Irish Building Magazine by Irish Building Magazine

Irish building THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE FOR BUILDING PROFESSIONALS

TITANIC BELFAST The Icon Revealed

TALLAGHT IT Centre of Applied Science for Health

TESCO CABRA Ireland’s First Zero Carbon Store

Cork Institute of Technology Zero 20/20 Project

ARD NA SIDHE

Luxury Re-Designed September/October 2012

As seen on RTE’s Room to Improve

Founded in February 2009 by Ken Matson and Neville Sweetnam with over 30years experience in the window and glazing market. 20/20 Window & Glazing Systems has a clear vision of what glazing systems should be used to get the best results for our customers. We understand the needs of our customers and will go to extra lengths to achieve total satisfaction. Unique selling points are • Bespoke Aluclad Roof glazing systems • Frameless glass handrails • Aluminium Bi folding windows and doors. • Glass floors We offer our clients advise on which products and systems bests suits their needs. Our focus is on energy efficient windows, doors and new glazing systems to reduce our customers energy costs. Our customers would tell you that 20/20 Window & Glazing Systems offer a very personal and professional service from initial contact to completion. New showroom coming soon to Ballincollig Commercial Park. Check out our blog for updates on the opening date. www.glazing2020.typepad.com 20/20 Window & Glazing Systems are specialists in the supply and installation of High Performance Windows and Doors to both the domestic and commercial markets in Hardwood Timber, Aluclad, Aluminium and uPVC. We can now offer 0.8 U Value, Triple-Glazed uPVC Windows.

Unit 16A, Ballincollig Commercial Pk, Link Road, Ballincollig, Co. Cork. T. 021 4810890 M. 086 3838313 Fax: +353 21 4810890

Contents

Contents VISUAL Zero Carlow 20/20 CIT Page20 35

News 2

EDUCATION AUTHORITY 28 HIGHER Dr Ruth Davis, the HEA’s Capital

Experts section

31 The new Centre for Applied Science for

LEGAL FILE Picking up the Pieces. Incomplete developments and the challenges of boom and bust!.

INSTITUE OF TECHNOLOGY 35 CORK Zero 20/20 landmark project featured.

TITANIC BELFAST An iconic story told through construction.

Features 17

Education focus

NEWS ROUND UP Recent events and news stories including company, in brief & Editors comment.

Cover Story 9

ISS Ireland 25 Ard na Sidhe Page 43

TESCO IRELAND Tesco Ireland is becoming a greener grocer.

25 ENERGIA Energia is

continuing to strengthen its renewable energy portfolio, with its newest windfarm in the Republic, Caherdowney.

Programmes Manager in conversation. TALLAGHT INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY Health Building reviewed.

OF LIMERICK 41 UNIVERSITY The PESS Project team are interviewed. Case Studies NA SIDHE 43 ARD Luxury Re-Designed. BY PASS 47 LONGFORD The Wills Bros built road project featured.

Showcase SHOWCASE 48 PRODUCT All the latest new products reviewed. TALLAGHT IT PAGE 31

Tesco: Zero Carbon Store Page 17

Irish Building Managing Director: Colin Walsh Features Editor: Cian Molloy Administration Manager: Noelette Walsh Production: DN Design All Enquiries Tel: 01 442 9264 colinwalsh@irishbuildingmagaine.ie Subscription Rate: €65.00 Rep. of Ireland Irish Building Magazine is published by National & International Publications Ltd 1 Windsor Mews, Summerhill Parade, Sandycove, Co. Dublin. The contents of this publication are subject to copyright laws and may not be reproduced in any form without the prior written consent of the publishers. The views expressed in articles do not necessarily represent those of the publishers. Printed by W&G Baird

Advertisers 20/20 Window & Glazing ACE Control AMS ASM BAM Brunner Consulting Diarmuid O’Carroll Don O Malley Donal Sugrue/DCS EC Costello Energia ESB Green Bio Fuels Hamilton Fencing Hasco Instrument Technology Joseph Hughes Kingspan KMS Marcon Martin McLoughlin Mercury McGarry Joinery Paddy Wall & Sons/Wall Steel Precision Construction Pure Elec RMI RMS SipFit Spanwall Specialist Joinery Sweet T&A Builders Providers Walsh Mechanical Walsin

ISF 36 34 40 30 42 42 40 20 42 OSB 24 22 46 10 36 10 34 44 10 12 26 32 20 16 40 12 46 18 8 12 12 40 20 18

Irish Building Magazine

News €90 million in additional lending to 5,500 micro-enterprises will be made available under a new Government scheme.

inister publishes Microenterprise Loan Fund Bill - Scheme expected to be operational in early autumn. The Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation TD announced that the €90million Microfinance Scheme will be open for business from Monday, 1st October. lending to 5,500 micro-enterprises will be made available under a Government scheme which is expected to create 7,700 jobs over 10 years, the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton TD announced recently. Minister Bruton was speaking as the Microenterprise Loan Fund Bill was published following a Government decision. The Microenterprise Loan Fund Scheme, which is expected to be operational from early autumn, will initially facilitate €40million in additional lending to businesses employing not more than 10 people over the next five years, with provision for the scheme to be extended to provide an additional €50million of lending over a further five years at that point. Start-ups, sole traders and existing microenterprises will be eligible to apply for a loan under the scheme.

Hogan moves to strengthen Building Control System.

he Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Mr. Phil Hogan, T.D., has released new proposals for public consultation which will significantly strengthen the building control system with a view to ensuring that failings in building quality which have been a regular occurrence for homeowners and tenants in recent years will become a thing of the past. Minister Hogan said: “In July 2011, I announced a number of measures to be advanced by my Department and local authorities with a view to improving compliance with, and oversight of, the requirements of the Building Regulations. ”The Building Control (Amendment) Regulations 2012 which are now available for public consultation here: http://

www.environ.ie/en/DevelopmentHousing/ BuildingStandards/PublicConsultations/

Plan for 800 social housing units thanks to €100m funding package.

lmost 800 social and voluntary housing units will come on stream over the next two years thanks to a €100m funding package announced yesterday. It will also help fund the construction of a major step-down facility in Cork City to support people with addiction in the early stages of recovery. The Fellowship House project in Togher will be one of the largest of its kind in the country which has been described as a template for the rest of the country. Minister for Housing Jan O’Sullivan gave the green light to a raft of targeted projects, most of which are aimed to tackle long-term homelessness. The permanent housing units will be delivered between now and 2014. Most of them will provide accommodation for people with special housing needs, including the elderly, homeless people, and people with a disability. “I am determined that the much reduced capital budget available is targeted at those most in need. Some €35m is earmarked for the voluntary housing sector.

Independent Planning Expert to Evaluate the Planning Review Report

inister O’Sullivan Announces the Proposed Appointment of an Independent Planning Expert to Evaluate the Planning Review Report. Minister for Housing and Planning, Jan O’Sullivan, TD, today (12 September, 2012) announced the proposed appointment of Mr. Hendrik van der Kamp as the independent planning expert to evaluate the Planning Review Report (June 2012) assessing the application of planning legislation, policy and guidance within the development plan and development management systems at local level informing further policy development in this area. Mr. van der Kamp, a town planner, is currently Head of the School of Planning in the Dublin Institute of Technology Bolton Street. He has operated in the Irish planning system since 1982 thereby obtaining a detailed knowledge and experience in virtually all components of the Irish planning system.

Kingspan announces completion of the acquisition of ThyssenKrupp Construction Group and Rigidal Industries LLC

AVAN-based Irish insulation group Kingspan has finalsed two acquisitions at a cost of almost €100m. Further to its announcement on 10 August 2012, Kingspan, the global leader in high performance insulation and building envelope systems, announced that following

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receipt of local regulatory approvals it yesterday completed the acquisition of the various companies which comprise ThyssenKrupp Construction Group. That doubles the Cavan company’s annual panels sales on mainland Europe to over €600m. In addition, Kingspan also announces completion last week of the acquisition of Rigidal Industries LLC. There are no material changes to the terms of the transactions as originally announced. Kingspan has also completed the $38.6m (€30.1m) purchase of Dubai-based insulation maker Rigidal Industries. That marks Kingspan’s first purchase in the Middle East.

CIF invites stakeholders to help develop voluntary pyrite solution

he Construction Industry Federation (CIF) is inviting stakeholders from the insurance industry, the quarrying/ concrete industry, the banking industry and Homebond to join them in coming up with a voluntary solution to the pyrite problem. Following on from the publication of the Pyrite Panel’s report, the CIF hopes that by bringing these groups together a combined approach to tackling the problem can be progressed and presented to the Government. “The CIF welcomes the publication of this report by the Pyrite Panel, which has been long awaited by those living in pyrite affected homes and other stakeholders,” said Tom Parlon, Director General of the CIF. “The CIF acknowledges that it is the homeowners who have had to carry the brunt of the pyrite problem yet they are not the people who are responsible. This is a terrible situation for these people to be in. As we stated in our submission to the panel, responsibility must revolve around insurers, vendors, builders/ contractors and material suppliers.

Increased Irish Construction investment in health & safety paying off

rish construction companies are increasing their investment in health and safety with significantly fewer accidents occurring in recent years according to the Construction Industry Federation (CIF). The decline in construction accidents has coincided with the uptake in safety management certification schemes by Irish construction companies. The level of construction fatalities has fallen by 60% since 2008, with six workplace fatalities being recorded in 2010 and 2011, compared with 15 in 2008. So far this year 3 construction fatalities have been recorded. Additionally the level of non fatal construction accidents has also continued to fall with 437 non fatal injuries reported in the construction sector during 2011 compared with 1,163 in 2008. A total of 155 non fatal construction injuries have occurred during 2012 to date. During the same period there has been a marked increase in the number of Irish companies seeking accreditation for their safety management systems, according to the CIF. There are now 152 companies certified with the ‘Safe-T-Cert’ scheme in the Republic of Ireland, with a further 100 currently working towards achieving this certification. 19 Irish companies have been newly certified during 2012 to date.

Tell us and we will tell everyone else!

f your company is moving, shaking or you just cant keep your latest development to yourself, let us know and Irish Building Magazine will deliver your message to Ireland’s key decision makers in the building sector. With more than 21 years connecting our industry we are the number one choice for getting your message heard. Please contact: Colin Walsh on 01 4429264 or email colinwalsh@irishbuildingmagazine.ie.

News

Spanwall appointed by ALUCOBOND.

elfast based architectural façade specialist Spanwall, has just been appointed as approved fabricator in Ireland for the global market leading composite brand ALUCOBOND manufactured by German company 3A Composites. Spanwall has been making headlines having completed the manufacturing of the stunning rainscreen cladding and interior custom-rusted panels for the £97m Titanic Belfast. A light composite and fully recyclable material consisting of two aluminium cover sheets and a polyethylene core, the versatile ALUCOBOND product is a material used in architecture, industry and transportation and has featured in such famous applications as the tiles on “Spaceship Earth” at Disney’s Epcot Centre in Florida. Spanwall Managing Director Keith Toner said “this partnership is strategically a perfect fit for Spanwall as we are at the leading edge of façade technology, architectural detailing and the innovative application of metals and composites. Recent high profile projects such as Titanic Belfast, Audi showrooms and Terremark Data Centre, Amsterdam have placed us firmly on the radar of leading architects and we are getting enquiries about highly specialised and technically challenging exterior and interior applications across Europe.” Sean Kelly of Richard Austin Alloys the UK’s main

distributor of ALUCOBOND commented “we believe that Spanwall’s reputation, engineering expertise and fabrication ability places it in an ideal position to support Alucobond in the Irish marketplace. We look forward to a mutually beneficial partnership with this innovative company”. Spanwall has recently won a contract for the new Giant’s Causeway visitor centre. In London the company is working on Paddington Station, the 24 storey Canada Water building, the Borough Viaduct and New Fetter Lane.

Launch of the new Marvin Fibreglass Window & Door at the Autumn Ideal Homes Show RDS 26th -29th Oct.

he most up to date and sustainable window on the market today The new Marvin Fibreglass product set to revolutionize the new build and replacement market for the next century. In response to customer demand Marvin windows and doors have answered the housing sector with a revolutionary fibreglass window and door that ticks all the boxes. What makes this fibreglass window and door revolutionary? The 2012 market demands a window that is affordable, sustainable, maintenance free and good looking. This Marvin product is a complete departure from wood and aluminium window and door offerings because of its look, design flexibility, ease of installation, energy efficiency and 30yr+ life expectancy. What aspect of the housing market is this product a good fit for? The homeowner who is upgrading will want to take a close look at this product as it is designed to fit into existing opes with its custom sizes and slim profiles. The sliding sash style and casement style will be of particular interest to the homeowner who wants an alternative to wood sliding sash while wishing to maintain the traditional and authentic appearance of their home.

What is fibreglass made from? Fibreglass is a highly sustainable product that is manufactured from abundant raw materials (glass and sand are the main components) and 20% recycled glass. How does it compare with PVC and aluminium? The fibreglass window is 8 times stronger than PVC and almost twice as strong as steel. PVC expands 833% more than fibreglass making it more vulnerable to cracks and fissures. The seals of the Fibreglass product remain bonded and air-tight throughout its life cycle backed by a 20year warranty. What is the fade factor on fibreglass compared to powder coated products? The colour in fibreglass is embedded during the manufacturing process unlike powder coating which is applied to the finished product making it more susceptible to fading. How does the appearance of fibreglass differ from more traditional materials? Fibreglass has minimal thin frame profiles and maximum glass areas. What kind of savings can I expect to make on heating costs from investing in fibreglass windows and doors? Soft coat Low EII with Argon gas filled spaces between the double glazing will cut your fuel costs by as much as 37%. Other benefits include improved comfort, increased light and view, minimal fading of curtains and carpets and reduced air conditioning costs. This fibreglass window is unique to Marvin and is truly the future of the window and door industry for many decades to come. Let us introduce you to the Marvin fibreglass window and door range by visiting the Autumn Ideal Home Show Marvin Architectural Stand M44 26th -29th Oct 2012 For information on all Marvin window and door products please visit the Marvin Architectural Showroom 71/72 Grove Rd Rathmines Dublin 6. T: 01 4066440

Comment Stimulating Ideas The €2.25 billion stimulus package recently announced by the government is to be welcomed, particularly as the building programme is predicted to create an estimated 13,000 jobs in the construction industry. Much of what was announced is long overdue and in several cases was announced before, but better late than never, and better too little than nothing at all. However, the construction industry must do more than rely on state stimulus packages. In these lean times, construction and engineering firms need to be smart companies. Many practices are succeeding in winning business overseas and innovative thinking is coming to the fore. We note that in Co Louth that, for the first time, a local authority has delivered a national school on behalf of the Department of Education and Science in a process that was more efficient both in terms of cost and in terms of speed of delivery. We note that further new schools, plus primary health care centres and other projects, will be delivered in the stimulus package via public-private partnerships (PPPs). For many years, Irish Building has championed the use the innovative use of PPPs in a timely and an economic fashion and we welcome their further use now. We Irish are people of a certain genius. Of course, necessity is the mother of invention, but we are lucky to be blessed with an innovative patrimony. 3

Irish Building Magazine

News LEAD NEWS

Energia – €4.5m schools energy contract win

Central Bank of Ireland Issues Warning on Investment Firms

ver 1,000 Irish schools are switching to Energia after the leading independent energy provider won a major public tender for electricity supply. Energia expects to supply over 32 Gigawatt hours of electricity to power the schools in the coming year. The value of the contract is estimated to be in the region of €4.5 million. The schools are located throughout Ireland and include schools in Carlow, Dublin, Limerick, Offaly and Wicklow. Energia already supplies a large number of public sector bodies with electricity and gas. In March, they won a tender to supply all Ireland’s local authorities with electricity, including Cork City Council, Dublin City Council, Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council, Galway County Council, Limerick City Council and Waterford City and County Councils. Commenting on the deal, Alan Mulcahy, Business Markets Manager, Energia said: “Energia is delighted to secure this major contract win. As well as supplying over 65,000 Irish businesses, Energia powers Irish schools, local authorities and many other public bodies, bringing to them the benefits of lower priced electricity.” “Whether its dual-fuel gas and electricity deals, “green energy” or supplying unmetered electricity to public sector bodies in Ireland, it is easy for Irish

businesses to benefit from competitive energy deals with Energia. Added to the price package Energia offer excellent customer service and with Energia On-line, customers can also analyze and interrogate their energy consumption, discover usage patterns and produce reports. This information in turn can be used with another product, the Energia Bureau, to manage energy efficiency projects in the business.” Energia has a 28% market share of the Irish business electricity and gas market supplying the energy needs of over 65,000 business customers.that production of medical and precision instruments recorded first-half growth of 7.3%.

