ICE awards first Chartered Infrastructure Engineer title

The ICE has awarded the first Chartered Infrastructure Engineer (CIE) title to Chris Landsburgh, a decarbonisation technical director at consulting firm AECOM.

CIE is the first new title to be awarded for 100 years. The ICE began awarding the first Chartered Engineer titles in 1923.

Landsburgh, a civil engineering graduate, has been involved in the infrastructure sector for more than 10 years and specialises in decarbonising infrastructure.

He provides advice on net zero plans, whole life carbon accounting and sustainability strategies for governments and businesses.

Who is Chris Landsburgh?

Already a Chartered Environmentalist, Landsburgh was an ICE President’s Future Leader under Past President Paul Sheffield.

He is also an ICE Carbon Champion and was involved in the PAS 2080 standard for carbon management in buildings and infrastructure.

"The ICE has been one of my professional homes for several years, and becoming the first Chartered Infrastructure Engineer is an honour,” said Landsburgh.

He said that the title reflects the industry’s commitment to evolve.

"I’m glad that this new scheme fosters a culture of inclusivity and collaboration, positioning us well to navigate the demands of civil engineering, such as climate change and decarbonisation."

Ensuring high standards of Professional Review

ICE President Keith Howells said: “I’m delighted to conclude my tenure as ICE president with the announcement that Chris Landsburgh has become the institution’s first Chartered Infrastructure Engineer.

"Awarding this new protected title follows years of discussion with the Engineering Council, BEIS (the now defunct Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy) and HM Privy Council.

"Each required assurance that this new title was needed and that the highest standards of Professional Review would be met.”

Helen Davis, engineering manager at Binnies, was one of the reviewers who interviewed Landsburgh.

She said: "Like any other Professional Review, we ensured that Chris demonstrated his depth and breadth of competence across all the attributes.

"As is typically the case for a good candidate, I came away having learnt something new and with a broader perspective of both the challenges facing the industry and ideas for how these can be addressed."

What is a Chartered Infrastructure Engineer?

The CIE title was acquired by the ICE in response to the recommendations made by Professor John Uff in his 2016 review of UK engineering.

Professor Uff observed that a significant number of academically qualified, practising engineers were operating outside the professional engineering institution (PEI) structure.

In the report, he recommended these engineers become professionally qualified to help assure the public that the engineers who are delivering the infrastructure they use daily are current, credible and competent.

The ICE membership approved the introduction of CIE in 2022.

It allows the ICE to professionally qualify engineers involved in all aspects of infrastructure delivery and welcome them into its membership.

The introduction of the title acknowledges the changing needs of the industry.

New technologies and a desire to build a more inclusive and sustainable world, working with people across multiple disciplines, have shaped these needs.

How do you become a Chartered Infrastructure Engineer?

CIE candidates must take part in a similarly rigorous process as Chartered Civil Engineer candidates.

The same assessment standard and methodology is applied but tailored towards the CIE candidate’s specialism.

This process includes submitting documentary evidence of competence and professional commitment.

It also involves passing a written communication task and being interviewed by at least two professional qualified reviewers.

One reviewer is a civil engineer, the other has knowledge of the CIE candidate’s specialism.