David Adam (1943 – 2026)

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It is with great sadness that we inform you of the passing of our dear friend and colleague Dave Adam.

Dave was born on 30 March 1943 in Greenock, a centre of shipbuilding on the Clyde, close to Glasgow. In 1961 he began an apprenticeship as a metallurgical technician with Scotts’ Shipbuilding and Engineering Company. He went on to work in their quality control department until 1969, when he was offered a job at CERN.

He moved to Geneva in June 1969 to join the quality control department of the then SB Division. He worked there until 1990, when he decided to take an opportunity to expand his career, joining the SPS-LEP Main Ring group, responsible for the upkeep and maintenance of the two big machines. However, this did not last long because, on approval of the Large Hadron Collider in 1994, his expertise was called upon to help to tackle the mammoth task of producing the 4000 km of high-quality superconducting cable for the LHC magnets. He joined the small team under the leadership of Daniel Leroy that meticulously followed up the production of, first, superconducting strands followed by the manufacturing of the finished product, the superconducting cable. The strands and cables were made at several factories in Europe but also in Japan and the USA, which required a considerable amount of travelling between the different sites. In all, it was a great success, with the manufacturing of high-quality cable finished well in advance of the ramp-up of magnet production.

Dave retired in 2003, moving back to his beloved Scotland not far from the town he was brought up in, but he never lost touch with his many friends he made over the years in Geneva. He will be fondly remembered as a gentleman, a loving husband and father and a great friend. Our thoughts go out to his widow, children and grandchildren. Thank you, Dave!

His friends and colleagues at CERN