Limerick Institute of Technology €200m plan launched

he Institute has launched a grand plan to build a new campus at Coonagh in and to expand and refurbish its current facilities at Moylish and Clare Street. The €200m Campus 2030 Masterplan will also see the opening of an Irish Fashion Incubator in the city centre – possibly at the Opera Centre site. The Masterplan, launched by Minister Jan O’Sullivan at LIT’s Limerick School of Art & Design (LSAD) city centre campus today, is in response to growth across LIT discipline areas such as art and design, engineering and humanities. It also reflects the expansion in LIT’s Enterprise Centres and the applied research capabilities, which were not part of the original masterplans when the campuses were developed during the late 1990s. “It is taking our existing campuses, improving them refurbishing them, expanding them as well as building the new campus at what is now the Coonagh centre and in doing that, we will create a gateway into Limerick which is going to be vastly superior to what we are looking at now,” said Dr Maria Hinfelaar, president of LIT. The three campuses will also be renamed as Desmond (LSAD, Clare Street), Thomond (Moylish) and Ormond (Coonagh) to reflect the ancient kingdoms of Munster. Dr Hinfelaar says, when completed, the plans will

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benefit the whole city. “More students are going to be coming into the city – more people, more footfall so it is all about breathing new life into the city as well so there will be positive ripple effects throughout the local and regional economy,” she said. Minister for Housing Jan O’Sullivan, who launched the Campus 2030 Masterplan says it will build on LIT’s links with communities across Limerick. “LIT sees itself as being a centre for community activity and active learning in the years to come and I welcome that commitment. Located in three campuses across Limerick City, LIT has the capacity to become a focal point for culture, innovation and creativity throughout the City,” she said. Jimmy Browne, secretary/financial controller at Limerick Institute of Technology says the unveiling of the plans is a major milestone for LIT. “It’s LIT coming out of its shell. We would regard ourselves as one of the best kept secrets in Limerick, over the last number of years,” he said adding that he is confident the funds needed to implement the masterplan over the next two decades will be raised. While, the Department of Education and Science and committed some funding towards the Masterplan, Jimmy says LIT will have to think outside the box. “The days of the state and other agencies automatically paying for this are gone so we need to be a little bit more innovative,” he said. Planning permission for some of the proposed works has already been secured and it is hoped that work on phase one of the Masterplan will begin early next year. The Mayor of Limerick, Cllr Gerry McLoughlin, has welcomed the proposed developments. “It is a great boost for education in the city – for students for parents and the amount of jobs that will be created during the plan is significant and I am delighted,” he said.

he Central Bank today published the names of six unauthorised investment firms who are either claiming to be or holding themselves out to be an investment firm in the State or have been offering investment services to members of the Irish public. Bond Asset Management (UK, Germany & Hong Kong), Profidex Limited (Japan), Sun-Wealth Corporate Finance (Japan), Zheng Bridge Capital (China), CT Lambson & Associates, LLC (USA), have been offering investment services to members of the Irish public and are not authorised as investment firms in Ireland. MMA Capital Markets Limited, also known as MMA Forex & MMA FX is claiming or holding itself out as an investment firm in the State. This firm also purports to be based in the United Arab Emirates. A list of unauthorised firms published to date is available here. It is a criminal offence for an investment firm to operate in Ireland unless it has an authorisation from the Central Bank of Ireland. Consumers should be aware that, if they deal with an investment firm which is not authorised, they are not eligible for compensation from the Investor Compensation Scheme. Any person wishing to contact the Central Bank of Ireland with information regarding such firms may telephone (01) 224 4000. This line is also available to the public to check if an investment firm is authorised. Since obtaining the necessary legal powers in August 1998, the names of 191 unauthorised firms have been published by the Central Bank.

The oldest working lighthouse in the world – contract signing takes place. The contract signing has taken place for construction works at the visitors centre at Hook Lighthouse, the oldest working lighthouse in the world. Hook Lighthouse is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the south east of Ireland. With the support of Fáilte Ireland and Wexford County Council, the construction works will include the restoration of the roofs and original sash windows of the keepers houses and restoring the medieval cobbled yard as well as expansion to the facilities at the visitors centre resulting in a more varied service offering for visitors. New amenities will include a viewing platform and boardwalk for whale watching and facilities to house sealife exhibits, unique artefacts, and a vintage coast guard apparatus. Construction works will begin in September and are due to complete in early November 2012. Greta Nagle, Associate Director for Healy Kelly Turner & Townsend Waterford, commented, “We are delighted to be involved in the renovation works to Hook Lighthouse Heritage Centre. The historical nature of this site makes this project very unique and a pleasure to be involved in.” Healy Kelly Turner & Townsend has been commissioned to provide cost management services for the renovation works at Hook Lighthouse. The works will be carried out by James Grace Contracting.

News

The University of Ulster wins top energy efficiency award

Sisk has pulled out of a number of road-building projects in Poland at a cost of between €50m and €60m

he University of Ulster has won a top energy efficiency award at the annual Sustainable Ireland Awards, which took place last night. BBC broadcaster Noel Thompson presented Ulster’s Sustainability Manager, Adrian Davis and Energy Officer, James Waide, with the much-coveted award, sponsored by ROL Testing Ltd and Socomec UPS, during a glittering ceremony held at the Ramada Hotel in Belfast. The judges were highly impressed with the University’s focus on making energy savings – from initial policy and strategy through to implementation. The award recognises the effective energy and carbon management which has been in place over the last 20 years at the University. From 2006 to 2011, the university’s carbon emissions decreased by 17% and its energy consumption decreased by 15% resulting in considerable cost savings. Improvements were achieved despite increases in both the size of the estate and the number of students. Energy reductions have been realised through a combination of proactive management and improvements to the estate including replacement of inefficient buildings and services and the incorporation of renewable technologies including wind and solar power. After receiving the award, Adrian Davis said: “I am delighted to receive this award on behalf of the University of Ulster which recognises the good work carried out by staff to reduce the environmental impacts and costs associated with energy use. The annual Sustainable Ireland Awards are organised by the Hillsborough-based publishers of Sustainable Ireland, 4Square Media, and is now widely regarded as the premier event in the Irish Environmental, Waste Management and Energy sectors, attracting entries, support and sponsorship from all the leading players across the industry.

CAPTION: BBC journalist Noel Thompson; University of Ulster Energy Officer, James Waide; Richard O’Lone, Director, ROL Testing Ltd and Socomec UPS; Adrian Davis, University of Ulster Sustainability Manager and Golda Burrows, General Manager Sustainable Ireland.

onstruction company Sisk has pulled out of a number of road-building projects in Poland at a cost of between €50m and €60m due to what it says are spiraling costs and problems linked to ongoing issues with the Polish Road Authority. In was reported on the Business and Leadership website that Since 2010 the company had been working on three separate road-building projects comprising 92km in total, which were joint ventures with two Polish companies, Budbaum and PBG, both of which collapsed earlier this year. The Polish market comprised around 10pc of Sisk’s overall revenue up to now, and the company had put approximately €90m into its Polish operations. Although one of the road projects was completed, with the other two 70pc and 48pc completed, Sisk said all three road builds had been beset with problems, including radically different ground

Local authorities are gearing up to deliver Hogan’s reforms

ne of the key elements of ‘Putting People First’, the forthcoming Action Programme for Effective Local Government, will be a refocusing and re-invigoration of local authorities’ work in support of enterprise, business and job creation” said Phil Hogan TD, Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government today (14th Sept 2012). “At this critical juncture in our economic history, local government has a vital role to play in supporting economic development. My Action Programme will empower local government in an entirely new way to take ownership and lead development for their local communities,” Minister Hogan commented. Minister Hogan made his remarks when welcoming publication of the County and City Managers’ Association (CCMA’s) report on Local Authority Support to Enterprise and Business – Analysis of Economic Templates. “Local authorities must play a leading role in creating a pro-enterprise

conditions to those set out in the tender, a lack of access to raw materials, as well as bureaucratic issues all adding hugely to the costs of each project. Sisk said it will now spend a month clearing up the sites before pulling out of the country, but said that there would be no Sisk-related job losses as a result and that the 400 people working on the projects would be re-deployed elsewhere. [Some of these workers were employed by Roadbridge, a Limerick company that was working jointly on the projects with Sisk.] The company is now in the process of trying to reclaim the €90m owed to it for the completed road and says it is considering taking legal action in connection with the other two projects, although it also admitted it is “quite probable” that the Polish authorities may also take legal proceedings against Sisk. In 2010, Sisk reported after-tax profits of €8m, with revenue of over €1bn. The impact of the ill-fated Polish projects, somewhere between €50-€60m, is expected to be incorporated into the company’s 2011 accounts, which will be filed in the next few months. The company says it expects to return to profitability in 2012.

supportive environment to generate new jobs and sustain existing ones,” Minister Hogan stated, adding “local authorities are committed to local economic development, and are best placed to meet many of the needs of businesses, in terms of infrastructure, local promotion and other key enabling measures undertaken with partners at local and community level.” The Minister noted that “local authorities have been creative in identifying opportunities to support enterprise”, and highlighted the opportunity presented by this Report. “Today’s CCMA Report is an important tool in identifying and spreading best practice in enterprise and business supports across the country, and is evidence that local government can deliver as part of my forthcoming Action Programme.” “The CCMA Report will also prove valuable in advising Councillors, and the general public they serve, of the opportunities available to their own local authority in supporting enterprise and jobs, as each local authority develops its own strategy to support the Government’s Action Plan for Jobs” Minister Hogan added.

Irish Building Magazine

Legal file

Picking up the Pieces. Incomplete developments and the challenges of boom and bust! Niav O’Higgins, Partner and Head of Construction & Engineering, Arthur Cox From Boom to Bust? New issues to contend with

onstruction is one of the sectors most severely hit by the recession, not only due to the banking crisis and the meltdown in residential property development, but also as a result of the government debt crisis and the consequent mothballing of a number of significant public sector projects, both PPP as well as traditional projects which have not been able to proceed due to lack of funds. As the recession deepened, a number of the larger players in the sector were pushed into receivership or liquidation, notably, Pierse Construction, McNamara Construction, Bowen Construction and McInerney Homes. Others have since fallen by the wayside and both contractors and construction professionals, including architects and engineers, continue to struggle in the current economic environment. Construction remains the sector which has suffered by far the greatest percentage of insolvencies1 in the past 5 years. But are fortunes showing signs of change? In response to the banking crisis, in 2009, the National Asset Management Agency (“NAMA”) was established, with a key aim of managing bank debt by removing non-performing development loans from the Irish banking sector and releasing finance back into the economy. In recent months, there have been discernible signs that there are moves to finish out some partially built developments (in order to realise their value), whether through a NAMA appointed receiver or other insolvency professional appointed under private security arrangements. There are also encouraging signs that funds will be made available for some public sector projects.

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So what are the issues that you need to be aware of when a developer or contractor goes bust? How do the standard form contracts manage this doomsday scenario and what rights or obligations do you have as employer or contractor? And if you are considering entering into a contract for the completion of an abandoned development, what do you need to be aware of in terms of the potential liabilities that you may be assuming? This article provides an overview of some of the key issues that can arise and that you should look out for in these times of crisis. A key lesson that we have all learnt from what occurred in Ireland is if a party to a contract takes on more than they can chew, this can contribute to the project failing, with repercussions for all involved. The first issue to check: what are your entitlements in the event of your contractual counterparty experiencing an insolvency event? Most standard form contracts used in Ireland in both the public and private sectors provide that an event of insolvency will entitle the other party to terminate the contract. Absent this express right, insolvency will not necessarily give rise to a right to terminate, although it is likely to result in the insolvent party falling into material default of one or more of its obligations (for example, nonpayment or non-performance) which default may then trigger an entitlement to terminate. Most contracts then set out the consequences of termination (for insolvency or default). In the event of the employer’s insolvency, this may include providing the contractor with a lien over goods and materials delivered to site pending payment of outstanding monies. In the case of an insolvent contractor, they will generally be required to vacate the site, leaving all plant, goods and materials in situ to be available for completing the works. Such a contractor will have no right to receive further payment until the works have been completed by another contractor and the additional costs of the same assessed and deducted from monies otherwise due. Possession of the site can be a key factor in determining how the insolvency will, in fact, impact the rights and obligations of the parties. In the case of employer insolvency, it is not unusual for the contractor to retain possession of the site, notwithstanding the contractual provisions, pending resolution of payment issues and this can create a real headache for receivers or liquidators. There is also the risk that goods or materials on site or even fixtures attached to the site will be removed, by either the contractor or sub-contractors on account of unpaid monies. Where the contractor has become insolvent, the first challenge for the receiver/liquidator will be ensuring that the contractor vacates the site promptly, and that the site is secured. This is necessary not only to protect the works completed to date and all goods

‘In the case of an insolvent contractor, they will generally be required to vacate the site, leaving all plant, goods and materials in situ to be available for completing the works’

Legal file

and materials that may have been delivered to site, but also for ensuring that the site can be kept safe and not create a danger for third parties, including trespassers, in the vicinity of the site. Disgruntled sub-contractors who may have been stood out of monies for some time often seek to assert retention of title claims, and unless and until the site is secured, they will be able to return to site to remove their goods and materials. A second key aspect to be checked following an insolvency event is the extent to which the performance undertaken by the defaulting party has been otherwise secured. In the case of an insolvent contractor, the employer should consider whether there is a bond which may provide some funds to assist in completing the works. Is there a parent that can be called upon under a guarantee to assist in discharging the contractor’s obligations (although where the subsidiary is in difficulty, this may extend to the entire group)? Are there collateral warranties from parties, including professionals (under a design & build, for example) or specialist sub-contractors in respect of core elements of the works? Are there contracts to which the employer can step into to facilitate the completion of the works? The answer to each of these questions may impact the choices available to a party wishing to find a way to continue with the works.

accept responsibility for the works that it carries out and the entire responsibility for the earlier works will sit with the employer. In the majority of instances, the line setting out the risk allocation will be drawn somewhere between these two extremes. Where the line is drawn, however, may impact the ability to get external funders to invest in a project. Other options which may be available to a receiver / liquidator (whether NAMA appointed or otherwise) may be to procure sample remedial works to fix defects identified in the incomplete works, the extent of which cannot be fully assessed until these are opened up. This allows not only the full extent of damage to be more fully assessed, but also gives greater certainty as to the remedial and completion works which will be required and the costs of the same.

Stepping into the Unknown - Completing incomplete Projects

With the downturn in the economy, the construction sector has had to deal with the fall out of key stakeholders finding themselves in very real financial difficulties, which many have not been able to survive. The tides may now slowly be turning, but there are still significant challenges facing the industry players in the years ahead. Meeting those challenges demands that lessons be learned: employers, contractors and consultants alike have all been reminded of the need, in embarking upon any project and in entering into contracts setting out their respective rights and obligations, to carefully assess the risks associated with their involvement in each particular project. The risks need to identified and considered (including the risks associated with particular counterparties), contractual obligations need to be understood and above all, a sensible approach taken to the optimum allocation of the risks between them. Any party can agree to accept a risk, but if that party is not in a position to meet the challenge should the risk materialise, this can have negative repercussions for all involved in the project. r

There are a number of issues that can face a party stepping in to complete a partially finished building, but at their heart is an understanding of the various risks presented by the incomplete works and the determination of the party willing or able to assume those risks. Clearly, the party taking on the responsibility for completing out a development will need to ensure that all appropriate surveys and investigations are undertaken as to the design and construction of the works which have been completed to date, as well as the consequences of the structure having been left incomplete for an extended period, for example, through the impact of the elements on a structure that is not watertight, or the removal of certain elements of the works under retention of title provisions, and the consequent damage to the works. Almost always, however, there will be a ‘black hole’ of information, namely, elements of the works which cannot be fully assessed and in respect of which there is no party willing to assume responsibility (for example, foundation works, where the contractor and or specialist sub-contractor has become insolvent – a new contractor will not take on the risk of what they cannot see or investigate). Once the state of the incomplete works has been assessed, consideration can be given to the way in which risks associated with those works should be allocated. In some instances, a completion contractor may be willing to take on responsibility for the entirety of the works, where, for example, the key subcontractors involved in the original works are also involved in the completion works and are able to stand over their original works. In other instances, a completion contractor will only

Conclusion

‘There will be a ‘black hole’ of information, namely, elements of the works which cannot be fully assessed and in respect of which there is no party willing to assume responsibility’

1 This term is used here to encompass the various insolvency events, such as examinership, liquidation and receivership.

Niav O’Higgins, Partner and Head of Construction & Engineering, Arthur Cox can be contacted at: Earlsfort Centre Earlsfort Terrace Dublin 2 Ireland t: +353 (0)1 618 0000

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Titanic Belfast

An Icon Emerges An iconic story deserves an iconic setting and the dramatic story of the RMS Titanic is fabulously told within Belfast’s new Titanic Signature Building.

t the time of her construction, RMS Titanic was the engineering wonder of the Edwardian era, the largest moving man-made object ever built. Her interior provided unsurpassed levels of luxury and elegance and – oh, the hubris – at the time of her ill-fated collision, she was on schedule for a record-breaking crossing of the Atlantic. Similarly, the Titanic Signature Building is a superlative structure, of unique form and appearance, which needed ground-breaking construction techniques to achieve its realisation. By serendipitous coincidence, it took three years to construct both the ill-fated ship and the interactive museum that tells her story. The building’s six interior levels occupy a height equivalent to a normally-proportioned 10-storey building. Its exterior walls taper outwards, in places at 25˚ to the vertical, so that each of the building’s four corners echo the 90ft-high prows of Olympic-class liners. Looking at the building in relief, from almost anywhere in Belfast, you appear to be seeing three

ship’s hulls , each hull a reminder of the White Star liners: Titanic, Olympic and Britannic. The reminder is made all the stronger by the glimmering effect created by the 3,000 silver-anodised aluminium plates that adorn the building’s facade, two-thirds of which are of a unique design individually. Combined, these plates create a shimmering effect, reminiscent of burnished steel, of ocean waves and of glittering icebergs. In ‘Titanic Belfast’, over nine galleries visitors are told the history of the world’s most famous vessel from her construction on the banks of the Lagan to her final resting place at the bottom of the Atlantic. The facility’s proprietor is the Titanic Foundation, an independent charitable trust that

