved before engineers are deployed to Antarctica, especially around health, wellbeing and the practical and psychological challenges of being away from home for extended periods.

Lastly, he described how he spends his time outside of work and the experience of living in one of the world’s most extreme environments.