Karl Terzaghi reached out to Laurits Bjerrum in 1954, impressed by his paper on Norwegian quick clays' stability. At 36, Bjerrum, already a PhD and NGI director, emphasised practical research integration, influenced by centres like Imperial College London. He advocated for soil mechanics in civil engineering education and founded its chair in 1960. Bjerrum left a lasting legacy, earning international acclaim for his NGI work and collaborations with geotechnicians like Terzaghi and Casagrande.