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Titanic Belfast aims to educate the world about Belfast’s maritime and industrial heritage and to inspire new generations of Lagansiders to believe ‘anything is possible’ if they can become ‘truly titanic thinkers’. The foundation’s supporters include Belfast City Council, Belfast Harbour Commissioners and the development company Titanic Quarter Ltd, as well as the Northern Ireland Tourist Board and the Department of Trade and Investment, who together have funded the £97m cost of the building. Context The Titanic Signature Building is described as ‘the nucleus’ of the Titanic Signature Project , which is yet to be completed and which involves the development of several key maritime landmarks including: the Titanic and Olympic slipways where the ships were built; the Thompson Dry Dock, where Titanic was fitted out; the ‘Titanic’ Pump House; Harland & Wolff’s former headquarters and drawing offices; SS Nomadic, a tender that serviced RMS Titanic at Cherbourg and the Hamilton Graving Dock. The project in turn sits within the Titanic Quarter, Europe’s largest waterfront regeneration project. Occupying a 75ha (185acre) site in an area known until recently as ‘Queen’s Island’, the regeneration scheme is scheduled to take 20 years to complete at a cost of £7bn and which will eventually provide 7,500 new homes and places of employment to some 20,000 people, many of whom will work in either the Science Park, which already counts Microsoft and GE as tenants, or the Financial Service Centre, which is already partly developed. Phase 1 and 2 of the Titanic Quarter are now more or less complete, and in addition to the Titanic Signature Project, developments completed so far include: The Arc residential complex, a Premier Inn hotel, the Northern Ireland Public Records Office, the Belfast Metropolitan College, the Paint Hall Film Studios (where HBO’s Game of Thrones is currently being filmed), the Northern Ireland Science Park and the first phase of the Financial Services Centre. Already, there are more than 3,000 people employed in the district that previously was a scene of dereliction. The Titanic Quarter is being developed by, eponymously named, Titanic Quarter Ltd, a joint venture between International Investment & Underwriting (IIU), owned by Dermot Desmond, and Harcourt Developments, the company responsible for Citywest, a business park, golf resort and residential district in south County Dublin. Under the development master plan devised by American architect Eric Kuhne, the Titanic Quarter is made up of a series of ‘intimate districts’ none of which will be more than 250m from a garden/park area or a waterfront boulevard. Most newsworthy for his work on the Burj Mubarak al Kabir skyscraper in Kuwait, which will be the world’s tallest building when completed in 2016, Kuhne is also the concept architect for the Titanic Signature Building, which he claims ‘will transform Queen’s Island into a dynamic leisure destination of international significance’. He said: “Historic precedents have driven the design process, the final form reflecting the industrial legacy of Harland & Wolf and the wider impact of shipbuilding and the sea on Belfast’s development. The prow of the building’s glasswalled atrium plots a course down the centre of the listed Titanic and Olympic slipways towards the lapping waters of the River Lagan. The project’s close proximity to the very site where these two famous leviathans were forged lends it unparalleled levels of authenticity and immediacy that will help make its contents the definitive telling of those liners’ stories. “The building’s form conjures up a mass of maritime metaphors: its four projecting segments are instantly evocative of ships prows ploughing their way through the North Atlantic swell. Almost the entire facade will be clad in faceted, three-dimensional plates in a pattern recalling of the construction methods of the great ocean liners. Developed with the help of specialist facade contractor Metallbau Früh and manufactured by Spanwall, the 3,000 anodised aluminium plates are arranged into a complex asymmetrical design, fracturing the reflected light into a series of abstracted waves and breakers. “A powerful engine of regeneration, the project combines valuable amenities and rich experiences to fulfill the needs and expectations of guests and residents alike. The careful balance of cultural and

commercial functions has produced a financially sustainable centre capable of raising income directly through tourism and corporate hospitality. With its cantilevered floor plates expanding outwards from a modest footprint, the project delivers these multiple attractions without encroaching upon the historic remnants of the shipyards that are being preserved wherever possible. Most tangible of these are the Slipway Gardens where the outlines of the Olympic and Titanic will be traced into the paving to allow visitors to walk the length of their decks once more. “Internally, the project provides over 12,000 sqm of floor space across 5 levels whose combined height is equivalent to a 10-storey

building. These generous ceiling heights allow for suitably largescale exhibits, the lower levels being controlled environments in which to create atmospheric installations evocative of heavy industry or the depths of a ship’s hull. Infused with an inherent sense of place, the Titanic Signature Building presents a constant reminder of Belfast’s progressive engineering prowess, its graphic silhouette will come to symbolise Belfast’s metamorphosis from 19th century engineering powerhouse to 21st century metropolis.” The Build Belfast-based TODD Architects, who also have offices in London and Dublin, were lead consultants and project architects on the titanic signature building, which the practice’s MD Paul Crowe described as ‘one of the most ambitious and challenging construction programmes in the UK and Ireland’. The developers

The building’s form conjures up a mass of maritime metaphors: its four projecting segments are instantly evocative of ships prows ploughing their way through the North Atlantic swell. Almost the entire facade will be clad in faceted, three-dimensional plates in a pattern recalling of the construction methods of the great ocean liners.

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Titanic Belfast

were set a very tight deadline because of the desire to have the project completed, at the Titanic Belfast exhibition open to the public, in time for the centenary of the ship’s sinking on April 16th. The lead contractor on the project was Harcourt Construction and its commercial manager Martin Conway said work preparing the site began before final contracts were signed, such was the need to make timely progress! Crowe said: “Titanic Belfast has a complicated geometry, providing a challenging build programme which required ground–breaking construction techniques. The resolution of the geometries involved required the use of sophisticated 3D–modelling, completed by Todds in–house, in a process of ‘virtual prototyping’, which we developed specifically for the project. “Our roles in Titanic Belfast were wide ranging, from chairing design team meetings liaising with independent technical advisor teams to co–ordinating specialist lighting designers, fire engineers and acousticians. The project required some 900 individual production information drawings from Todd Architects, excluding sketches, some of which were issued with more than 30 revisions. Todd Architects invested almost four years of work into this truly global project, delivering a building that has changed Belfast’s skyline and will help transform international perceptions of the city itself. Developing a building that reflected the ingenuity, ambition and scale of Titanic has been an immense professional challenge – one we are delighted to have met.” Conway points out that the challenges involved were numerous. For example, to form the basement area, which measures more than 1 hectare, more than 80,000m3 of soil had to be excavated, involving 10,000 truckloads of material being removed from the site and working at 8m below sea level. The material being removed is known as ‘Belfast sleech’ and is a mixture of sand, gravel and boulder clay that is notoriously difficult to work with. Because of the ground conditions, and the size of the building, more than 1,000 secant piles were used to cover a 500m perimeter; piles 600mm in diameter were buried to a depth of 18m and restrained by ground anchors. Additionally, more than 1,000 load-bearing piles, 600mm diameter buried to a depth of 23m, were used. “The basement concrete slab was 1.1m deep and used over 2,500 tons of reinforcement steel,” said Conway. “The first concrete pour covered almost 0.5-ha to a volume of 4,200m3, which was the largest ever concrete pour on the island of Ireland. It required eight concrete pumps and involved more than 700 concrete truck deliveries, with a truck load arriving every two minutes for 24 hours, requiring eight concrete pumps. We used 10,000m3 of lowcarbon concrete, which amounts to a CO2 saving of 1,296 tonnes, equivalent to taking 416 cars off the road for a year. There were

some additional headaches with this though, because low-carbon concrete cures more slowly than ordinary concrete, we had to take special steps to protect it during the curing process, which was taking place in the middle of winter. “After that it was on to the steel erection and that was more complicated than normal, because of the form of the building. There are very few right angles in the framework. Everything had to be put together very precisely with very little toleration for error.” Conway says that Harcourt Construction is delighted to have delivered the project on time and on budget with very few reportable accidents. Given the unusual design features of the building and the number of designers involved in the project, there was a potential for a higher risk of accident in the project, so Newtownards based Hasco Europe was appointed as CDM co-ordinators early in the design process. Hasco was founded in 1995 in the wake of the Construction (Design & Management) Regulations being enacted in the UK, which are equivalent to the Republic’s Safety, Health & Welfare at Work Regulations. Company director Paul Cheyne said: “There were numerous design workshops and hazop [hazard and operability] studies that addressed the safety aspects within buildability, future maintenance and use. From the outset, a Master Hazard Register was maintained to detail all envisaged hazards and risks in one central document and the format and content of the Health & Safety File and Building Manual was established early on. We lodged all statutory notifications to the HSENI, gathered pre-construction information for the designers and presented a pre-construction information document for the principal contractor. Once on site we worked with the principal contractor throughout the project and when health or safety issues arose we attended site to assist or give guidance. “ Looking back at the construction process, Conway said: “We are especially pleased to have been awarded a Considerate Constructors Gold Award, which recognised the efforts we put into good neighbourliness, cleanliness, environmental care and staff welfare. We really tried to engage with the local community, we tried to create apprenticeships targeted at people who had been long-term unemployed and where possible we used local contractors. “It makes sense to employ someone like local, like Spanwall for the facade, because it makes repairs and maintenance easier to manage. We were delighted to have local companies like Specialist Joinery Group, Marcon Fit-Out, Harvey Group and Joseph Hughes Painting.” Specialist Joinery had worked with clients across the world and is considered one of the leading manufacturers of bespoke furniture in Ireland and the UK. The company employs 70 people in Northern Ireland. MD Seán O’Hagan described it as a privilege to work on the Titanic Belfast project. “The first internal feature that greets visitors is the Ticketing Desk, standing over 20m long, 7.5m wide and 3m, it’s a giant structure that took nearly 2,000 man hours to fabricate and construct.” Elsewhere, Specialist Joinery did the full fit out of the banqueting suites, including bars and restroom facilities, and the feature wall panelling in the function room and VIP areas. O’Hagan said: “The scale of our involvement

We are especially pleased to have been awarded a Considerate Constructors Gold Award, which recognised the efforts we put into good neighbourliness, cleanliness, environmental care and staff welfare.

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Did you like our Titanic Belfast feature? If so we would like to hear from you! To discuss having your company or project featured in one of our forthcoming issues. Please contact: colinwalsh@irishbuildingmagazine.ie We would be delighted to chat about your marketing plans and how Irish Building Magazine can be part of your team. T. 01 4429264 M. 087 9838946

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Titanic Belfast in the project allowed us to provide training opportunities for local apprentices, meaning the project will leave a lasting social legacy.” A second joinery company, Marcon Fit-Out, was responsible for the exhibition structures and displays used throughout the nine Titanic Belfast galleries, as well as the fit out of The Bistro, The Galley Cafe and The Titanic Store within the building. In addition to manufacture and installation, Marcon was involved in design development of the building’s interior. Based in Antrim with offices in Dublin and London, the company employs 26 people and is proud of its ability to combine expert craftsmanship with state-of-the-art CNC machining. Recent investment in its manufacturing capability means the company can produce highgloss paint and lacquer finishes in-house and some of this can be seen on its work at Titanic Belfast. The impact Spanwall’s contribution made to the building’s exterior has been mentioned earlier. Less spectacular, but with a marked influence on the Titanic Belfast experience is the company’s work on the interior where custom-rusted Cor-Ten steel panels were used for walls and ceilings, with the undulating system of steel panels having a patina in keeping with the site’s ship-building heritage. Spanwall’s RF50 Rainscreen concealed-fix products have been used on used on landmark buildings across the UK and Ireland, but perhaps nowhere do its panels have such a high visual impact as on the Titanic Signature Building. The myriad of geometricallycomplex panels needed posed a huge technical challenge, said Spanwall MD Keith Toner. “We worked closely with the project architects TODD at the early concept design stage and were able to simplify the panel design and layout to create 10 standard geometrical shaped J57S anodised aluminium panels and one, very special one-off, panel for all the elevations. We were also able to incorporate our own RF50 Rainscreen carrier system into the design for the installation. We achieved the original concept and vision for the irregular panel façade while keeping the costs for the geometrically complex shapes and their installation within the project budget.”

One reason why the project was delivered on programme and to budget is that the Sweett Group was project, cost and programme managers, assisting Harcourt Construction in pre-contract negotiations and providing project management, cost planning and programming services ‘at risk’ before funding had been fully agreed and a procurement contract signed. “Our experience of large value projects, and particularly our significant museum and exhibition works, were critical in advising the contractor in the successful delivery on time and on budget,” says Sweett’s Director of Cost Consultancy Geoff Warke. “Our role was to support Harcourt Construction, in all aspects of the design, procurement and construction delivery. This involved the management and co-ordination of the project and the creative exhibition teams, the construction programme, project reporting and cost management, including managing consultant appointments, tender documents, tender analysis and reporting. We also acted as project manager on subcontractor agreements and we closely managed a number of critical work streams including exhibition delivery, BREEAM and disability design compliance.” Success All parties involved in the Titanic Signature Building and Project are delighted with its high level of success. The building is proving to be a destination attraction from tourists from around the world. Conway is delighted to report that cruise liners are now stopping off in Belfast to give their passengers the opportunity to visit the museum. To break even, Titanic Belfast needs 360,000 visitors a year – although the annual target is 450,000 visits. Earlier this year, Northern Ireland Enterprise Minister Arlene Foster reported that the building had hosted 200,000 visitors in its first two months. She said: “It is a visitor experience of international quality and one of the most exciting and dramatic tourism projects to open in 2012 anywhere in the world.” It is also a fitting legacy to those who built RMS Titanic and to those who lost their lives on that fateful maiden voyage a hundred years ago, as well as an inspiration to everyone who visits it today. r

Earlier this year, Northern Ireland Enterprise Minister Arlene Foster reported that the building had hosted 200,000 visitors in its first two months. She said: “It is a visitor experience of international quality and one of the most exciting and dramatic tourism projects to open in 2012 anywhere in the world.”

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The Green Grocers

Tesco Ireland is becoming a greener grocer as more and more of its stores incorporate more and more energy-saving elements. Indeed, Tesco’s new Cabra store in Dublin can boast of being Ireland’s first zero-carbon supermarket. CIAN MOLLOY reports.

s part of its global strategy, supermarket retailer Tesco is actively working on measures to ‘create a revolution in green consumption’ and to ‘tackle climate change’. Rated the third largest retailer in the world with operations in 14 countries, the Tesco Group has set itself the target of becoming a zero-carbon business by 2050. Notably, Tesco Ireland is playing a leading role in pioneering environmentally-friendly initiatives. Four years ago in Tramore, Co Waterford, Tesco Ireland opened the company’s first eco-store, designed and built as the world’s first PassivHaus accredited supermarket, it uses 45% less energy than a supermarket of a similar size and set a new benchmark for green technology and construction in retail. Now the company has raised the bar on that benchmark by opening Ireland’s first ‘zero-carbon supermarket’ on a 3.4 acre site in Cabra in Dublin. The outlet has a gross floor area of 5,502m2 and is the fifth zero-carbon supermarket within the worldwide Tesco organisation. A supermarket of similar size built in 2006 would produce 2.15m Kg of CO2 each year, but Tesco Cabra produces 1.2m Kg, thanks to the energy efficiency measures put in place, more than 44% less than would be produced six years ago. The energy efficiency measures include: Thirteen roof-lights, plus sun-pipes, provide the shop-floor and staff areas with daylight illumination, allowing an 18% reduction in electrical lighting. Energy-efficient lighting that automatically dims or

brightens as natural daylight increases or decreases Motion-sensitive lighting ensures lights are automatically switched off in areas that are not occupied. DALI (digital addressable lighting interface controls) controls to give greater control over lighting use. The store is fitted with a high-performing building envelope, giving air-tightness better than 3m3/ (h.m2)@50Pa. Mixed-mode ventilation, where eight windcatchers allow for mechanical ventilation to be switched off. Cold-air retrieval (CAR) in refrigerated aisles recycles cold air for use in cooling warm areas in other parts of the store. CO2 Refrigeration.

