Following the completion of the HL-LHC Point 1 underground galleries in spring 2021 and the delivery of two surface buildings in the summer of that year, the delivery of additional service buildings and of connecting galleries in September 2022 marks the end of the civil-engineering works for HL-LHC Point 1. This new facility, along with its sibling at Point 5, will house the cutting-edge equipment needed to sustain the ten-fold increase in integrated luminosity promised by the HL-LHC project.
The image above shows the cooling tower building (first row), the cryogenics building (second row), which will house cycle compressors that can compress helium from 1 bar to just over 20 bars, and a cluster of three buildings housing the shaft-head, as well as equipment for ventilation and electrical distribution (third row).
The construction of the final buildings, carried out by JVMM (Joint Venture Marti Meyrin) in close coordination with CERN’s Sites and Civil Engineering (SCE) department, brings this vast civil-engineering undertaking to a close four years after the first excavator bucket hit the ground. The coming months will see the brand-new facility filled with general services and technical infrastructure, laying the groundwork for a successful HL-LHC era.
Find out more in the CERN Courier.