Civil, Structural & Environmental Engineering - History

John Baker, an eminent civil engineer, was Head of the Department of Engineering from 1943 to 1968. He became well known for his plastic theory of structures. It can be applied to any material that is used for building, from a medieval cathedral to a skyscraper. Use of this theory is now saving the taxpayer millions of pounds in its application for the evaluation of the safety of road bridges.

A brief description of Lord Baker's achievements is chronicled in the website developed to commemorate the 125th anniversary of engineering in Cambridge.

In the early 1970s Professor Andrew Schofield initiated a programme of research in geotechnical engineering which has achieved international recognition. The research has been based mainly on the application of large geotechnical centrifuges designed and constructed in the Department of Engineering.