Rainwater harvesting reduces the amount of mains water used for toilet flushing. A building energy management system and more than 50 energy submeters monitoring all items/areas of the store, including lighting, refrigeration, HVAC, small power and export to the National Grid to optimise energy consumption efficiency. The Tesco Cabra store is a testament to Irish innovation in sustainable commercial development with companies such as Joe Doyle Architects (JDA), Dun Laoghaire; Precision construction Limited (PCL), Dublin; DCS Group, Tralee; JV Tierney, Dublin; F4energy CSM Ltd, Limerick; Walsin Ltd, Lisburn; Sipfit Ltd, Warrenpoint and Green BioFuels

17 Irish Building Magazine

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Tesco

Ireland (GBI), New Ross to name just a few who all contributed to the success of the project. CCHP Carbon Credits Of course, the store’s operations still produce some CO2, but these carbon emissions are offset by carbon credits generated onsite by the store’s 350kWe biodiesel CCHP (combined chilling, heating and power) unit , built, installed and maintained by F4energy when it exports electricity to the national grid. The CCHP’s electrical efficiency is nearly 40%, which is very efficient indeed. Depending on the ambient temperature, waste heat for unit’s steam turbine is used to provide heating for the store’s air handling units when the weather is cold or the waste heat is used to drive the CCCHP’s absorption chiller providing cooling for the sales-floor AHUs when the weather is warm. The amount of electricity produced by the CCHP far exceeds the store’s needs, allowing Tesco to export the surplus on to the National Grid. Not only does this exported electricity gain Tesco revenue from energy saves, the company also accrues carbon credits for displacing electricity that would otherwise be generated from burning fossil fuels, such as natural gas and bunker oil. Because Tesco Cabra’s net CO2 emissions from electricity, gas and refrigerant use are zero or lower, it qualifies as a zero-carbon building. In fact, the amount of electricity generated by the Cabra CCHP from renewable biodiesel is such that the units output are used to offset the carbon emissions of other Tesco stores. Tesco Ireland has been using CHP (combined heating and power) units since 2007, when it installed a natural gas powered unit at the Nutgrove Shopping Centre, which on its own is responsible for a 656 tonne saving in carbon emissions. Tesco has installed gas-powered CHPs/CCHPs at nine other locations across Ireland, but the Cabra unit is the first to be powered by biodiesel. It is an example of how Cabra is being used by Tesco to test a number of energy efficiency technologies, says Tesco Ireland’s Energy and Carbon Manager John Walsh, who also points to the pioneering use of LED lighting at the store. He said: “Will be using biodiesel CHPs at other locations? I don’t know – yes there is a saving on carbon emissions, but at the moment it’s a much more expensive way to generate electricity than natural gas!” The biodiesel used is supplied by Green BioFuels Ireland (GBI) and is made from recycled vegetable oil and tallow. GBI operations manager Joe O’Byrne said: “Our primary market is supplying biodiesel for transport and that is likely to remain the case – the national target is that by 2020 biofuels will comprise

10% of all road fuels and at the moment we are only at 4.16%. Our contract with Tesco is our first heating contract and is a very welcome development that could be a major stepping stone into a valuable secondary market.” Design The Cabra store, built on stilts over an at grade car park and a basement-level car park, was designed by Dun Laoghaire based Joseph Doyle Architects, a 12-person practice that has had a relationship with Tesco Ireland for the past 15-years. Doyle says that even before you start examining the energyefficiency measures within the new building, the Cabra store provides an indication as to how Tesco Ireland’s supermarket design has evolved over the decade and a half. He pointed out that this was a brownfield site, where for reasons of space a basement car park needed to be excavated to sit beneath the building and where construction is on quite a tight footprint surrounded by existing ‘live’ buildings. Cabra is like quite a few neighbourhoods in Dublin where there is an existing demand for a new supermarket but there is limited potential site availability and certainly no greenfield site to locate one. The store is to the rear of the Maple Centre, which was a development that wasn’t doing as well as it should have been, but it has now been boosted by the presence of Tesco. The immediate neighbourhood includes a library and social welfare office. It really is a holistic development that fits in with the surrounding community.” Consultant engineers on the project were JV Tierney with the main contractor being Precision Construction, two firms that have worked repeatedly with Tesco Ireland in the past. JV Tierney Associate Director Andrew Clifford said that while the practice acted as main consultants on mechanical, electrical, sprinkler and environmental design, it also used the specialist skills of its sustainable-design subsidiary JVTE to deploy the company’s most innovative engineering designs yet for this zero-carbon project. “We used thermal modelling software to assess the stores predicted performance. We used this information to set out the challenge to be met in order to ensure the store achieved zerocarbon status. JV Tierney worked with the Design Team and with Tesco’s Carbon/Environmental Teams to deliver on this challenge. “The major difference between a typical Tesco Store and the Zero Carbon Store in Cabra is the ability of the building to operate as a

The

amount

electricity produced by the CCHP far exceeds the store’s needs,

allowing

Tesco to export the surplus on to the National Grid. Not only does this exported electricity gain Tesco revenue from energy saves, the company also accrues

carbon

credits for displacing electricity would

that

otherwise

be generated from burning fossil fuels, such as natural gas and

bunker

oil.

Irish Building Magazine

Walsh Mechanical Engineering are proud to have worked with Precision Construction Ltd on the Tesco Cabra project and to have contributed to its success as the first Zero Carbon store to be opened by Tesco in Ireland. Walsh Mechanical Engineering were fully responsible for the installation of the Mechanical HVAC System including BMS and Fire Safety Devices. All plant installed was of the highest energy ratings to meet not just current European standards for energy efficiency but future standards also – this contributed to the zero carbon footprint of the store.

Walsh Mechanical Engineering has provided Mechanical Building Services to the Construction Industry for over 25 years for clients in the following sectors: Retail, Industrial, Pharmaceutical, Petrochem, Health, Education, Prisons, Offices, Hotels and Leisure Centres. Our services include:

Walsh Mechanical Engineering took the lead role in co-ordination of all the building services on the build. The co-ordination exercise not only included drawings but also the linking together of information to streamline a successful operation and hand over of the building services and CHP plant to the client. Our expertise in the production of detailed drawings led to on-site efficiency and precise installation of equipment and fittings which resulted in installations being completed ahead of programme.

Design & Build

Prefabrication

Sustainable Energy Solutions

Water Services

Plant/Boiler Room Installations

Heating Installations

Ventilation & Air-Conditioning

Fire Protection

Walsh Mechanical Engineering would like to thank Tesco Ireland, the design team on the project and Precision Construction Ltd for the opportunity to be part of the first Tesco Zero Carbon Store in Ireland.

Dust & Fume Extract Systems

Sprinkler Systems

Head Office: Kilmaine Road Ballinrobe Co. Mayo T: 094 9541831 F: 094 9542654 info@wme.ie www.wme.ie

Dublin Office: 6 Canal Walk Park West Business Park Dublin 12 T: 01 6454140 F: 01 6205049

Building Management Systems

Clean Rooms

Specialist Hospital Installations

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Commissioning, Certification, Validation

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Structural Steel, Cladding and Flat Roof Systems “Proud to have worked on Tesco Cabra and many of their other stores throughout Ireland” Paddy Wall & Sons was established in 1986 with the ambition to be one of the leading steelwork contractors in Ireland and the UK. From offices in Wexford our company has the capacity to produce up to 400 tones of structural steel per week and is a member of the BCSA. Our 170,000 Sqft automated facility has been developed to ensure the steel fabrication process runs as efficiently and effectively as possible. The plant is equipped with Peddinghaus machinery, the most high tech machinery in the steel fabrication business, and operates an ISO 9001 quality management system. We have a dedicated design and detailing team operating Strucad and XSteel technology. The design team work in partnership with our clients and enable us to offer a complete range of structural steel and engineering solutions products to meet customer’s exact requirements. Paddy Wall & Sons is committed to; Customer Service, Quality Assurance & Health & Safety.

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Paddy Wall & Sons. Raheen, New Ross, Co. Wexford. T: 051 420515 F: 051 420516 E: info@wallsteel.ie www.wallsteel.ie

Tesco

naturally ventilated building when conditions allow. From the computer simulations modelled, we were able to demonstrate that this contributed to a significant reduction in the energy demand. Another major impact on a store’s energy consumption is the lighting. In Cabra, there are a number of large roof-lights installed evenly across the sales floor allowing natural daylight to aid lighting on the sales floors. The same principle was applied in the staff areas. The use of natural lights allows us to dim the buildings lighting throughout the day to achieve Tesco’s required lighting levels. The effect of this natural light gives a reduction of about 18% on the lighting load.” The two-level car park under the building is lit using DCS Group LED lighting, which has reduced the energy consumption of the car park lighting by 50% and the lamp life has increased by six times compared to a standard fluorescent lamp. To further reduce the energy usage, the lighting is being separated into zones which are controlled via a time clock and PIR sensors. Additionally LED fittings were installed for the fridges and freezers on the shop floor further reducing the electrical consumption throughout the day. Construction Building work was to a fairly tight schedule: enabling works starting in January 2011; basement excavation and construction starting a month later; construction of the store itself, on stilts above the basement, started in May; the building was water-tight in September and was handed over to Tesco in October, with the store opening on November 21st. The enabling works included demolishing an existing building that had been occupied by eircom and this work was complicated by the fact that it required the careful removal and disposal of asbestos. The fabric of the demolished building was crushed, for re-use off site, and the majority of the material excavated for the basement, 45,000m3, was also recycled. “During excavation there were 5,000 loads removed over 47 days, which equates to 212 truck movements on site per day or a truck every 3.1 minutes,” said Pat O’Sullivan, MD of Precision Construction (PCL). “This was a logistical challenge, complicated by the restricted working hours on site set by the local authority – Monday to Friday 8am-7pm and Saturday 8am-2pm. We also had to ensure that the existing services network – mains water, foul water, surface water, gas, electricity, public lighting, telephone, broadband, etc, were maintained for our neighbours in the Maple Centre and the Dunard Housing Estate. “PCL prides itself on a ‘can do’ ethos and we put a lot of effort into liaising with residents’ associations, local businesses and community groups to ensure good relationships were maintained. Truck movements were managed to avoid peak rush hour traffic

and ongoing road sweeping and additional dust suppression was provided for neighbours. We also liaised with Dunard Football Club regarding development of their pitch and new kits for the club, liaised with Dunard Boxing Club regarding their clubhouse and new equipment and we sponsored a number of other community projects. “This was a reduced carbon build and every single component, every truck movement, every decision was put through a ‘green filter’ where we set measurable and challenging targets on monetary and carbon costs, so that truck movements involved back loads where possible and 93% of demolition waste was recycled. We provided premium quality staff facilities and invested in the training of our people to ensure complete buy-in and that the labour force was committed to building greener.” Precision Construction worked in partnership with Northern Ireland firm Sipfit to produce a customer-made insulated cassette timber panel – a SIP – that proved very successful in meeting U-values, air-tightness levels and environmental and architectural requirements. O’Sullivan said: “The building was built to an air-tightness level to achieve three cubic meters per hour at 50 Pascals or less, we actually achieved an average of 0.65 cubic meters per hour at 50Pa for the entire building.” Explaining the system used, Sipfit’s owner Eamonn Connolly said: “Structurally insulated panels (SIPs) are a composite panel that provide superior insulation and air tightness with a light weight structural frame. Sips are structural and load bearing. The panels are bonded in a press and form a beam and we provide structural calculations certifying all our buildings. “Delivering a zero-carbon store is not ‘run-of-the-mill’ – it requires an air tightness 10% better than PassivHaus and is based upon a fabric first methodology whereby the SIPs superior thermal performance, reduced thermal bridging and market leading air tightness are key. “Developed in the United States, SIPs are a construction method that is becoming increasingly prevalent in Europe with the ongoing lowcarbon journey and the rising fuel prices. The construction industry is conservative by nature, but we believe it is about to go through

During excavation there were 5,000 loads removed over 47 days, which equates to 212 truck movements on site per day or a truck every 3.1 minutes.

Irish Building Magazine

Irelandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s only commercial scale biodiesel plant producing 34,500,000m litres of biodiesel per year to EU standard E14214. Using only waste materials as feedstock, our biodiesel meets all EU environmental, quality and sustainability requirements up to 2020. ISCC certified: EU-ISCC-CERT-DE-119-353315121401 Sustainable Biodiesel according to ISCC Email: office@gbi.ie Web: www.gbi.ie Green Biofuels Ireland Ltd. Tel. +353 (0)51 447628. Marshmeadows, New Ross, Co. Wexford.

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Tesco transformational change arising from the low-carbon and lowenergy build agendas. Currently, we employ 13 people and our business is primarily UK based, but we are already starting work on Tesco Newbridge as part of its scheduled 10-year ‘refresh’ and we are in ongoing discussions re other Tesco projects in the UK.” Another company involved in the Cabra project and looking to Tesco for repeat business is Walsin, a Lisburn-based architectural glazing company that has also worked regularly with Precision Construction. Founded in 1995, Walsin is an approved fabricator for Schuco and Metal Technology and has a growing portfolio of projects in the UK ‘from London to Aberdeen’, says Design Manager Stephen Moore. “Happily, we are much busier than we were two years ago and are getting a lot of repeat business. The great thing about working with Tesco is that they are a supply-orientated company – they know what they want and they specify it exactly. They’re very easy for us to work with. On the Cabra project, one of the key factors was just-in-time delivery, so that the glazing installation and the timber-panel installation were coordinated perfectly.” Lighting and Energy Management The LED lighting used on freezers and in the car park at Tesco Cabra was supplied and installed by DCS Group and its manufacturing sister company Frontline LED. Based in Tralee and founded by Donal Sugrue, DCS Group started by doing electrical contracting work with Tesco and branched out to provide energy and workplace management services to the commercial, education, industrial, retail and healthcare sectors. Sugrue then founded Frontline LED to design, manufacture and install energyefficient LED lighting. Notably, at Tesco Cabra, all three elements of its services were/are used: energy management, workplace management, and LED lighting. DCS enjoys an extremely close relationship with Precision Construction, so much so that they recently co-sponsored a schools energy-efficiency competition. While what has been achieved by DCS at Cabra is notable, what it has achieved at Tesco Stillorgan is spectacular, as that store is believed to be the first

supermarket in the world to be fully illuminated by LED lighting. Such is the stir caused by Stillorgan among retailers that many of them are crossing the Irish Sea from the UK to see what has been achieved. More than 400 LED luminaires have been deployed across the shop floor, with accent lighting covering the bakery, deli, refrigerated storage and offline areas. Overall lighting levels within the store have increased by 200% while the overall lighting load, and energy consumption, has dropped by 20%. Notably, the LED lighting units come with built-in emergency packs, so they can perform as their own back-up safety lighting in the event of power failure. Additionally, at the lighting unit the current is converted from AC to DC to allow the LED lighting to work, so that the units can be easily installed onto existing legacy power systems. DCS and Frontline have also overcome the one drawback that has prevented LED lighting from being adopted more widely, a ‘cold’ colour. By using specialist coatings, the LED lighting in Stillorgan and Cabra has a warmth similar to that found with incandescent lighting – indeed

the particular tone used is bespoke and is known as ‘Tesco white’. For another job, at Cork IT, DCS and Frontline provided LED lighting with an even colder colour tone to give a more clinical ambience!

Moving Forward There are more than 100 separate energy-saving measures in use at the Cabra store, says Walsh. “Not all of these measures will be used in all future Tesco stores. Cabra is a test-bed to see what really works. Tesco’s approach to climate change has three parts. “We will lead by example and will keep cutting our own emissions, working on energy-efficiency and using new technology to produce renewable energy at our stores. We are committed to becoming a genuinely zero-carbon business by 2050. “We will work even more closely with our suppliers to reduce emissions embedded in the products that we sell. “And we want to empower customers and help them lead low-carbon lives by making green products more affordable, more available and more attractive. Working with others, we will also identify clear ways in which our customers can reduce their personal and domestic carbon footprints.” r

23 Irish Building Magazine

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Energia

A New Energy

Leading independent energy supplier Energia is continuing to strengthen its renewable energy portfolio, with its newest windfarm in the Republic, Caherdowney on the Cork/ Kerry border, coming on-stream in April this year. CIAN MOLLOY reports.

nergia, which is part of the Viridian Group, is perhaps best known in Ireland for its two combined-cycle gas turbines (CCGT) power plants at Huntstown in North Dublin, where the combined output of 747MW provides up to 20 per cent of the total electricity fed into the national transmission grid system. The company has also developed a strong reputation as a supplier of renewable energy, with its investment of more than €500m in Huntstown more than matched by its €550m plus investment in wind energy. Indeed, at this stage Energia currently has a 25 percent market share of the Irish wind-generation sector. The latest of its wind assets is the €14m Caherdowney Windfarm , situated near Millstreet in Co. Cork, which comprises four 2.3MW Enercon E70 turbines giving a combined maximum export capacity of 9.2MW. The site was chosen due to its high average wind speeds, which are ‘Class 1’ rated. At full generating capacity, the windfarm is capable of powering around 6,100 homes or allowing for the varying wind conditions the wind farm can fully power an average of 1,900 homes every year. The construction of Caherdowney illustrates the challenges of building this type of renewable infrastructure – not just the physical aspect, but the bureaucratic. Planning approval for the Caherdowney project was initially approved in 2003 but was held up due to lengthy delays in obtaining a connection to the electricity grid. Once such difficulties had been overcome and final planning permission was granted, site clearance work began in June 2011 and the windfarm was energised less than a year later in April this year. What is particularly notable about windfarm construction is that engineers must deal with climactic and topographical conditions that few others in the building industry have to contend with. “There were days when the wind was too strong for the cranes to be used,” said Energia projects director Brian Linton. “Working at 1,000ft lack of visibility because of fog or low-cloud could be a real issue. You would go up one day and it would be calm, but the cranes were still not in use and you would ask ‘Why?’ and the crane operator would just point upwards and you would see that the cloud cover had fallen to just below the top of the crane or the towers and work was impossible! It could be very frustrating, but

the project was completed to schedule, safely, with no lost time incidents.” To complete the project Energia worked in cooperation with ESB Networks who had to complete a major upgrade of the Garrow Subtation with a new 20MVA 110/20kV grid transformer and 110kV HIS switchgear. “This was the first installation of this type of switchgear for a distribution wind-farm connection,” said Gearóid Quinn, ESB Networks’ Renewables Stakeholder Manager . “Particular attention had to be paid that the design fully catered for future requirements as 110kV HIS equipment is not easily adapted once installed on site.” Progress was good said Noel Cowhey, ESB Networks’ Renewables Project Coordinator: “We lost two days because of the very heavy snow last December, but we had contingencies in place with fourwheel drive vehicles available to take the crews to and from the worksite, which we had covered with a temporary structure, a protective tent, a bit like a marquee, so we weren’t working outdoors. The temporary structure also created a cleaner working environment, which also helped us make good progress.” The topographical challenge of working on a mountainside is that the peat bog cover can be very fragile. “We have recently completed another project with peat depths of up to 9m.” Linton said: “If proper design, construction, monitoring and maintenance procedures are followed by the developer, consultants and the construction contractors, any impact to the mountain and peat environment can be minimised. Over the years, the Energia Renewables construction team, working alongside our civil consultant, Jennings O’Donovan and Partners, have built up quite an expertise in working in these environments.” Energia project manager Brendan McCarr added: “At Caherdowney peat depths were around 3m in places, one particular challenge was to install 1,100m of 20kV underground cable, from the site through steep Coillte forest, to link the windfarm with Garrow substation. The cable trenches were excavated down to

Brendan McGarr Project Manager handing the keys of Caherdowney Windfarm over to Peter Baillie Managing Director of Energia Renewables.

