Construction Management Ireland Spring/Summer '23

This issue sees us hit the ground running with a selection of features and news items that provide a flavour of activity across our main areas of coverage.

As usual, education and training is right up there in what we do and our ‘On the Record’ feature this time out is on WorldSkills, with a special focus on the biennial WorldSkills International General Assembly, taking place in Dublin this year; a year out from WorldSkills, Lyon in 2024.

This is a significant event – taking place in the ‘European Year of Skills’ – and it will see up to 105 delegations from around the world descend on the capital.

Coming immediately on the heels of our WorldSkills event in September, the synergies that will be created will be enormous by any reckoning.

Elsewhere, we check in on the topic of learning – and more besides - with individual companies that invest heavily in talent development; companies like Suir Engineering and Kirby, for instance, who are amongst those who set the pace on so many levels.

We hear the thoughts of organisations such as Engineers Ireland and hear from colleges like Atlantic Technical University (ATU), as well.

It is from ATU that the winners of this year’s CIOB Student Challenge have emerged. We read about their success and wish them well. Elsewhere, we hear about some remarkable training work being done in Africa by Designer Group.

Yes, education and training really does permeate right throughout our issue, as always – maybe even more than usual this time!

Apart from all that, as we like to say, it’s business as usual, and we have all our regular items including: ‘Lean Journeys’, ‘Green Building’, ‘Out & About’ and ‘Personal & Finance’, along with a look at ‘The Lie of The Land’ featuring Construction Information Services and others.

We round it off with news, views, products and services and a little bit of inspiration too!

We hope you enjoy the issue. We certainly enjoyed putting it all together.

THE CONSTRUCTION PROFESSIONAL CENTRE STAGE

Editor Martin

‘AS USUAL, EDUCATION AND TRAINING IS RIGHT UP THERE IN WHAT WE DO.’

12 On The Record

Cmi

CONTENTS

4 News Items from the industry and the wider economy

10 CIOB News

The Student Challenge competition – tomorrow’s leaders shine!

18 The Lie of the Land

We check in with our friends from Construction Information Services

23 Out & About

At the tsb Ideal Home Show 2023 and more

26 ESB Networks

A message for our readers

28 Clúid

21 Lean Journeys

Lean Construction Ireland launch training course portfolio

Clúid Housing and Clann deliver new homes in Portlaoise

30 Pipelife Eco

Leading designer and supplier of thousands of Home Heating Solutions each year

34 Training & Careers

Designer Group, Kirby, Chadwicks, Engineers Ireland and so much more!

43 Green Building

We check in with the Irish Green Building Council (IGBC)

46 Facilities Management

Once again here’s our FM guru, Pat Gaughan

48 And Finally

Again, Jeff Haden rounds it all off for us on an inspiring note!

32 A message from Suir

‘Suir Engineering continues to invest in their most important assets, their people’

Speaking with David Hoey, CEO WorldSkills International

Irish construction activity slips deeper into contraction territory

Ireland's construction sector continued to struggle during April amid a sharper contraction in activity and slower rises in new orders, employment and input buying.

Little respite was offered in terms of any easing in inflationary and supply pressures. In fact, the extents to which supplier performance worsened and input prices increased were greater than seen in March.

Optimistic

Still, firms were optimistic in their outlook for the future. The headline seasonally adjusted BNP Paribas Real Estate Ireland Construction Total Activity Index posted below the crucial 50.0 mark separating growth from contraction in April to

signal a seventh successive reduction in total activity.

At 48.4, down from 49.5 in March, the latest reading was indicative of the most pronounced reduction in Irish construction activity in three months.

The latest data highlighted a sustained decline in housing activity that was stronger than seen in the previous survey period. Meanwhile, commercial activity increased for a third month in a row, albeit only mildly. According to survey respondents, construction activity was weighed down by a general slowdown in market demand.

Uplift

Nevertheless, April survey data signalled a sustained uplift in new order inflows

at the start of the second quarter of 2023. But, with customers still reportedly cautious about market conditions, the increase was only marginal overall and historically subdued.

A rise in workforce numbers of the same magnitude was subsequently recorded in April as companies looked to add to their staffing levels in line with the uplift in sales.

