The Users Office turns 20

20 years ago, in the summer of 1989, an office was created to assist the thousands of users who come to CERN each year, working over the broad range of projects and collaborations.


Chris Onions (right), head of the Users’ Office, with Bryan Pattison (left), the Office’s founder.

Before the inception of the Users Office, it was common for users to spend at least an entire day moving from office to office in search of necessary documentation and information in order to make their stay official. "Though the Office has undergone various changes throughout its lifetime, it has persisted in being a welcoming bridge to facilitate the installation of visitors coming from all over the world", says Chris Onions, head of the Users Office.

This September, the Office will celebrate its 20-year anniversary with a drink offered to representatives of the User community, the CERN management and staff members from the services with whom the Office is involved. "With nearly 10 000 users currently registered in our system", explains Onions, "the Users Office could not possibly handle their many needs alone. The Office has always been located in the Main Building and within the vicinity of the various other services that work together in the ‘welcoming’ process at CERN".

The Office currently employs six multi-lingual staff to handle day-to-day operations. Users’ registrations are limited to a maximum of two years, and with 10 000 users, the team faces approximately 100 renewals and new registrations each week, as well as many requests for information and help from users and experiment secretariats. During peak periods such as July, when many students following the Summer Student Programme come to CERN registered as users, it is not uncommon to see long queues stretching out of the office. "The important thing is that we have people that can deal with difficult cases", adds Onions. "It is difficult to get information from someone who speaks very little French or English, so they also have to be extremely patient."

The increased size of the space occupied by the Office is a reflection of CERN’s growth. "Over the course of 20 years, the number of users within the system has doubled from 4 500 users to 10 000 users", concludes Onions. "We try to accommodate every aspect of a user’s stay here at CERN. We are dedicated to providing both professional and personal resources in order to make the experience as enjoyable as possible."