25 Irish Building Magazine

Energia Mondays to be ready to receive the next delivery the firm ground and filled with stone to prevent settlement following Tuesday.” and movement that could otherwise damage the high Final commissioning of the grid transformer and the voltage electricity cable. HIS switchgear in the Garrow substation extension “The civil engineering works were carried out by was carried out, between March 12th and April Lagan Construction, who also prepared the Garrow 16th, during the agreed outage with EirGrid. Once substation site for the installation of the additional these pieces of equipment and their supporting transformer and switchgear by ESB Networks. It was control equipment were commissioned, the newlyquite a tight squeeze at the substation with 15 people constructed 20kV Caherdowney cables were from Lagan and 40 people from ESB.” connected into Garrow substation. Quinn says the increase in capacity at Garrow, With the tremendous efforts of both ESB Networks required for Caherdowney and another new windfarm and Energia Renewables’s contractors, the nearby, was made possible through the innovative Caherdowney 20kV control building was energised use of hybrid insulated switchgear (HIS), which on April 16th and allowed to ‘soak’ before the two has been developed by Siemens and is SF6 Gas circuits to the turbines could be energised on April Insulated Switchgear (GIS) suitable for outdoor use 17th. Once the turbines were energised Enercon and requires a fraction of the space of ‘traditional’ started to commission the turbines with the first air-insulated switchgear. export of power to the grid from turbine T1 on The Enercon turbines were manufactured in Germany Monday April 23rd. Takeover of the wind turbine and transported to the port of Foynes in Enercon’s generators by Energia Renewables was achieved on purpose-built E-Ship 1, a RoLo cargo ship that is May 31st. remarkable in its use of four large, 27m tall, rotorsails Energia Renewables Managing Director Peter that rise from its deck and that are rotated via a Baillie said: “We are delighted to be producing mechanical linkage to the ship’s propellors. These sustainable energy in Caherdowney and supplying sails, or Flettner rotors, aid the ship’s propulsion it to businesses around by using the Magnus effect, the perpendicular force that Energia Group is one of the most significant Ireland. This €14m wind farm represents another significant is exerted on a spinning contributors to the achievement of investment in renewable body moving through a fluid Ireland’s renewable targets and one of the capacity by Energia. stream. From Foynes, the turbines largest investors in the renewable sector. “Energia Group is one of the most significant contributors were transported overland to the achievement of Ireland’s renewable targets and by Mar-Train, Ireland’s biggest hauliers of turbine one of the largest investors in the renewable sector. components, with Energia having already readied the “As part of our commitment to the environment, route for these exceptional loads, removing trees and Energia Renewables has already invested €200 diverting overhead lines where necessary. Energia million in developing renewable sources of energy. also improved the minor road and the forest track Our most recent projects are at Corkermore and leading to the windfarm site. Drumlough Hill Wind Farms in County Donegal and Each Enercon E70 turbine has a 64m hub-height and Crighshane and Church Hill in County Tyrone. a 70m blade diameter giving an overall tip height “We want to extend a big thank you to the local of 99m. Towers were delivered in three separate community for the support it has given this project. sections, 20m in length with the heaviest weighing The development of Caherdowney is a very positive 54 tonnes. step forward for renewable energy in Ireland and “In all, it took nine truck movements to deliver all the local support for the project is a key element to their components for each individual wind turbine, with us success. taking delivery of three loads a day over three days “All of our wind farm developments bring significant for each one,” said McCarr. “We had deliveries on benefits to the local economies, including job Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, and erection creation, increased rates for the local authorities and works continuing through the Fridays, Saturdays and improvements to local infrastructure such as roads.” While Energia operates the Caherdowney windfarm, it is now owned jointly by the Irish Infrastructure Fund and Energia, which has a minority stake in the development. The Irish Infrastructure Fund was established by Irish Life Investment Managers and is managed by AMP Capital, who aim to secure and invest up to €1bn for investment in significant Irish infrastructure assets. Looking to the immediate future, Energia are looking to develop a windfarm in east Donegal that will have 40 turbines and an export capacity of 90MW. “There is a balance to be struck between wind power and generation capacity from gas-burning stations like Huntstown,” said McCarr. “One of the problems with wind is what do you do with the electricity produced when, for example at night, there is insufficient demand. Further development of wind generation capacity will be facilitated by the arrival of smart-metering and the new east-west interconnector between Britain and Ireland, plus developments like electrical vehicles where vehicles are charged overnight. Ireland’s renewable energy sector will continue to grow and Energia is delighted to be taking a lead in that.” r

GreenValu

Building a Healthy Lifestyle with Green Valu

Two former construction industry workers have developed plant machinery for the kitchen counter! Life-long friends Ciaran Farrell and John Price worked in roofing and in fibre-optics respectively, before setting up GreenValu, a health-food and nutrition company. CIAN MOLLOY reports

he star product offered by GreenValu is a juicer that you can use at home to extract healthy juice, full-of-flavour, freshness, vitamins, antioxidants, enzymes and other nutrients, from fruit, vegetables and sprouting seeds. Additionally via the website www.greenvalu.ie, the company supplies seed-sprouting jars and systems, seed trays for growing wheatgrass and other leafy greens, and a wide range of organic seed, including alfalfa, broccoli, clover, fenugreek, mung beans, radish, wheatgrass. Farrell added: “A large part of our activity is in education, where we are giving workshops on the benefits of juicing and sprouting.” Farrell and Price both came to the world of juicing and sprouting after each had their own healthscare. Farrell said: “I went to the doctor for a routine health check and found that my cholesterol levels were seriously high” Most medical experts reckon a cholesterol score above 5 means that a patient has a high risk of having a stroke or heart-attack: Farrell had a level of 6.86. “I immediately reduced my meat consumption by about 90% and, on the advice of John, who is a life-long friend, Istarted to incerase my consumption of vegetable and fruit juices,” he said. “Less than 12 months later, when I next had a cholesterol test, my score was down to 3.9. My doctor was amazed at what I had achieved in such a short time. It was all down to the changes I had made in my diet and my increased consumption of fruit, vegetables, wheatgrass and sprouted seeds. “When I told John about my high cholesterol score, he went for a check-up too and learned he had prostate cancer. He used juicing as part of his recovery, which also involved hospital treatment in Germany, and he has made real progress in beating the disease.” Discussing their experiences, the two friends agreed that juicing

could be made easier and more accessible – the machine they were using required 20 minutes of cleaning every time it was used and cost €500. “We looked at developing an alternative and we have designed the GreenValu JP-CF-01 Healthy Fruit and Vegetable Juicer, which you can clean with a 30 second rinse and which costs only €195 from the GreenValu.ie website,” said Farrell. “So far, things are going very well for us. We’re also selling sprouting jars and systems on the website, which we source in the UK, and the supplier of those has expressed an interest in becoming our British distributor. Starting up a new business is always challenging, but Farrell says he is undaunted. “Since I started juicing, I have much more energy. I get a good night’s sleep, get up at 6am and I am ready to go every morning,” he says. “The benefits of juicing and sprouting are something I really believe in and people can see it in my appearance. My complexion, for example, is much better. “Every day, I would have a juice made up of wheatgrass, celery, broccoli sprouts, apricots and a little lemon and ginger. When I give it to someone to try, often they say ‘I can feel that doing me good almost instantly’.” It has long been a perception of the construction industry that many within it had unhealthy lifestyles – indeed, at one stage ‘breakfast-roll man’ was synonymous with ‘building contractor’. But Farrell says: “There are plenty in the construction industry who have healthy lifestyles, guys who like a game of football or a round of golf and who look after their health and what they eat. It’s not unusual for someone to have juice blend and a sandwich with alfalfa sprouts on a building site! We think there is a growing market for GreenValu services and GreenValu products.” For more information about the GreenValu company and their products visit www.greenvalu.ie r

we have designed the GreenValu JP-CF-01 Healthy Fruit and Vegetable Juicer, which you can clean with a 30 second rinse and which costs only €195 from the GreenValu.ie website

27 Irish Building Magazine

Photo: Donal Murphy

Building Education The Capital Programmes Section of the Higher Education Authority (HEA) is responsible for the capital funding allocated to Universities, Institutes of Technology (currently for research programmes only) and a number of other designated colleges. Irish Building Magazine speaks with Dr Ruth Davis, the HEA’s Capital Programmes Manager

Dr Ruth Davis, HEA Capital Programmes Manager.

he higher education property portfolio comprises 28 institutions, 1,023 buildings covering in the region of 2.1 million square metres with an insurance replacement value of circa €8 billion. Roughly 65% of the space is located in the universities, 29% in the institutes of technology and the remainder in the other HEA-funded institutions such as colleges of education. Of the 2.1 million square metres of gross space in the system, about 1.8 million square metres gross relates to core academic and research activities. Over 41% of the space is more than 25 years old, of which 18% is more than 50 years old. In the universities, almost 130,000 square metres of building space is over 100 years old. The Exchequer capital investment enables the construction of new teaching, research and student services buildings, refurbishment and maintenance projects, infrastructure development and property acquisition. In 2012, the HEA will manage Exchequer funding of €65m for general capital project investment in the higher education sector. “The HEA is also currently overseeing the largest investment in research in the state’s history. Cycle 5 of the Programme for Research in Third-Level Institutions (PRTLI) is co-funded under the European Regional Development Fund and is worth €359m in total over its funding period 2011-2016.” The PRTLI Cycle 5 programme comprises €296.1m of Exchequer funding, with €62.6m of matching funds coming from private, nonexchequer, sources. The PRTLI Cycle 5 construction projects

will provide more than 64,000 square metres of research space in new and refurbished buildings on higher education campuses and should create some 2,000 construction jobs. Additionally, research projects should create 379 direct jobs and a significant number of research studentships. The projects have a wide range of supporting partners, including multinational and indigenous enterprises, commercial and developmental state bodies and international affiliates. Construction projects in the higher education sector are generally complex in nature and are managed directly by the relevant higher education institution. The HEA Capital Programmes Section “evaluates capital project proposals from the thirdlevel institutions and make recommendations to the Department of Education and Skills for general capital funding and to the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation for research funding,” says Dr Ruth Davis, the HEA’s Capital Programmes Manager. “While we ensure that projects are being delivered in line with the detailed approval and the agreed devolved control procedures, the ultimate responsibility for each project lies with the third-level institutions as the institutions are the contracting authorities for the construction contracts. “That said, we work very closely with the seven universities, the 14 institutes of technology and the other designated institutions, to ensure that all projects meet all agreed guidelines. We are the statutory planning and policy development body for higher education and research in Ireland. We maintain a continuous review of the demands on higher education and of developments on each campus. One of our principal functions is to assist in the coordination of state investment in higher education and to prepare proposals for such investment. “At present, the main projects currently underway are the UCD Science Centre development, the NUIM Library extension, the University of Limerick’s Graduate Medical School Building and the St Patrick’s College Drumcondra Campus Development.” On its own, the UCD Science Centre development comprises the state’s single largest capital investment in third-level education. In addition to refurbishing 30,600m2 of UCD’s existing science buildings, the €250m project involves the construction of 36,400m2 of new world-class teaching, training and research facilities. Phase 1 of the Science Centre was officially opened last year and phase two is currently underway. The new and refurbished facilities being delivered under Phase 2 comprise

The Higher Education Authority 18,600m2 of dedicated teaching and training accommodation specifically designed to support the undergraduate and taught postgraduate population in the area of science. The current facilities are outdated and the lack of critical equipment reduces the facilities’ effective capacity. The new buildings will be located in the spaces between the existing buildings and thus the “footprint” of the Science Centre will remain relatively unchanged. This development will support a population of 2,540 undergraduate and taught postgraduate students, in addition to providing accommodation for 2,225 researchers. The new €20m extension to the NUIM John Paul II Library commenced construction in late 2010 and is due to be substantially complete for the academic year commencing September 2012. The 6,200m2 extension will increase the library’s total floor area to more than 10,000m2, providing a 216% increase in seating

capacity, 130% increase in book capacity and a 280% increase in computer availability. Additionally, the library will now have different designated study areas, a special collections facility, a post-graduate/researchers room and an exhibition area. In January 2007 the University of Limerick (UL) made a submission to the HEA in response to the request for bids addressing the national recommendations for reform in medical education and for an increase in the number of medical graduates in line with projected health service requirements. Following an international assessment process, the establishment of a Graduate Entry Medical School at UL was approved with a maximum steady state enrolment of 108 EU students. The €16m UL Graduate Entry Medical School Building is a 4,100m2 development that includes a variety of small group teaching spaces, a large lecture theatre, seminar rooms, highly serviced clinical skills rooms, anatomical skills rooms, staff offices and various other academic facilities. The project is due to be complete for the academic year commencing September 2012. The provision of new teaching accommodation and the refurbishment of existing buildings at St. Patrick’s College, Drumcondra, was identified as necessary to address space deficiencies and to adequately support the academic programme delivery to a student population of up to 2,500 students in a campus originally designed to accommodate 800 students. The €50m campus development project will deliver significant new

small and large group teaching spaces including new lecture theatres replacing lecture facilities currently housed in prefab buildings, classrooms and laboratories. The development will also include a new library, new sports facilities, and additional staff office and other necessary ancillary accommodation. The funding of thirdlevel infrastructure is complex involving the synthesis of a wide variety of funding sources often aimed at achieving quite different objectives. Notably, private investment accounted for almost 50% of total capital expenditure over the last number of years. Much of this investment is in the form of philanthropic endowments, but some is in the form of commercial investments. In 2010, half of IDA Ireland’s foreign direct investment wins were in research, development and innovation and were valued at €500m. Government investment in high quality facilities and expertise within the higher education sector is part of the effort to create a knowledge-based economy in Ireland and to guarantee high-quality job creation for the long term. For example, about 20% of the capital infrastructure being delivered by the PRTLI Cycle 5 programme underpins and facilitates existing direct industry engagements, for example, the industry-led Technology Centres, which are funded by Enterprise Ireland; the industry-facing Centres for Science, Engineering and Technology (CSETS), which are funded by Science Foundation Ireland and the Strategic Research Clusters (SRCs), which are also SFI-funded. The strategy appears to be working with invention disclosures doubling since 2006 and a trebling in patent licenses issued to companies. r

The HEA Capital Programmes Section “evaluates capital project proposals from the third-level institutions and make recommendations to the Department of Education and Skills for general capital funding and to the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation for research funding Photo: Donal Murphy

Irish Building Magazine

continuing to build a better Ireland www.bamcontractors.ie Images: CASH Building IT Tallaght

Tallaght IT

The Science of Building The new Centre for Applied Science for Health Building at the Institute of Technology Tallaght is yet another indication of the growing importance of the Institutes of Technology in progressing Ireland’s knowledge economy. CIAN MOLLOY reports.

he new Centre for Applied Science for Health (CASH) Building is both literally and philosophically an extension of ITT Dublin’s Synergy Building and builds on the public/private relationships enjoyed by the institute with the private sector. The Synergy Building, which opened in 2008, is South Dublin County’s innovation centre, providing office space and business supports to early-stage enterprises with a particular focus on hightechnology and knowledge-intensive sectors. Funded under the Higher Education Programme for Research in Third Level Institutions with co-funding from the European Regional Development Fund, the €4.5m CASH research building provides some 1,500m2 of laboratory space, two-thirds of which will be used by ITT Dublin and a third of which are specifically designed to accommodate industry-led research projects. Industry-led projects will be conducted in one of two ways: companies will have access dedicated laboratory space for a fixed period or laboratories will be used for collaborative industry-academia projects where companies can have a presence on campus while accessing the institutes expertise and/ or technologies. In particular, research at the centre will focus on three areas: strategies for combating antimicrobial resistant pathogens; biomedical devices and translational molecular cell biology research. “For ITT Dublin, the new CASH facility represents a step-change in the quality and coherence of research facility available to researchers,” says the centre’s manager Ken Carroll. “The colocation of CASH with the Synergy Business Incubation Centre brings together multi-disciplinary research teams in one location creating a more effective research space where researchers can work, meet, network, and interact with entrepreneurs. “It provides a suite of new modern laboratories and high-level research equipment that will enable higher-quality research in focused areas aligned with those thematic areas identified under the recent National Research Prioritisation Exercise (NRPE). “It also provides a number of laboratories specifically designed to support the co-location of industry-led research projects. These labs have a flexible design that facilities reconfiguration of spaces to suit a multiplicity of uses supporting short-, medium- or longterm projects. “The facility is primarily directed towards research but will also have an educational aspect as final years undergraduate students regularly undertake projects linked to research activity.

