The team of Vice Presidents forms part of ICE’s Council, consisting of the President, Immediate Past President and 34 elected members. The Council’s role is to act as a reservoir of knowledge in the field of civil engineering, discuss the strategic direction of the Institution, set its policy and its education, training and professional qualifications.

As a world-leading expert on civil and environmental engineering, Professor Mair’s appointment will bring a combination of academic excellence and professional expertise to the role. As well as leading the Cambridge Centre for Smart Infrastructure and Construction (CSIC), he is also the Sir Kirby Laing Professor of Civil Engineering at the University of Cambridge and has advised on many notable, large-scale underground engineering projects, including the Jubilee Line Extension, the Channel Tunnel Rail Link and Metro projects in Amsterdam, Rome and Singapore. He is also a member of Crossrail’s Engineering Expert Panel and gave evidence to the House of Lords Select Committee on Crossrail, currently Europe's largest civil engineering project.

Professor Mair said: “I am honoured to have been elected as a Vice-President of the ICE and look forward to working closely with the Presidential Team. My particular interest will be promoting new frontiers of technology and innovation in civil engineering, which is very much aligned with CSIC’s objective to integrate latest sensor technologies into modern infrastructure and construction.”

The ICE Council has also confirmed Professor Mair’s election as Vice President from November 2014, with a view to him becoming President in November 2017, subject to an interim annual election by the Council.