I am involved in the ultra-precise alignment of EBS, which means the storage ring components must be aligned to within 50 µm of each other, over a distance of almost 1 km. It has been intense work but we are a very tight-knit and well-organised team, and the objective of working with scientists, for scientists, is very stimulating. When we saw that we could obtain the tolerances required, and then saw the first electrons turning, which meant everything had been aligned correctly, it was a great feeling.
The ESRF brings together all the aspects that I sought when entering the field of metrology: plenty of field work, being part of a team and a wide scope of tasks. I also like having to work with the constraint of extremely low tolerances on our measurements.
In my free time, I swap the tunnel for the open sky, paragliding in the mountains. Before the ESRF, I used to work in satellite imaging, so this is my way of keeping my hand in!