Alan Harris (engineer) facts for kids

Sir Alan James Harris CBE (8 July 1916 – 26 December 2000) was a very important British engineer. He specialized in civil and structural engineering. This means he designed and built large structures like bridges, buildings, and airports.

Early Life and Learning

Sir Alan Harris was born in Plymouth, England, in 1916. He started working when he was only 16 years old. While working, he also took evening classes. These classes were in engineering at Northampton Engineering College. This college is now known as City, University of London.

His Engineering Career

Sir Alan Harris had a long and interesting career. He helped build many important structures. He also served his country during wartime.

War Service and D-Day

From 1940 to 1946, Sir Alan served in the Royal Engineers. This was a special part of the army that built things. He was an officer in a company that built and fixed ports. He landed in Port-en-Bessin, Normandy, just one day after D-Day. D-Day was a huge event in World War II.

He was in charge of divers at Mulberry B in Arromanches. This was a special temporary harbor built for the D-Day landings. He worked from small French fishing boats. For his brave work, he received the Croix de Guerre, a French military award. Later, he joined the Territorial Army and became a Colonel.

Working with Concrete Pioneers

After World War II, Sir Alan went to Paris, France. He worked for Eugène Freyssinet. Freyssinet was a pioneer in using prestressed concrete. This is a special way to make concrete even stronger. In 1949, Sir Alan became Freyssinet's main representative in England.

Starting His Own Company

In 1955, Sir Alan started his own company. It was called Harris & Sutherland. He started it with his brother John and James Sutherland. They designed many important buildings. For example, they designed aircraft hangars. These are large buildings where airplanes are kept and fixed. They built hangars for Heathrow and Gatwick airports.

Later, their company grew and worked on even bigger projects. These included large infrastructure projects. They even had offices in Australia, Singapore, and Hong Kong. In 1997, a company called Babtie, Shaw and Morton bought Harris & Sutherland. Since 2004, it has been part of Jacobs Engineering.

Leadership in Engineering

Sir Alan Harris was also a leader in the engineering world. He was a vice president of the Institution of Civil Engineers. He was also the President of the Institution of Structural Engineers from 1978 to 1979. In 1984, he received their highest award, the Gold Medal. In 1973, he became a professor at Imperial College London. He taught about concrete structures there.

Awards and Special Honours

Sir Alan Harris received many awards for his important work:

• He was given the CBE award in 1968. CBE stands for Commander of the Order of the British Empire.
• He was made a Knight in 1980 for his services to civil engineering. This means he was given the title "Sir."
• He won the Gold Medal of the Institution of Structural Engineers in 1984.
• He received an honorary science degree (Hon DSc) from the University of Exeter in 1984.
• He was awarded the Ordre du Mérite from France in 1975.

Important Projects He Worked On

Sir Alan Harris worked on many impressive projects, including:

• A special concrete hangar at Heathrow Airport. This was for BOAC's maintenance headquarters. It was built between 1950 and 1955.
• The Spekeland Road Rail Depot.