As such, the rate of job creation was the weakest in the current four-month sequence. Similarly, firms increased their buying activity in April but at the slowest pace in three months.

Elsewhere, Irish construction firms continued to grapple with a further lengthening in average delivery times. In

SEAI AWARDS €19 MILLION IN GOVERNMENT FUNDING FOR ENERGY RESEARCH PROJECTS IN IRELAND

The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland has announced that it has awarded approximately €19m in Government funding to support more than forty new energy research projects across Ireland.

These projects bring together leading academic institutes, companies, and public sector organisations and were supported with co-funding from the Department of Transport, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and ESB Networks.

The 2023 Climate Action Plan aims to transform and improve life in Ireland, setting out how Ireland will accelerate action to respond to the climate and

energy crisis, with research and innovation central to achieving these goals.

Projects awarded are directly aligned to national energy targets and ambitions and will be central to informing Ireland’s climate action and achievement of our medium- to longterm climate and energy targets.

Projects awarded cover a wide range of topics including research investigating, among others:

offshore wind technologies, with hen harriers,

fact, the extent to which lead times worsened was the greatest since January.

Quickened

The rate of input cost inflation has been on a downward trend since its peak in October 2021 but, against this trend, the rate of costs increases pickedup slightly in April. Inflation of the rates charged by subcontractors also quickened from March.

Sub-contractor usage was up for a third month in a row, while availability fell at the sharpest rate in nine months.

Firms remained positive in their projections for output over the coming year. Optimism was mainly centred around hopes for a pick-up in developmental activity.

of residential buildings,

and inclusion for energy sector transformation.

Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications,

crucial to address Ireland’s energy and climate ambitions.

Development and Demonstration Funding Programme continues to support our national experts to innovate.

‘Successful projects demonstrate enthusiasm to find solutions to Ireland’s energy needs, to support policy with cutting-edge research outputs and ultimately to accelerate Ireland’s clean energy transition.’

Costs: Report indicates some variation cross regions

A report earlier this year by the Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland (SCSI) showed that while construction costs were continuing to rise, the rate of

increase eased significantly in the last six months of 2022.

Increased

The Tender Price Index published by the SCSI

showed the rate of commercial construction inflation increased by 4% in the second half of 2022, down from a record high of 7.5% in the first six months of the year.

According to the SCSI’s Tender Price Index, the annual rate of inflation from January 2022 to December 2022 was 11.5%, down from 14% in the preceding year.

The report indicates some variation across the regions with a higher rate of inflation of 5% recorded in the Rest of Leinster and Connacht / Ulster while the median rate in Dublin and Munster is in line with the national figure of 4%.

Substantial

Kevin Brady, chair of the Quantity Surveying Professional Group in the SCSI said that while the sustained rate of increase was still substantial, the reduction in the rate of increase – which the SCSI predicted at the time of the last report – was a welcome development.

‘The easing of the rate of tender price inflation seen in the last six months of 2022 is due to fuel and energy prices abating toward the back end of the year coupled with a slight easing of supply chain issues,’ he said.

‘These changes have contributed to the more moderate fluctuations in material prices that Ireland has been experiencing since 2021,' he said at the time of the report.

Hope

He continued: ‘While the hope would be that the downward trend will continue this year, 4% is still a high figure and it’s clear the effects of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine – particularly with regard to increased fuel and energy costs – continues to dominate the market.

‘Material price increases are expected to continue to fluctuate with rises likely until there is a marked decrease in the cost of electricity, gas, and other fuels.

‘Materials which are energy intensive to produce such as aggregates, plasterboard, insulation, and plastic ducting are continuing to experience price rises into 2023,' Brady said at the time.

Kieran Holohan appointed managing director of Saint-Gobain Ireland

Saint Gobain Ireland is pleased to announce the appointment of Kieran Holohan as its new managing director.

Kieran began his tenure as managing director on 1 May, 2023, succeeding Pádraig Barry who is retiring.

Kieran joined Saint-Gobain in 2007 and has spent the last nine years as marketing director for Saint-Gobain Ireland.

