Walls Construction, a leading Irish-owned construction company, has announced it will support Design + Construct, Ireland’s first Centre of Excellence for Architecture, Construction and Engineering (AEC) education and research from TU Dublin.

Building on over a century of delivering education for the AEC sector, Design + Construct will leverage TU Dublin’s expertise to address the key challenges of 21st-century construction. Upon completion, the centre will be located at TU Dublin in Broombridge, Cabra, representing a €30 million project.

The complexity of modern construction processes, procurement, technical design, regulation and standards, requires ongoing and continuous engagement with education and up-skilling. In addition, changes to the structures of site teams and construction methods have created a requirement for cross-training and cross-disciplinary engagement and competency.

Design + Construct will deliver a world-class collaborative multidisciplinary learning for students across all levels and disciplines, from apprenticeship to doctoral research, as well as provide education and research facilities critical to the next generation of construction graduates in technologies such as off-site and modular construction, near-zero energy building, robotic construction and the digitisation of the construction process.

Walls Construction’s Design + Construct donation announcement follows the presentation of the inaugural Walls Construction Award to Mark Webster for the best overall academic performance in Year 2 on the BSc in Construction Management delivered by the University in Bolton Street. The Scholarship is part of a wider effort by Walls Construction to develop its talent pipelines to build a future-proof, world-class team with the right blend of personal, professional and technical skills.

Commenting on the announcement, Adrian Corcoran, Chief Operating Officer of Walls Construction, said: “We are delighted to support Design + Construct, TU Dublin’s Centre of Excellence for AEC education and research, in their superb new location in Broombridge.  This is a deliberate strategic decision for Walls as our organisation, and the Irish construction industry will benefit enormously from a collaborative-based research, training and education facility that produces uniquely qualified students exposed to multidisciplinary learning and understanding prior to embarking on their careers. We look forward to assisting TU Dublin on its exciting mission to establish Design + Construct as an expertise centre providing students with practical, industry-related skills that will prepare them for successful careers in construction.”

Welcoming the announcement, Orna Hanly, Head, Design + Construct Project at TU Dublin, said: “‘In their generous support of Design + Construct, Walls Construction is endorsing a radical rethinking in how TU Dublin delivers Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC) education, championing academic excellence and ensuring students leave the University with the attributes and capabilities necessary for prolific careers in the industry. Within Design + Construct, TU Dublin will combine all AEC disciplines within a single facility providing our students with hands-on experience of the entire construction lifecycle, from planning through design and build to operation and end-of-life or renovation.”

TU Dublin Design + Construct, Broombridge Campus

TU Dublin purchased a 3.25-hectare site at Broombridge in 2011 to complement the Grangegorman and Bolton Street facilities. The site is located immediately adjacent to the new Luas cross-city terminus at Broombridge, just two stops from the Grangegorman campus, and currently accommodates a full-size all-weather, floodlit sports pitch. The site at Broombridge also includes a large-scale, derelict warehouse to be repurposed, offering 6,200m2 of high-tech, flexible and adaptable space upon completion.

The facility will be a collaborative, multidisciplinary learning resource for students across all levels and disciplines, from apprenticeship to doctoral research, as well as providing research facilities critical to the next generation of AEC graduates in technologies such as off-site and modular construction, near zero energy building, and robotic construction.

Pictured above: Ian Barrett – Communications and Industrial relations Manager, Walls Construction; Adrian Corcoran, Chief Operating Officer, Walls Construction; Orna Hanly, Head, Design + Construct Project, TU Dublin; Professor James Curtin, Dean, Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment, TU Dublin; Carolina Concialdi, Training and Development Manager, Walls Construction and Eugene O’Shea, Chief Executive Officer, Walls Construction.

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