The infrastructure in your everyday life

In our everyday lives, water, energy and the internet seem to flow seamlessly. Behind this, however, lies a complex infrastructure that visitors can experience first-hand at the Industry Night.

IWB offers you a glimpse into the underground utility network at its Kleinhüningen depot. During a guided tour, staff will show you which pipes, conduits and cables are laid in the street and how energy and water flow beneath our feet. You’ll be invited to get involved too: manoeuvre the truck-mounted crane boom precisely through a maze of pipes, pick up tips for your solar panel system and become the champion of the valve-operating contest.

Selmoni’s electrical engineers ensure that electricity circulates efficiently and reliably throughout our buildings. The Münchenstein-based company has put together a varied programme for Industry Night: you can assemble a switch cabinet with staff in the workshop, get advice on lighting and its effects in the LED experience room, and put your foot down in VR racing. Etavis Kriegel+Schaffner in Dreispitz also specialises in electrical and building services engineering. The company is a real job creator. At Industry Night, you’ll discover seven exciting professions – could this be the starting point for a thrilling career in this field, which is so vital for the future? If you like interactive experiences, you can hop on the electric bike, build your own switch and use VR glasses to immerse yourself in the day-to-day work of electrical engineers.

How does the internet work? And what kind of infrastructure is required? At Swisscom's headquarters in Basel Grosspeter, you’ll discover the fascinating world of telecommunications. You can take a look inside a data centre, splice fibre-optic cables yourself and watch up close as window panes are made radio-transparent.

Without infrastructure, goods would not be able to circulate. The Basel region is a key hub on the north-south axis, with its ports serving as a gateway to the world. Here, goods are transferred from ships to trains and lorries and transported to the rest of Switzerland. At the Port of Kleinhüningen, Ultra-Brag, Contargo, Rhenus Port Logistics, Swissterminal and the Port Museum offer fascinating insights into this vital sector of the economy. At the Port in Birsfelden, too, visitors can experience first-hand how the smooth handling of goods is ensured: for example, on the Hafenbahn or aboard the tug and push boat ‘WALO BORIS’. Safety in the port is ensured, among other things, by the fireboat, which will dock exclusively for viewing during the Industry Night.

Felix Transport is an expert in onward transport. There is hardly anything this versatile company cannot transport from A to B: from general cargo and pharmaceutical shipments to refrigerated and temperature-controlled transport of food, paints and cosmetics, right through to trade fair and crane transport. During the tour, you’ll follow the journey of a consignment from order entry to delivery. Those interested in an apprenticeship in the transport sector can find out more on site and even take a seat in a state-of-the-art electric lorry. The Swiss Federal Railways (SBB) are taking part in the Industry Night for the second time. This year, they’re offering insights at Basel SBB station, including a guided tour of the underground logistics centre.