Prior to this, he held the positions of marketing manager with Moy Isover and strategy manager for SaintGobain Ireland.

During this time, he has been instrumental in the development of Saint-Gobain’s Gyproc and Isover businesses and played a pivotal role in the organisation’s wider success.

Integral

Throughout his career at SaintGobain, Kieran has been an integral part of the leadership team and has amassed extensive experience of the Irish construction market and the competitive dynamics that shape it.

In his new role as managing director, ‘Kieran will be responsible for developing and executing business strategies for the Saint-Gobain brands Gyproc and Isover in Ireland.

He will oversee the company’s executive team, manage the company’s business operations,

ABOVE: Saint-Gobain Ireland is pleased to announce the appointment of Kieran Holohan as its new managing director. Kieran will begin his tenure as managing director on 1 May, 2023, succeeding Pádraig Barry who is retiring.

as well as continuing to grow and enhance Saint-Gobain’s brand profile as leaders in the Irish building materials market.

Laoise

A Laois native, Kieran holds a Bachelor in Business Studies from the Atlantic Technological University and was recently awarded an MBA from the South East Technological Institute in 2022.

An all-round sports enthusiast, Kieran is a passionate Gaelic games

Shaun get’s his just reward!

Quantity Surveying student, Shaun Ferry of Gortahork, Donegal, was recently presented with the Student of the Year Award by the Chartered Association of Building Engineers (CABE) for achieving top marks in his first year across the Department of Civil Engineering and Construction at Atlantic Technological University (ATU) Donegal.

Present

T.J McMenamin of MCM Associates Architecture and Surveying, Raphoe, attended

ATU Donegal on behalf of CABE to present their annual award for best first year student to Shaun.

T.J McMenamin said on behalf of CABE that he was delighted to present the award to Shaun as a just reward for his hard work.

T.J formally presented Shaun with a CABE certificate and bursary cheque.

Shaun, who is now in his third year of the BSc (Hons) in Quantity Surveying, was delighted to make the trip back to ATU Donegal for the award presentation as he was

and soccer fan, and currently enjoys mountain biking.

He is also the vice chairperson of the development committee for his local football club, Mooncoin Celtic.

Delighted

Speaking on his appointment as managing director of Saint-Gobain Ireland, Kieran Holohan said:

‘I am delighted to be appointed managing director of Saint-Gobain Ireland. I want to thank Pádraig for the stellar work done under his leadership and the substantial contribution he has made to this organisation during his sixteen years of service.

‘As a key contributor to the construction of safe and sustainable buildings in Ireland, I have a huge passion for our organisation and its ability to do an enormous power for good.

‘As a worldwide leader in light and sustainable construction, we have a key role to play in building a carbonneutral economy in Ireland.

‘I look forward to leading our exceptionally talented team to continued success and further growth as we play our part to ensure Irish buildings are efficient, safe, sustainable and great places to live and work.

I will dedicate myself to ensuring the growth ambitions for the organisation are realised and that we build on our strengths to deliver the best possible service to our loyal customer base.’

on placement with Scollard Doyle, Quantity Surveyors based in Dún Laoghaire.

Achievement

Anne Boner, Head of Department of Civil Engineering and Construction Management congratulated Shaun on his great achievement and wished him well with his future studies and placement year.

Anne also thanks CABE for their generous sponsorship of the award and for their ongoing support of the ATU Donegal civil and construction programmes.

Established in 1890, Jones Engineering has evolved into a leading global mechanical, electrical, and fire protection contractor, operating across regions including Ireland, the United Kingdom, Central Europe, Northern Europe, and the Middle East.

With a rich history rooted in education, training, and innovation, Jones Engineering has gained international recognition for delivering exceptional engineering solutions.

With a turnover in excess of €1bn and a workforce of over 4,200 people, the company's unwavering commitment to excellence has propelled its global growth and solidified its position as a trusted partner for clients around the world.

Jones Engineering's century-long journey has been defined by its steadfast commitment to expanding its global footprint.

From its humble beginnings, the company recognised the importance of embracing new markets and seizing opportunities for growth.