Outputs from research inform the ongoing development of taught programmes ensuring they retain currency and relevance to the market place. ITT Dublin also offers a number of taught Masters programmes in science and engineering and student projects from those programmes will also be accommodated.” Designed by Taylor Architects, the construction programme was interrupted and delayed when the original building contractor, McNamara, became a victim of the economic downturn and went out of business because of cash-flow problems. A new tendering process was conducted with BAM Building, a division of BAM Contractors, taking over the job with the project about 15% complete with 80% of the pre-cast concrete in place. BAM site manager and project manager Liam Croke said, “Dealing with legacy sub-contractors was an issue that took some time to settle, particularly the issue of warranties, but there was an overall willingness to work together and to find the best way forward for all parties concerned. “I think it was a help that BAM Contractors had worked quite recently with Taylor Architects on the NUIG Engineering School Building, which won the RIAI’s Public Choice Award 2012. It was a coincidence, but the fact that I had a good relationship with the architect’s project manager, Eamon McCarney, was a real help in moving things forward.” BAM contractors and its operating companies, BAM Building and BAM Civil (formerly Ascon / Rohcon), have been successfully delivering projects in Ireland since 1958. Croke said BAM were delighted to be involved in this project, which has been delivered to a high-quality, on budget and within the projects program. The three-storey building is rectangular in plan with a central atrium that links into, and expands, the atrium of the existing Synergy Building, includes many innovative elements including the structure which is a precast concrete sandwich panel which was prefabricated off site and then hoisted into place. The external cladding is formed of a liner treatment of Tegral coloured panels, different shades of grey that together with the fenestration treatment give a greater scale and presence to the structure. Within the building there is sufficient laboratory work-station space for 52 to 60 researchers, depending on their activities; a microbiology facility with walk-in warm-room, cold room and autoclave room; a biochemistry facility linked to a cell-culture lab and a confocal microsocopy lab; a synthetic-chemistry laboratory; three multipurpose innovation labs; facilities for materials & surface analysis, analytical instrumentation, biomechanical engineering and electronic engineering with a RF lab and an anechoic chamber;

Dealing with legacy subcontractors was an issue that took some time to settle, but there was an overall willingness to work together and to find the best way forward

Irish Building Magazine

Tallaght IT office facilities for centre management, research administration, three storey atrium acts as a focal point postgraduate researchers and visiting researchers from industry. for the building, a meeting point where researchers can share and exchange There is also a distinctive 14-seat ‘pod’ conference room. ITT estates manager Paul Campell said: “Innovative environmental ideas. It also gives expression to the solutions include an ‘earth tube’ that uses the earth’s temperature environmental credentials of the building to condition the air prior to providing same to a central meeting with a glass pipe bringing air cooled and room providing pre-cooling of air in summer and pre-heating of conditioned by an external ‘earth pipe’ air in winter. This efficient system is further enhanced by the into the structure. It is intended that it use of a cross floor Heat Recovery Unit that provides fresh air to will become the symbol of the project.” the meeting room, building wide C02 and temperature monitoring In addition to the RIAI award for the NUIG system is interlinked with motorised windows providing automated building this year, Taylor Architects have ventilation throughout. Further energy-efficient heating system won a host of architectural awards and allows for the heating in seven different zones to be individually international competitions. The practice controlled according to occupation. The interior of the building was founded in 1966, is headquartered in provides bright, interactive spaces that we trust will provide Castlebar with a satellite office in Dublin and employs 25 architects, technicians inspirational environment for the research of the future. “The central atrium acts as a meeting point/social node within and interior designers. the development and promotes the cross fertilisation of ideas Despite its relatively simple exterior between CASH and the Synergy Centre, which is so important to appearance, by its nature the CASH research centre is a complex building. “It is very highly serviced,” this building type.” Within the atrium is a signature feature – the ‘pod’ meeting room, said BAM Contractor’s project manager and site engineer Liam which has an exterior appearance resembling a large egg! This Croke. “There are eight different gas lines going into the building ovoid meeting room was constructed on site by a number of BAM from Aragon and CO2 to natural gas and compressed air and Building subcontractors, including Con McGarry Carpentry & within it there are 22 fume hoods with extractor systems, all fitted Construction. The light-coloured interior of the pod has three into a building with very tight ceiling spaces. circular windows at a high level and an acoustic membrane “There was also the issue of it being linked to a live building that was to stay in operation incorporated into the structural wall. “We were delighted to work on this The centralised pod within the three storey atrium throughout the construction period, but we worked closely project it was a good opportunity to showcase the expertise of the team,” acts as a focal point for the building, a meeting with ITT to ensure that was achieved.” said Con McGarry. “Eight experienced point and gives expression to the environmental Ken Carroll said: “The primary carpenters formed the staff that worked on the pod, it was a challenging project credentials of the building. It is intended focus of the centre will evolve over time as new challenges that required our craftsmanship and experience to showcase the architects’ that it will become the symbol of the project. emerge. The design of the innovation labs, in particular, design. We worked closely with the main contractor, BAM Building, and with Taylor Architects offers significant flexibility with regard to possible applications and uses. For example, since the building process began, a new throughout this element of works.” Firstly, the curved structure of the pod had to be formed in Bioengineering Technology Centre has been developed at ITT structural steel by J&F Duggan Steel and then framed out in Dublin and this has been incorporated in the building with a timber by McGarry Carpentry, who used a technique borrowed dedicated laboratory area now housing a bespoke spine-related from boat-building to provide a smooth finish to the exterior of the mechanical testing facility which is currently it is being used to structure. Inside the pod, it was decided to install poplar timber research the characteristics of bone cements used in spinal injury batten, fitted horizontally around the interior, to best express the repairs. As other opportunities emerge, the centre will adapt to exploit those opportunities and the in-built flexibility of the new design intent of the dome-shaped room. Architect Eamon McCarney said: “The centralised pod within the laboratories will allow for this.” r

33 Irish Building Magazine

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CIT

Cork Institute of Technology Zero 20/20 Project - Groundbreaking Retro fit Dozens of institutional buildings buildings constructed in the 1970s may be given a new lease of life thanks to a retrofit cladding system developed by Cork Institute of Technology, Kingspan and AMS. CIAN MOLLOY reports.

nder the 2010 European Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD), all public buildings must be near-zero energy buildings (nZEB) by 2018, a tough task given that many of Ireland’s public buildings predate the building regulations and have inadequate insulation and use high-amounts of energy. Indeed, Ireland’s buildings score the worst in Europe for CO2 emissions – we produce more than 120kg of CO2 per m2 of useful floor area – that is 10% worse than the second worst performer, the Czech Republic, and more than a 100 times worse than the best performer, Norway. It’s no wonder that industry analysts are predicting that retrofitting Irish buildings to reduce their energy consumption is going to be a major growth area in the near future. The only upside is that retrofitting will provide valuable business to a construction industry that has now suffered five years of consecutive decline in activity. So how will retrofitting work and what kind of benefits can it bring? As a learning exercise for students, colleges and industry, Cork Institute of Technology (CIT) is currently working on a Zero2020Energy project that shows that the performance of existing facades can be easily and greatly improved. With funding from the Department of Education and Science and research partners Kingspan and AMS, a new high-performance

integrated window system has been developed for the existing facade at CIT’s buildings in Bishopstown, plus a new therm-strip curtain wall system capable of supporting the windows and a cladding system that is based on Kingspan’s pre-existing 125mm Benchmark system. The difference in building performance is remarkable: before the retrofit the CIT buildings had an average U-value of 2.4W/ m2K and air infiltration levels were at 14.77m3/hr/m2; following the retrofit the average U-value has fallen to 0.36W/m2K and air infiltration is at 1.76 m3/hr/m2 at a pressure of 50Pa. Additionally, the retrofit has the potential to extend the lifespan of the buildings for at least another 30 years. This pilot project involves only 290m2 of the 19,190m2 that the original buildings occupy but it is a test-bed for the redevelopment of the original site. Indeed the project is designed in a modular fashion to provide ‘plug and play’ capability for research in sustainable energy and in building energy systems. Project leader and CIT School of Mechanical and Process Engineering lecturer Paul O’Sullivan said: “The target audience is primarily students and researchers but the target audience goes beyond that to include the college authorities whose aspiration is to create a zero energy campus by 2020. This project seeks to demonstrate than an increased capital investment in a retrofit can result in an estimated 75% reduction in operational energy

This project seeks to demonstrate than an increased capital investment at retrofit can result in an estimated 75% reduction in operational energy consumption with the remainder being met by on-site renewable energy production 35 Irish Building Magazine

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CIT

consumption with the remainder being met by on-site renewable energy production.” A key part of the project was the learning element to show undergraduate students, and post-graduate researchers, how the various energy efficiency and insulation measures performed in a real-world setting in comparison to how they were to behave in theoretical surmise. To achieve this CIT used an array of wireless sensors supplied by Instrument Technology Ltd (ITL) to monitor temperature, relative humidity and CO2 levels. “We provided a wireless environmental monitoring system from Hanwell Instruments, which comprises a number of these sensors, a base station and the software needed to record data, monitor it, analyse it and to have an alarm system where necessary,” said ITL’s technical director Peter Keane. “The sensors are measuring temperature, relative humidity and CO2 levels and are currently producing 1,000 data sets. The sensors are placed inside and outside the building and are, for example, used for monitoring and comparing, say, the surface temperature on the inside and the outside of a quad-glazed window or for comparing the temperature of the surface of the first floor ceiling and the temperature of outer surface of the roof slab. Additionally, there are sensors within the composite walls measuring variances in temperature and humidity within the walls themselves.” O’Sullivan points out that the sensors are designed to be used flexibly and repeatedly. He said: “Even the sensors placed within the buildings walls are easily accessible and removable so that they can be reused in the future as we tweak the system we have developed, or as we test a completely new retrofit solution or for an undergraduate or postgraduate to use in a sustainable energy or a building materials research project.” The refurbished area has been decoupled from the existing heating system with the area is now heated by an air-to-water heat-pump located on the roof; because of the high-level of insulation the low-temperature hot water for the radiators is sufficiently warm for the occupants needs. This in marked contrast to the draughty, poorly-insulated original buildings, which are served by one radiator system operated on a time clock with no temperature controls in any of the blocks or in any individual space within the blocks. O’Sullivan says that in time, as the retrofit is extended across the campus, the living laboratory will be able to incorporate other renewable energy sources such as photo voltaic panels, a micro combined heat and power (CHP) plant and vertical windturbines.

The refurbished buildings are home to two CIT campus companies, the Centre for Advanced Manufacturing and Management Systems (CAMMS) and the Medical Engineering Design and Innovation Center (MEDIC), and because this area is used for offices rather than for lecture halls involving large numbers of students ventilation and CO2 build-up is not as big an issue as it might otherwise be. Nevertheless, the retrofit does incorporate natural ventilation that is directly controlled by the occupants with the glazing system incorporating manually-adjustable, insulated louvres that provide single-side ventilation. Over-heating in the summer has been reduced through the use of adjustable interstitial blinds to reduce glare and solar radiation. The BMS system also controls a separate set of louvres that allows purging of the structure with cold night air, thereby lowering the temperature of the exposed thermal masses in the refurbished spaces. This BMS system was installed by ACE Control Systems, designers and manufacturers of state-of-the-art HVAC and building energy management systems with offices in Cork, Dublin and London, where the company is gaining a lot of its business from Irish companies that have extended their operations into the UK as a result of the decline in construction activity in this country. ACE Control Systems director Noel Brennan said: “This particular BMS had to work with a lot of thirdparty interfaces and controls, so it had to be able to handle several different protocols. It is also fitted with an energy usage dashboard, which gives a very clear picture of how well the building is working.” O’Sullivan said: “What we have founded is that continuing education is now a much more important part of energy conservation. Now that we are using far less energy heating the building, someone forgetting to switch of a desk lamp or a PC makes a real difference to the overall energy consumption figures!” So far the project has been a great success. Kingspan Sales Director Ger Higgins said: “We’ve worked regularly with

As the retrofit is extended across the campus, the living laboratory will be able to incorporate other renewable energy sources such as photo voltaic panels, a micro combined heat and power (CHP) plant and vertical windturbines

37 Irish Building Magazine

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CIT AMS over the years, in fact our relationship goes back a long way, developing integration of their window systems with our architectural panels. The Benchmark Karrier Panel System is a unique insulated panel that has been specifically designed and tested to support the Benchmark ranges of facades. The system provides excellent weather resistance, thermal, acoustic, fire and structural performance. The Benchmark Karrier Panel System is a metal-faced insulated panel that makes the building watertight, removing the façade from the critical path and enabling internal fit out to start sooner. The system easily incorporates a range of facades which includes ceramic granite (which was used on this building), natural clay tiles, natural and pre-finished metals, coloured and mirrored glass, cementitious boards and a range of natural and manufactured timber. “In addition to improving the performance of the building at CIT, I think the facade improves the look of the building architecturally, particularly the deeper reveals on the windows. We were delighted to work with a public body like CIT to develop a solution to reduce energy consumption and C02 emissions. Refurbishment is likely to be a more viable and more cost effective alternative to complete redevelopment in the short to medium term.” AMS sales director Pat O’Hara describes the new product as ‘a pretty neat solution’. “Originally, they were looking at fixing the new facade to the existing wall of the building – but the facade was too heavy for that to work so we designed a curtain wall system that was capable of supporting the window and the cladding system. The facade was installed by Wesco aluminium from Ballineen in West Cork and that company has been extremely impressed at the ease at which the system goes together to give a modern, clean look, but also a top-of-the-range sustainable energy-efficient facade.” Founded in 1990 as Architectural and Metal Systems, AMS currently employs 110 people and holds a number of patents covering innovations in window technology. Two years ago the company invested in a 1,800 tonne aluminium extrusion press and O’Hara says this has resulted in the company winning a lot of business overseas, particularly in the manufacture of signage and lighting. The Department of Education and Science has taken a keen interest in the CIT Zero2020Energy project because not only can the pilot be extended across the whole of the CIT campus, it has the potential to be used at eight other IoTs where the building stock is near identical to that at CIT: ie they comprise four twostorey buildings constructed between 1970 and 1977. These 36 buildings were constructed at a total cost of about £7.129m (c€9m), in 1969 prices, for what were then known as regional technical colleges (RTCs). Made from uninsulated precast concrete wall and roof panels, with 6mm clear single-glazing on the windows, these Institute of Technology buildings pre-date the building regulations and have ‘a very poorly performing thermal envelope with a very high level of air infiltration’. “They are cold and draughty in winter and overheat in the summer,” said project leader and CIT School of Mechanical and Process Engineering lecturer Paul O’Sullivan. “As a result, they are expensive to heat and you wouldn’t be allowed to build them to their current standard today. And it is not just these IoT buildings, there are plenty of secondary schools that were built before the building regulations came into force and which are performing poorly. “The question is: what are you going to do with them? One option is to demolish and build again, but we have shown that retrofitting is an alternative, cheaper, solution. In terms of returnon-investment, the savings made in the reduction in energy consumption and CO2 emissions is probably not enough to justify the capital cost of the retrofit – but when you consider that you are prolonging the life of existing buildings and avoiding the cost of building new ones, then the cost is quite justifiable.” r

“The Department of Education and Science has taken a keen interest in the CIT Zero2020Energy project because not only can the pilot be extended across the whole of the CIT campus, it has the potential to be used at eight other IoTs where the building stock is near identical to that at CIT”

39 Irish Building Magazine

Proud of our long-standing association with the University of Limerick Physical Education & Sports Science Building

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University of Limerick

One of the most complex renovation and refurbishment projects to be completed this year must be the Physical Education & Sports Sciences Building at the University of Limerick where the central core of the building was removed and replaced, while the rest of the building remained live.

Lets get Physical!

esigned by Kelly Barry O’Brien Whelan architects and constructed by Sisk, the new central core of the PE&SS building has a simpler interior layout that provides universal access, makes better use of natural lighting and is safer its users. These improvements aren’t incremental, they represent a radical improvement that was required because the original building, constructed in 1971-72, failed to meet the requirements of present day legislation on fire safety and universal access. A fire safety review in 2002 found ‘serious deficiencies’ including: inadequate means of escape from a second-floor lecture room; fire exits discharging internally not externally; plant room, cooking area and laboratory enclosures that weren’t sufficiently fire resisting; an absence of fire-dampers on ducting and inadequate emergency lighting and fire-detection equipment. The building is equivalent to three-storeys, but the central core had 12 different levels and 16 different staircases within it. Although there were six chair-lifts located in various parts of the building, there were areas where access for disabled people was ‘virtually impossible’. Notably, the entrance foyer could only be accessed via steps. Following alterations made in 2003, there were service areas in the building that weren’t just inaccessible the disabled to negotiate; they were difficult for the ablebodied to reach! The lack of universal access to all parts of the building meant that the University of Limerick was potentially falling afoul of the 1988 Employment Equality Act and the 2000 Equal Status Act and was facing legal liabilities. The new building has: a new, accessible, entrance foyer; a small-scale 400m2 sports hall, with storage facilities; a tiered 163-seat lecture theatre with associated audio-visual and IT facilities; a restaurant; staff offices; laboratories; a study area; a computer room; and a workshop space; a 40m2 equipment store and a plant room. Notably, the old plant room was largely obsolete as a lot of the plant it contained was there to facilitate the diving pool that was removed in 2003 after UL opened the University Arena with its 50m, Olympics t a n d a r d , swimming pool. “The only solution to problems posed by the deficiencies of the existing building was to demolish the central core, provide level access to both wings of the building and to provide a new plant room with enhanced facilities,” said Joe O’Brien of Kelly Barry O’Brien Whelan. “It was a difficult job – not only were the east and west wing live while we removed the central core, the old building contained a lot of reinforced concrete, some of it cast in quite unusual shapes, particularly where the old diving pool had been. It was a complicated job that the contractor, Sisk, was undertaking.” Demolition work commenced in the summer of 2011, at a time when students were on holiday, to reduce the risk to students and staff, especially incidents

caused during the removal of waste materials from the site, said safety consultant Jim Horgan of Advanced Safety Management. A Cork-based company that has been providing Project Supervisor Design Process (PSDP) and Project Supervisor Construction Stage (PSCS) services to the construction industry since 2003, Advanced Safety Management has long acted as a safety advisor to the University of Limerick. “For this project, we undertook a deatiled design safety review focuing on constructability and maintainability. We established minimum systems that would have to be adopted by the contractor during the works. These systems allowed for the east and west wings of the building to operate as normal. We also had to organise for all services – cabling, pipework, etc – that ran through the central core of the building to be diverted. “We have built significant expertise on safe construction in a live environment; we’re currently involved in a project at UCC and have done a number of projects with the Health Service Executive and Lidl. We also do a lot of work with the pharmaceutical sector and the food industry.” Indeed, many of those involved in this refurbishment project have enjoyed long and happy relationships with the University of Limerick, including consulting engineers Don O’Malley & Partners, who were responsible for the mechanical and electrical engineering design, and electrical contractors Pure Electrical, both of which are Limerick-based firms. Liam Kavanagh of Don O’Malley said: “We enjoy an excellent working relationship with the Buildings & Estates Department in delivering a high calibre of engineering services design through innovative approaches and pro-active participation. Our strategic approach to environmental design on projects has delivered improved design and operation of buildings, provided better working environments and delivered life-cycle cost savings, while helping to save energy on a sustainable basis.” Kelly Barry O’Brien Whelan architects have done a number of projects previously at UL at the practice has in recent years developed a strong record in educational work, not just in third level but in second level as well. Joe O’Brien said: “We’re pleased with what we’ve achieved with the PE&SS building refurbishment – the new core has been clearly expressed as a modern addition to the original but has angular forms that repeat, or mirror, the forms of the existing structure. A major improvement is the entrance, which now has a real distinct presence in comparison to what was there before, in addition to being accessible to all. We also used cedar wall-cladding to complement the existing cedar shingles cladding, but the new cladding is in horizontal panels so that the new structure is clearly legible.” Seán McDermott of the UL Buildings and Estates Department agrees: “All parties worked really well together to provide a solution that meets our needs.” r

IrishIrish Building Magazine

EAMON COSTELLO (Kerry) Ltd Main Contractors on the stunning Ard na Sidhe Hotel

17 Murphy’s Terrace, Ballymullen, Tralee, Co. Kerry T. 066 7194988 F. 066 7124293 M. 087 2592706 E. eckerry@indigo.ie www.eckerry.com

Diarmuid O’Carroll Electrical Ltd. Brunner Consulting Engineers have a wide range of experience in the overall and detailed design of complex building structures. The practice focuses on quality architectural design projects and challenging briefs. Our projects range from €50m commercial developments to €50,000 house extensions. Particular attention is given to interesting and challenging projects. We specify and detail glass structures, have completed the structural and industrial design of advertising platforms, energy centres and film sets. We are dedicated to providing a flexible approach to our designs to enable architectural creativity. Our practice is equipped with state of the art design software and techniques to provide desired solutions.

