Ailie MacAdam facts for kids

Ailie MacAdam is a famous British engineer. She is a senior leader at a big company called Bechtel Corporation. She has helped build some of the largest and most important engineering projects in the world.

Becoming an Engineer

Ailie MacAdam was born in Edmonton, London, on October 6, 1962. Her father was a mechanical engineer, so she grew up around engineering ideas.

She went to school in Saffron Walden. She was good at sports, especially hockey. In her final years of high school, she focused on science subjects like maths, physics, and chemistry.

Ailie then went to the University of Bradford. There, she earned a Master of Science degree in chemical engineering. This is where she learned how to design and build complex systems.

A Career in Big Projects

Ailie MacAdam has worked on many huge engineering projects. These are sometimes called "megaprojects" because they are so big and important.

Working at Bechtel

Ailie started working at Bechtel in 1985. Bechtel is one of the biggest engineering and construction companies in the world. She joined their training program for new graduates. She worked in their oil and gas division first. Later, she became a director for Bechtel in the UK.

Building High Speed 1

From 2003 to 2008, Ailie worked on the Channel Tunnel Rail Link. This project is now known as High Speed 1. It is a special railway line that connects London to the Channel Tunnel. This allows fast trains like Eurostar to travel between the UK and mainland Europe.

The Crossrail Project

One of Ailie's biggest jobs was on Crossrail in London. From 2009 to 2014, she was in charge of building the central part of Crossrail. This included digging 21 kilometers (about 13 miles) of twin tunnels. Her team also built six new underground stations. Crossrail is one of Europe's largest engineering projects. It helps millions of people travel across London every day.

Other Major Works

Ailie also helped with other important projects:

• The Big Dig in Boston, USA, which was a huge highway project.
• The upgrade of St Pancras railway station in London. This station became a major terminal for Eurostar trains.
• The Sydney Metro in Australia, which is a modern railway system.

Awards and Recognition

Ailie MacAdam is a highly respected engineer. In 2016, she was named one of the Top 50 Influential Women in Engineering. This award recognized her important work and leadership.

She also works with STEMNET. This group encourages young people to study science, technology, engineering, and maths.

In 2018, she was interviewed on a radio show called The Life Scientific. In 2022, her old university, the University of Bradford, gave her an honorary Doctor of Engineering degree. This was to celebrate her amazing career.

Personal Life

Ailie MacAdam comes from a family of engineers. Both her godfather and her father were engineers. She is married to Ade Sofolarin, who is also a chemical engineer. They have a son and a daughter.

Her son, Femi Sofolarin, is a professional rugby union player. He has even played for Scotland in the Commonwealth Games. Her daughter is also a talented athlete who competed in discus and played hockey for her university.