The company's ability to adapt and thrive in diverse international

Jones Engineering: Engineering without borders

environments is a testament to its enduring success.

Seamlessly

The company’s capacity to seamlessly operate in different countries, with varying regulatory environments and cultural nuances, sets them apart from competitors.

By combining local expertise with a global perspective, Jones Engineering navigates complex projects with ease, ensuring compliance, efficiency, and excellence at every stage.

This ability to offer consistent, world-class solutions regardless of geographical location has earned the company a stellar reputation worldwide.

One of Jones Engineering's greatest assets is its diverse and highly skilled team.

By embracing diversity

and fostering a culture of inclusivity, the company brings together a wealth of knowledge and expertise.

This global talent pool enables Jones Engineering to tackle projects of any scale or complexity, leveraging its collective intelligence and cross-cultural understanding to deliver exceptional results.

Clients benefit from the company's capacity to seamlessly adapt to local requirements.

Beyond borders

Jones Engineering's commitment to forging client relationships extends beyond borders.

The company has established itself as a trusted partner for clients in different industries across the world by consistently delivering on its promises and surpassing expectations.

The company's reputation

for excellence, reliability, and collaborative approach has become synonymous with its global brand.

As Jones Engineering continues to expand its global reach, it remains at the forefront of innovation in the industry.

Invests heavily

The company invests heavily in research and development, harnessing the latest technologies and industry trends to drive efficiency, sustainability, and performance in its projects worldwide.

By pioneering new solutions and embracing emerging technologies, Jones Engineering ensures that it remains a leader in its field, offering clients cutting-edge engineering solutions that address the challenges of today and tomorrow.

Considerate Constructors scheme appoints Amit Oberoi as executive chairman

Amit Oberoi has been appointed as executive chairman of the Considerate Constructors Scheme - the organisation which works with the construction industry to improve its image - to help raise its standards and build public trust in construction.

March

Amit took on this role with effect from 1 March 2023, having held the position of non-executive chairman from July 2022 and board director from January 2022.

Amit will lead the organisation on an interim basis, while the board resumes the recruitment of a new chief executive.

Amit is a global risk management practitioner, with over twenty years cross-industry experience in leadership roles in construction, technology, management consulting and national authorities.

Excited

Amit says: ‘I am excited to take on this role and to be able to put my knowledge and experience to work in developing the organisation.

‘I will be guiding the efforts of the executive, upholding our values, and delivering a smooth transition to the new chief executive when we make this appointment.’

ABOVE: Amit Oberoi

EVERY DAY IS AN

We delivered a 60MW data centre in the Netherlands faster than any similar sized data centre in the World

Working in extreme heat environments reaching temperatures of +40

Working on offshore oil rigs prone to 100 mph winds and 80 ft wave surges

When you map out your day does it include working with the worlds leading multinational companies? We deliver diverse, cutting-edge projects throughout 19 countries across the globe.

Is it time for a new adventure? You’ll find it at joneseng.com/careers

Students from three Atlantic Technological University (ATU) campuses have won 1st, 2nd and 3rd place in this year’s Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB)’s Student Challenge competition, with ATU Galway City campus student team winning first place.

The CIOB ‘Tomorrow’s Leaders’ annual challenge attracts teams from universities across Ireland and was held in Thomond Park, Limerick, this year. Teams of four were given a challenging brief to analyse a proposed commercial development project and provide a report to six experienced industry judges within four hours.

Report

Their report dealt with design, delivery, cost and time planning, risk management, value engineering, sustainability, accessibility and modern methods of construction. Each team made a presentation and answered challenging questions from the judges.

The ATU Galway City team who took first place are:

Kara Earle, Architectural Technology student from Athlone

Kenneth Hynes, Quantity Surveying student from Galway City

Liam McDonagh, Construction Management student from Corofin, Co Galway

Simon O’Grady, Construction Management student from

Kilbeacanty, Co Galway.

The mixture of built environment disciplines in the Galway team was key to their success. They were mentored and supported by their lecturers John Hanahoe and Dr Martin Taggart.

Colleagues

Students and colleagues from ATU Donegal and an all-female team from ATU Sligo were placed 2nd and 3rd respectively.