Brunner Consulting Engineers 6 Whitefriars, Aungier Street Dublin 2. T. 01 478 9100 www.brunner.ie

Celebrating a decade of delivering Excellence!

Diarmuid O’Carroll Electrical Ltd was Established in 2002 to service the Electrical needs of the Irish Construction and Industrial sectors. We provide our clients with a complete Electrical, Security and Data Installation service. We are proud to have been selected as the Contractor to the Ard na Sidhe hotel for the complete electrical, security and data installaton.

Diarmuid O’Carroll Electrical Ltd. Knockeragh, Killarney, Co. Kerry. M. 087 6991919 T: 064 6625330 E: docarrollelectrical@eircom.net

A place of magic at Ard na Sidhe

Ard na Sidhe

One of Ireland’s finest Arts & Crafts buildings, Ard na Sidhe, in the Kingdom of Kerry has been restored to create a hotel full of romantic ambience. CIAN MOLLOY reports on a labour of love.

itting on a 32-acre site of mixed woodland and awardwinning gardens and overlooking Lough Carragh near Killorglin, Ard na Sidhe is considered one of the best large Arts & Crafts buildings in the country. Built in 1913 by Lady Edith Gordon to the design of the flamboyant English architect Richard Percy Morley Horder, Ard na Sidhe is of a revivalist Elizabethan-style, with bold steep gables, stone-mullioned windows and metal casements with leaded lights, all set in neatly built sandstone that was quarried locally. Indeed, it is almost entirely from local materials with the only exception being the Westmoreland roof slates. In 1915, it was deemed to be of sufficient architectural and aesthetic merit to have its design exhibited by the Royal Academy. Described as ‘the house of my dreams’ by Lady Edith, a keen gardener, traveller and author, she boasted that ‘it never looked new’ and the weathered brown sandstone walls look as though they have stood for centuries. Coming from the Anglo-Irish aristocracy, Lady Edith was part of a vanishing breed in Ireland, her husband, Sir Home Gordon, was the 12th, and (because he was childless) the last, Baronet of Gordon Embo; at the age of nine in 1880 he saw the first England V Australia test at the Oval and went on to become a famous cricketing journalist! Among his various sinecures was a role as a magistrate of County Kerry, which explains how Lady Edith found this location that she loved so much. In the 1930s, Lady Gordon was forced to leave Ard na Sidhe, because she could no longer afford its upkeep. Some 25 years later, the house and its grounds were purchased by the German industrialist Hans Leibherr, who in 1958 established the Liebherr Container Cranes manufacturing plant in Killarney that currently employs more than 500 people. For the last 50 years, Ard na Sidhe has been part of the Liebherr Group, which owns a total of six hotels – three in Kerry, two in Austria and one in Germany. Ard na Sidhe is very much the group’s boutique hotel having only

18 rooms in total in comparison, say, to The Europe in Killarney that has 187 bedrooms, more than 10 times as many! The refurbishment cost some €2m and was very much a labour of love by Mrs Liebherr who took a personal interest in the project and visited the construction site regularly, said James Howley of Howley Hayes Architects. “We’ve done a lot of restoration work and conversions of old buildings to new uses and we were recommended for this job by another firm of architects. We had previously worked on Lambay Castle, designed by Edwin Lutyens, which is considered to be the best Arts & Crafts building in Ireland. Ard na Sidhe had almost certainly been inspired by it and is very much ‘Lambay by Lake’. The Liebherr family didn’t know this at the time of our appointment, it was a happy coincidence.” According to Howley, in addition to requiring a general refurbishment to cope with the wear and tear suffered by the building over time, h some of the ‘radical changes’ made when the building was first converted into a hotel in the 1970s needed to be reversed or remedied. “Most damaging was the construction of internal toilets and linen stores beside the beautiful oak staircase that almost totally concealed the staircase and created an unsatisfactory entrance that was dark, constricted and featureless,” he said. “We opened up the space and turned the upper-flight of the original staircase through ninety degrees, to create a dramatic new double-height entrance hall, paved with natural stone and lined with oak panelling. The two dining rooms were linked visually by new openings, the walls lined with painted panelling and the access points re-planned. The original arch-headed, oak, front-door, which had been removed but was being used in a 1970’s annex, was reinstated, albeit not in its original position.” Another significant intervention was a large, new, dormer with Arts & Crafts-style window seats to light and enliven what had been a dull dark service corridor but that now leads to the first-

Ard na Sidhe is of a revivalist Elizabethan style, with bold steep gables, stone-mullioned windows and metal casements with leaded lights, all set in neatly built sandstone that was quarried locally. Indeed, it is almost entirely from local materials.

43 Irish Building Magazine

K.M.S. Continued success to Eamon Costello (Kerry) ltd.

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Did you like our Ard na Sidhe feature? If so why not see what we can do for you! To discuss having your company or project featured in one of our forthcoming issues. Please contact: colinwalsh@irishbuildingmagazine.ie We would be delighted to chat about your marketing plans and how Irish Building Magazine can be part of your team. T. 01 4429264 M. 087 9838946

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Ard na Sidhe

floor bedrooms, which were re-planned to create more satisfactory rectangular proportions, all with naturally lit bathrooms.” Howley Hayes was also responsible for all the interiors, choosing fabrics and wallpapers produced by Morris & Co, a company that played a key role in the Arts & Crafts Movement more than a century ago. The practice designed new bedroom and dining room furniture, all in solid oak and in keeping with existing antique Arts & Crafts furniture on the premises. Howley said: “We were obsessive in our attention to detail in the design of the building services, including procuring several antique Arts & Crafts-style light-fittings and judiciously chosen modern lamps, fittings, sockets and switches that matched the Arts & Crafts style. Brunner Consulting Engineers provided structural and civil engineering advice, with Peter Brunner commenting: “The trick with older buildings is to ensure that they are structurally sound and, once you have done that, then to interfere as little as possible with that structure. We tried to ensure that as little as possible was done from an engineering point of view. It’s always interesting working on old buildings, because you never know what problems will be thrown up, but everything on the Ard na Sidhe project went very smoothly.” The diligence of the building contractors, Eamonn Costello Ltd, was one of the main reasons why the project went smoothly, said Howley. “The job was completed within a very tight programme and to budget, and the contractors worked very closely with us, to ensure the best possible result.” The Tralee-based family firm was founded in 1977 by the eponymous Eamonn Costello, who had been working as a building contractor since the 1960s. In 1992, Eamonn’s two sons Anthony and Declan came into the business, with Anthony, who is since retired, running the company while Declan studied for a BSc in Construction Management. “Originally, we did a lot of local authority and schools work and we still do a lot of that, for example, we are laying pipes for a new district heating scheme for Tralee UDC at the moment,” said Declan. “But in the Celtic Tiger years, when we had 50 staff and a turnover of more than €20m we moved into hotel and apartment construction and working on Section 50 schemes, which is where we built up a

quality reputation. We’ve also done some refurbishment work over the years, notably the Muckross Park Hotel, parts of which date back to the 18th century. We were delighted to be awarded the contract for Ard na Sidhe, especially as we did not submit the cheapest bid in the tendering process. It was a vote of confidence in our abilities and in the quality of our previous work.” “This was a very interesting and enjoyable project – it wasn’t just a question of laying out the blocks and mortar! There were a lot of challenging aspects and you had to sit down in advance and work out how you would approach tasks, like unusual joinery details. We are lucky in that we are one of the few contracting firms that still have all the general trades in house, with our own carpentry and our own plasterers, but many of the tasks on this job required specialist skills and materials, such as the lime-based plastering internally or lime-based mortar for the pointing externally. “Indeed, one of the challenges was sorting the correct materials so that they would fit in with was already there. That took some additional time, such as sourcing the breathable paints from England or bringing in the oak floorboards from Latvia. The steel windows had to be removed and sent to a specialist company, Fabco Sanctuary, in Sussex to be restored and re-leaded.” Certainly, it was a project with a substantial project, but what has been achieved here by the Liebherr family is something of note. Not only have they have helped preserve part of Ireland’s patrimony, they have also helped ensure that it is a working building, a living space that provides employment to staff, as well as comfort and relaxation to its guests. The investment made in the hotel grounds should also be noted, with many rare, and valuable, specimen trees planted here since the 1970s. The architect-client relationship was very satisfying throughout and we found Mrs Liebherr and her colleagues very positive from the start. “One of our main selling points to the client was that by recreating an authenitc Arts & Crafts interior, they should not need to renovate every twenty years! Panelled walls, stone chimney pieces, oak and stone floors, leaded windows, oak doors and bronze door-furniture will effectively last for centuries. And with a few decades of wear and tear, they will look even better than they do now.” r

Irish Building Magazine

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Longford By Pass

Wills Bros. opens the N5 Longford Bypass two months ahead of schedule. After years of planning and 16 months of construction, The N5 Longford Bypass is now open. Recognised as one of the leading constructors of high quality roads in Ireland the Contractor Wills Bros Ltd., removed the temporary traffic management measures that blocked the new stretch of road at 11.00 a.m. on Friday August 3rd.

he bypass is 2.6km long and road users will now save up to 25 minutes on journeys by using the bypass. Road users will also get views of Longford Town including the spire of St. Mels Cathedral and Corn hill from a different perspective. The project which is 2 months ahead of schedule has a construction cost of approximately €8 million. There are 2 new roundabouts, a bridge over the River Camlin, a rail bridge over the Sligo Dublin rail line and a bridge over the Lisbrack road. Longford County Council Liaison Engineer Mr. Paul Newell said that “the by pass will take up to 5000 vehicles out of the main streets in the town with 500 of these being heavy goods vehicles, which is going to be a huge relief for the residents of the town and those people who use the town for business and pleasure. In terms of time saving, the project will take up to 20 minutes off a journey from Mayo to Dublin which is very good news for people travelling this route as Longford Town has been a bottle neck for drivers up to now”. The Longford By Pass was in the very fortunate position of being the only major national road project to open in 2012, Mr. Newell said of this, “the Longford Project was a slightly smaller project than the other three which were tendered at the same time and due to good planning and utilisation of resources Wills Bros. managed to bring the project in ahead of schedule”. Asked if the

County Council has any other projects in the pipeline Mr. Newell said: “We have one other major road project, the N4 Mullingar to Longford (Roosky) Road Scheme”, The proposed N4 Mullingar to Longford (Roosky) Road Scheme will upgrade 50km of the N4 National Primary Route between the recently completed N4 Dromod-Roosky Bypass and the N4 Mullingar Bypass. The scheme will bypass Newtown Forbes, Longford, Edgeworthstown,

the by pass will take up to 5000 vehicles out of the Rathowen and Ballinalack. It will improve road safety and will reduce travel times along this section of the N4. The Preferred Route was announced at a special meeting of Longford County Council on Monday the 30th June 2010. Mr. Newell went on to say: “The project was suspended (not terminated) due to a lack of funding but we hope it will get the go ahead in the not too distance future”. Regarding the non tolling of the project Mr. Newell said that the project will unlikely remain untolled in the future. Minister Leo Varadkar said: ‘Removing national traffic from the centre of Longford will free up access to business, resulting in an improved quality of life for residents, traders and the public in general. Up to now there were “no junctions between the N4 and the N5 roundabouts, so this new road will speed up travel times for those who live locally and those who are passing through Longford.” Mayor of Longford County Council Cllr. Sean Farrell stated “Longford will no longer be a bottle neck for through traffic heading west on the N5 and this road will bring improved safety for motorists and remove tailbacks and congestion from Longford Town. He added “Longford Town would now be more attractive to shoppers, pedestrians and the local community to enjoy with heavy goods vehicles and through traffic taken out of the Town Centre. I congratulate Mr. Tim Caffrey, Longford County Manager, the staff of Longford County Council, the staff of the National Roads Authority, the staff of the National Roads Regional Design Office Roscommon, the Employers Representative Fehily Timoney Gifford and the Contractor, Wills Bros Ltd for the excellent work and dedication to the project.” Mr. Peter Malone, Chairman National Roads Authority stated “The Longford Bypass will remove unnecessary traffic from the town centre, improve safety and assist in creating opportunities for local businesses. Additionally, it will allow residents and tourists alike to experience all that is on offer throughout the entire region.” Mr. Michael Nolan, Head of Regional Management National Roads Authority added “The N5 Longford Bypass project consists of 2.6 km of standard single carriageway National Primary Road, 2 No. at-grade roundabouts on the N4 and N5, a Rail Bridge, River Camlin Bridge and a Bridge over the Lisbrack road. I would like to congratulate our Local Authority colleagues and the Contractor for delivering the scheme ahead of schedule.” r

main streets in the town with 500 of these being heavy goods vehicles, which is going to be a huge relief for the residents of the town and those people who use the town for business and pleasure.

Irish Building Magazine

New Products & Company Showcase Freefoam Introduces Attractive Anthracite Grey to Colour Range

New

Freefoam Plastics, the market leader in roofline colour choice and technology, has introduced an attractive new Anthracite Grey colour to its extensive range of colours. There are a wide range of fascia, soffit and related products available in the new colour including plain fascia/reveal liner (10mm), magnum square leg fascia (18mm), hollow soffit (10mm), general purpose board (10mm), coloured Plastops® pins and nails and a wide range of related accessories. The Ral Number for the new Anthracite Grey is 7016. Freefoam observed the trend over the last few years of increasing interest in colour. Demand for its colour products has increased considerably as homeowners and specifiers use it to create something unique. Freefoam’s fascia, soffit, gutter and cladding products are available in eleven colours as standard including white, pale gold, sable, storm grey, dark grey, anthracite grey, black, leather brown, wine red, regal blue and rustic green, and other colours are available on request. Most colours are available off the shelf or on a short lead time, are reasonably priced, and are available in all profiles and mouldings with matching pins. Its colour range is backed by its innovative Colormax® technology. Colormax provides ground-breaking colourfastness, colour variety, and reliable colour matching. Aidan Harte, Managing Director, comments: “Freefoam is delighted to introduce this attractive new Anthracite Grey colour to our range. We have invested heavily in research and development to develop state-of-the-art colour technology for our roofline production facilities. This investment has now paid dividends enabling Freefoam to offer a market leading range of colours and a colour matching service for special projects. We also offer a 10 year guarantee on all colours, which is unique in the roofline industry. As more and more homeowners and developers want to differentiate their properties every day, installing coloured roofline products is a convenient, attractive and relatively inexpensive way to achieve that.” new offerings.” For further information please contact: Brendan Hyland, 021 4911043, brendan.hyland@freefoam.com

VENTROLLA HELPS RESTORE A PRECIOUS PIECE OF IRELAND’S HISTORY Sash window renovation specialist Ventrolla has helped to preserve the heritage of an iconic 200 year old building in central Dublin. In a large renovation effort to restore the General Post Office (GPO), headquarters of the Irish postal service, Ventrolla was enlisted to tackle many of the deteriorating sash windows after office workers experienced draughts, leaks, rattles and operational issues. To remedy this, Ventrolla began by removing decaying timber and filling the cavities with its unique epoxy resin VR90, moulding it to match the existing timber profile. This was followed by a service of the pulleys and sash cords to ensure smooth operation. The windows then received a performance upgrade with the installation of Ventrolla’s unique Perimeter Sealing System, eliminating draughts and rattles. Ventrolla carried out the work to suit the needs of the busy office and the wider restoration project, arranging night shifts in order to complete the renovation on schedule. Building contractor, Alison Mawhinney, who oversaw the project, said: “The windows of the GPO were very old and have not been maintained throughout the years. Ventrolla was great at dealing with this and taking an individual approach to each window to ensure the aesthetics weren’t comprised. “The team were also very flexible and accommodating when it came to the shift changes, which we really appreciated.” The General Post Office was built in 1818 and has witnessed many important and historic events in its time, including the Easter Rising in 1916, when the GPO served as headquarters for the uprising leaders. Ventrolla offers a bespoke renovation service for timber sliding sash and casement windows as well as timber doors. The company has its central office in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, with additional locations throughout Ireland and the UK. http://www.ventrolla.ie/

Freefoam Launches New Fortex® Render Finish Flat Cladding Product

Freefoam, a leading manufacturer of a wide range of innovative products for the building industry in Ireland, the UK and Mainland Europe, has introduced a new product to its range of Fortex® textured cladding systems. The new Render Finish Flat Cladding product has an attractive textured render finish and a flat appearance when installed. The product is 250mm wide, 5m long and is available in white and sand colours. It includes a range of matching accessories to ensure a neat and professional installation. The Fortex® range includes exterior cladding systems available in single and double plank format. Each format has an attractive textured effect and comes in a range of standard and bespoke colours. Fortex requires little maintenance once installed which is a major benefit for the owners of residential and mobile homes. Finally, Fortex comes with significant environmental credentials with the Building Research Establishment’s (BRE) ‘Green Guide To Specification’ giving PVC cladding an A+ rating when installed with standard components. Aidan Harte, Managing Director, Freefoam, comments: “we’re delighted to add the new Render Finish Flat Cladding product to the Fortex® range. The new product gives customers and homeowners additional choice when it comes to selecting a style and colour that suits their home or project. Fortex has proven to be very popular in Ireland, the UK and France in particular. The quality, quick installation and low maintenance features of the product are important selling points. In addition, the attractive textured effect and range of colours to choose from add significantly to the attractiveness of the product. We’re delighted with the popularity of the product to date and confident that sales will continue to increase as awareness of this innovative product continues to grow throughout Europe.” For further information please contact: Brendan Hyland, 021 4911043, brendan.hyland@freefoam.com

SAINT-GOBAIN WEBER EXTERNAL WALL INSULATION SYSTEM CUTS U-VALUE BY 70% FOR CAMBRIDGE BISF HOMES The BISF house is a steel framed house, designed and produced by the British Iron & Steel Federation and erected around the country from 1946. In Cambridgeshire these temporary prefab homes, constructed in 1950, are still standing securely today but lack adequate insulation. This is being remedied with the application of the BBA certified weber.therm XM External Wall Insulation (EWI) system by Saint-Gobain Weber, the leading UK formulator and manufacturer of innovative, high performance materials for the construction industry. The homes, owned by Cambridge City Council (CCC), were constructed with a modular steel frame on which the upper storey is clad with corrugated steel sheeting; the lower half of the building is formed with steel reinforced concrete blocks and render. Replacement windows have been installed in past years, fitted within the original steel outer frames which are part of the building framework. Surveys have calculated that the U-value of the properties, which vary slightly due to construction type, are between 0.72 – 0.79 W/m²K. CCC has prioritised the funding of a thermal improvement programme for 20 of the houses around Byron Square, an attractive memorial green space area on the outskirts of the City. The Council has a framework contract in place with main contractor Apollo, based in Essex, for the maintenance and refurbishment of the properties in the Byron Square programme. Insulation is installed around the deep window frames to protect against thermal bridging through the steel. Further information about Saint-Gobain Weber’s award-winning and Energy Saving Trust recommended EWI systems and render products is available 028 9335 2999 in Ireland, or visit www.netweber.co.uk

possible to apply the white first and finish with the grey but white is the recommended finish. According to Igoe, a huge advantage of this product is that the white finish, which, unlike silver reflective paint which lasts a year or two, is a once only application, is a lifetime job which reflects away over 80 per cent of UV light and the sun’s heat from the roof surface. This means that even on a hot day, a roof surface finished with white Gaco will be cool to the touch! Although a rare event… when the sun does shine, it causes the roof to expand loosening joints, seams etc. a problem compounded when frost comes along because trapped moisture forces additional stresses on those joints, seams etc. These expansion / contraction movements are the main reason we get problems on flat roof and when those stresses / movement are prevented by Gaco’s reflective properties, that damage is completely prevented. Igoe explained, “The reflection of heat from the roof also makes the building underneath more comfortable in warmer weather, thereby avoiding need for cooling fans or other air conditioning”. Another benefit of the material is because it is made from silicone it resists the accumulation of dirt and growth of mosses, meaning roof stays clean for longer. Gaco is normally applied by approved roofing contractors but with careful attention to instructions and by following safe working practices it can be self-applied by any competent home owner. “Gaco is available in two colours, grey & reflective white and the material, which requires two coats, costs around €8 per square meter per coat making it a highly cost effective alternative to other traditional methods” says Igoe. For more information about Gaco or to find your nearest stockist contact Igoe International Ltd on 018302250 or email info@ igoe.ie. Igoe International Ltd is based at 135 Slaney Road, Dublin Industrial Estate, Glasnevin, Dublin 11 Ireland. Website www. igoe.ie

Costly Flat Roof Problems Solved At Last Dublin based specialist distributor Igoe International Ltd has been appointed UK & Irish distributor by Gaco Western of Seattle USA for its high tech Gaco roof coating for flat roofs & low pitched roofs. Known as Gaco, the 100% Silicone Coating bonds tightly, is applied by roller to form a completely seamless, waterproof membrane & is now available to Roofing Contractors and Irish Home Owners. Company Managing Director, Brendan C Igoe, says “Gaco is ideal for the wet Irish climate. It has been developed by 55 year old Gaco Western Corp in rainy Seattle USA several years ago to cater for the on-going global problem of leaking flat roofs.” Gaco is unique in that being 100% silicone, it is guaranteed to be impenetrable by water, even under permanently ponding water on a flat roof. Because it remains flexible, it is ideal for a wide range of temperatures anywhere between -50c up to +50c without degradation & comes with a 50 year limited factory guarantee. Gaco can be applied to most clean dry, weathered roofs in temperatures ranging from 0c up to 50c. The coating, suitable for most flat or low pitch roof surfaces including felt, asphalt, concrete, steel, asbestos & plywood is applied in a two-coat process and is available in two shades, grey and white. The grey is normally applied first with the white applied as the finish coat. This two-coat /colour process ensures the right thickness of coating is applied. It’s also

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New Products & Company Showcase Freefoam installs New Guarantee Signage at Depot Branch Network Freefoam Plastics, the market leader in environmentally friendly, innovative roofline and rainwater products, has installed new signage at its depot branch network in Dublin North, Dublin Get Your South, Cork and Galway to help promote its 30 year extended Competitive Advantage guarantee/registered installer scheme. Freefoam offers a range of Here market leading product guarantees that help Freefoam stockists and registered installers maintain their competitive advantage in a challenging market. Having had many years of trouble free Stay ahead of the competition by performance in all weathers from Scotland to the South of France registering all installations to with its lead free formulations, its proprietary COLORMAX® give your customers Freefoam’s technology and its extra TiO2 UV protection, Freefoam offers market leading guarantees. an extended, transferable 30 year guarantee on all white roofline, cladding and rainwater products that are registered online. Freefoam’s standard guarantee on white products is 20 years, while its guarantee on coloured and foiled products is a market leading 10 years. Freefoam’s depot branch network stock a wide range of high quality plastic building products including Freeflow® gutters and downpipes, the Hedgehog™ gutter brush, fascia and soffit, Fortex® textured exterior cladding, window boards and trims, Geo-panel® interior decorative panelling, Edenex® low maintenance decking, and a wide range of additional tools and accessories. Aidan Harte, Managing Director, comments “We believe that it’s important to promote our 30 year extended guarantee/registered installer scheme at our depot branch network as the scheme helps our customers maintain their competitive advantage in this challenging market. The guarantees we offer result from our investment in research and development over many years and have led to the innovative UV resistance and colour technology in our products. We plan to continue innovating and expanding the excellent product offering at our depots to meet the building product needs of our customers for many years to come.” For further information please contact: Brendan Hyland, * Terms & conditions apply (see www.myfreefoam.com for details).

021 4911043, brendan.hyland@freefoam.com

Keep Gutters Clear with Freefoam’s Hedgehog™ Gutter Brush

Freefoam Plastics, the market leader in environmentally friendly, innovative roofline and rainwater products, has launched the award winning Hedgehog™ Gutter Brush. The product has been specifically designed to keep gutters and drains clear of leaves, twigs, sticks, birds and other wind-blown debris all year round. It is simple to fit and automatically adapts to the shape of any gutter. Blocked gutters can be a constant worry and the lack of regular, and often precarious, maintenance can cause irreversible damage to gutters, downpipes and roof tiles. This damage can, in turn, lead to more problems. These problems can be easily avoided by fitting the Hedgehog™ Gutter Brush. The product is manufactured using a stainless steel wire core and polypropylene bristles to create the long lasting gutter brush. The product is 100mm wide, 4m long and comes with clips for easy fitting. Aidan Harte, Managing Director, comments, “The response we have received from the award winning Hedgehog Gutter Brush has been very positive. There is strong interest in the easy fitting and low maintenance features of the product and we believe demand will continue to grow as people become familiar with the product. It really is a product for the modern lifestyle. It’s an innovative product and in today’s market people are looking for new offerings.” For further information please contact: Brendan Hyland, 021 4911043, brendan. hyland@freefoam.com

Freefoam launches new Geo-panel® Brochures to promote 2012 Range Comfort breakthrough: launch of largerFreefoam has launched two new Geo-panel® brochures to help size safety eyewear

stockist customers promote the new 2012 Geo-panel® ranges of interior decorative panelling: the 1m wide ‘Geo-panel Wide’ range and the 250mm wide ‘Ceiling & Wall Panel’ range. The brochures highlight the numerous unique features and benefits of the ranges. In addition, images of each of the 20 beautiful colours/ designs on offer are shown to display the wide choice on offer and make selection easy. Geo-panel offers installers, house builders, local authorities, developers and homeowners a stylish, modern and convenient interior decorative panelling system. The panels fit together with a waterproof tongue-and-groove joint to ensure quick and easy installation without the need for grouting. The ‘Geo-panel Wide’ range is 1m wide, 2.4m high and is perfect for bathroom shower applications. The unique 1m width of the ‘Geo-panel Wide’ panels ensures that they can be installed in a shower unit quicker and easier than any other panelling or tile product on the market today. This range comes in 10 beautiful designs and colours including black granite, travertine marble, light grey marble, white marble, ivory marble, pergamon marble, black marble, diamond white stone, diamond black stone and white. The ‘Ceiling & Wall Panel’ range is 250mm wide, 2.7m high and is suitable for a wide range of applications including ceilings, walls and showers. It also comes in 10 beautiful designs and colours including white gloss, white/silver 2-strip, diamond black stone, diamond white stone, black marble, pergamon marble, light grey marble, pastel grey marble, black wood and white wood. Each range comes with a number of trims to ensure a neat and professional installation. Aidan Harte, Managing Director, comments, “We’re delighted to launch the new Geo-panel brochures to help stockist customers promote the 2012 ranges. The 1m wide ‘Geo-panel Wide’ range in particular is an innovative product that saves installers time and money during installation and is unique to Freefoam. In most cases only two panels are required per shower unit. Both ranges are waterproof, hygienic, class 1 fire rated, durable, low maintenance and are available in a wide variety of attractive designs and colours. We’re confident that the two new Geo-panel ranges on offer will prove to be very popular in the market in the months and years ahead.” For further

information please contact: Brendan Hyland, 021 4911043, brendan.hyland@freefoam.com

SAINT-GOBAIN WEBER CELEBRATES 40 YEARS OF RENDER PRODUCTION AT BALLYCLARE, NI. The Saint-Gobain Weber render manufacturing plant at Ballyclare in Northern Ireland celebrates forty years of increasing production of styrene acrylic pastes and scratch textured products since the plant was opened in 1972. Regular investment has been the hallmark of the Ballyclare facility to increase manufacturing capacity and to expand the range of products available. A second powders line was installed in 1993 and in 1997 the Snowcem business was acquired and production moved to the more modern plant in Ballyclare where a further £600,000 plant upgrade took place and staff numbers increased by 20%. In 1998 the operations were acquired by Weber, part of the global Saint-Gobain organisation and world leader in the habitat and construction markets, to secure the Snowcem Cemrend brand which by that time was the market leading monocouche product in the UK. Further investment in a new packing line raised production capacity to 80,000 tonnes per year in 2004 and the continuous growth in the EWI and renders market is today projecting a 10% annual growth for the high quality products from Ballyclare. Saint-Gobain Weber opened an additional UK production base at Telford, Shropshire in Autumn 2008. Plans are already being implemented that will increase capacity of the styrene acrylic production line in 2012. Dave McKinstry has been at the Ballyclare facility since 1978 and is now responsible for the product research and development, but has experience in every facet of the plant operations. We continue to grow our presence in the construction market even though the industry is going through a tough period. I saw the EWI system in Germany in the mid-1980s and brought the method back to the UK and we have refined it over the years to be the highly successful product it is now. It’s a great solution to the energy crisis. In the same way whenever a new insulant has been introduced we have had to develop a render product that mates with it. As an indicator of how far the product range has grown our first colour card for renders had just 20 colours on offer. Now the list is close to 350 and of course architects want to request any of the 2000 colours in the NCS system. For sufficient volume we can and do mix up any colour from that range.” Further information is available from Saint-Gobain Weber on 028 9335 2999 in NI, or visit www.netweber.co.uk <http://www.netweber. co.uk/> and register to receive a copy of the Render Solutions Handbook. Alternatively a free download of the new weber.app for iPhone and iPad users is available from the iTunes app store.

A new design of larger-size safety eyewear launches today, after research revealed that almost a third of health and safety professionals (32%) believe their employees remove their safety eyewear due to poor comfort or fit. Specsavers Corporate Eyecare is launching the new eyewear in response to customer demand, after conducting its own research. Health and safety professionals agree that it is important for eye protection to be accurately fitted and issued on a personal basis. Jim Lythgow, director of strategic alliances at Specsavers Corporate Eyecare, says: ‘No matter how good the protection offered by safety eyewear might be, it’s of no use whatsoever if the spectacles are not actually worn. Providing safety eyewear that is fit for purpose must include ensuring that it is comfortable enough to wear frequently and for long periods of time. Along with a good health and safety ethos, this is the best way to protect your employees’ eyesight.’ The new larger-frame safety spectacles are available in the ‘Tudor’ style and complement the wide choice of sizes already available. This new size has been specifically designed to accommodate larger temple-widths. The metal frames are available in bronze or dark ‘gun-metal’ grey and are lightweight, flexible and fully adjustable. The Tudor spectacles are available with the full range of options from Specsavers Corporate Eyecare, such as, polycarbonate or toughened glass lenses, UV treatments and antireflective coating; all available with single vision, bifocal or varifocal lenses. Side screens and a scratch-resistance coating come as standard. Visit: www.specsavers.ie/corporate

UPDATED NSAI AGRÉMENT CERTIFICATION FOR WEBER.THERM EXTERNAL WALL INSULATION Saint-Gobain Weber, the leading formulator and manufacturer of innovative, high performance materials in the facades, external wall insulation, concrete repair, tile fixing and flooring systems, announces the replacement NSAI Agrément – Irish Agrément Board – certification for the weber. therm XM and XP External Wall Insulation (EWI) system. The updated certification applies to new build and refurbishment projects, encompassing various types of construction methods; low rise, traditional or non-traditional construction, or high rise multi-occupancy buildings. SaintGobain Weber’s high performance EWI systems are designed for the thermal improvement of hard-to-treat properties and aesthetic external upgrade. “The updated NSAI certification is easier to understand,” says Ciarán Kelly, National Sales Manager, Saint-Gobain Weber, “and offers our customers security and peace-of-mind in a system which has been independently and comprehensively reassessed by the leading authority in product and system approvals, from technical specification through to installation.” The certificate, number 09/0338, covers all main types of insulation boards in a range of thicknesses, (including the recently introduced superefficient lower lambda grey EPS boards,) and all varieties of low maintenance, decorative finishes including dry dash, synthetic renders which are available in a wide palette of colours, and scraped render. For weber.therm XP EWI, the revolutionary One-Coat system, certification covers the polymer modified, through-coloured mineral render used in this fast-application system which achieves great on-site efficiencies. Products are manufactured at the Ballyclare, Co. Antrim facility, one of the three manufacturing sites in the UK, and carry a 10-year guarantee. In assessing weber.therm XM and XP EWI, the NSAI has tested the system for thermal performance, strength and stability, fire resistance, condensation and the design life of the system, which is a minimum 30 years. The weber.therm XM and XP EWI systems have been NSAI certificated for 30 years, is fully compliant with current regulations, and is Energy Saving Trust accredited. The installation of weber.therm XM and XP EWI is carried out by installers who have been trained by Saint-Gobain Weber, and are approved by SaintGobain Weber and NSAI Agrément. More information about Saint-Gobain Weber’s EWI and render products is available on 028 9335 2999, or visit www.weber.ie

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