John Hanahoe, Senior Lecturer at ATU Galway, says: ‘The challenge gives students a great opportunity to work in teams in a pressurised competitive situation.

Comprehensive ATU Galway-Mayo offers a comprehensive suite of Built Environment programmes at undergraduate and postgraduate levels including the following:

Architectural Technology, Civil Engineering, Construction Management, and Quantity Surveying.

The ATU Donegal team who took second place are all from County Donegal: Maria McShane from Raphoe, Mark Siewer from Rathmullan, Adam Stewart from Kilmacrennan and Donagh McGowan from Ballyshannon – all final year Construction Management students.

The Department of Civil Engineering and Construction at ATU Donegal offers a 4-year BSc (Hons) in Construction Management and also an HCI (Human Capital Initiative) funded BSc (Hons) in Construction Contracts Management, delivered online, which is available on the Springboardcourses.ie website.

They were mentored by their lecturers Antoin MacGabhann and Anthony McElwee.

All-female team

The Sligo team, the first all-female team in this competition, who won third place, are: Quantity Surveying students Amy Donohoe from Sligo and Maryann McCann from Roscommon, and Construction Project Management students, Meghan Hasselfelt and Stephanie Cardenas, both from Canada.

They were mentored by their lecturer Lisa Brennan.

The compilation of the all-female team stems from the ‘female network group’ initiative in the ATU Sligo department of Civil and Construction which was established in 2021.

President

Dr Orla Flynn, ATU President, stated that she was delighted to hear that the three ATU teams put forward to the CIOB student challenge competition took first, second and third place overall.

‘I was particularly impressed to see ATU Sligo’s all-female team on the podium,' she said.

‘This replicates the real working environment and, although the students find the whole occasion challenging, I know that they also find it very rewarding.

‘We hold similar events across our undergraduate built environment programmes.’

‘Given the significant shortage of graduates entering the construction sector, it is even more important to see a better gender balance emerging so that teams can be more diverse and inclusive and we will eventually see an increase in overall numbers entering this sector.’

‘Tomorrow’s Leaders’ shine at Thomond Park!

‘I WAS PARTICULARLY IMPRESSED TO SEE ATU SLIGO’S ALL-FEMALE TEAM ON THE PODIUM.’

– DR ORLA FLYNN, ATU PRESIDENT

A view from the top

Atotal of up to 105 delegations will make Dublin their destination this September for the WorldSkills General Assembly. This huge biennial event takes place a year out from Lyon where the next WorldSkills event will take place. David Hoey is CEO of WorldSkills International. Recently in town as part of the forward planning for this major event, he took time out to meet with CMi to consider skills training, future pathways - and the enormous Irish contribution to WorldSkills down through the years.

CMi: Hi David and welcome to Ireland. First off: what is WorldSkills?

DH: WorldSkills is a global movement made up of member organisations around the world. Our members are the body or agency within each country responsible for the promotion of vocational education and training (VET).

Paraphrasing that: WorldSkills is a direct link to every VET system in the world.

What we do, which is our Unique Value Proposition is we drive up skills performance and provide a global benchmarking for every VET system in the world and we focus on excellence and not just competence.

In a world that is competency-based you want to know the difference between competency and excellence.

That’s the output. The return is about industry in a global market –companies selling their products at the best price in that global market. A skilled workforce is critical.

The other piece is that around the world too many people think unless you have gone to university you have failed.

We constantly promote that a career in the skills trades and technologies is a very good first choice career option for young people and the process of skills competitions is proven to drive up performance towards excellence, increase enrolments in VET and provide a global benchmarking.

CMi: What about the dynamics of doing what you do on a global perspective? Some places are at different points on their journeys; with 85 countries some may be competing with each other. Where do you come to all of this in WorldSkills?

DH: We are a membership

organisation which means we are very open and have a transparent approach to helping everyone and, as the phrase says: ‘a rising tide lifts all boats’.

You have different ways to look at it. You have those who are already leading countries and want to maintain that competitive edge.

If you look at VET, one way to describe it is ‘getting people workforce-ready’.

So, the moment when they leave their formal vocational educational and training they can hit the workforce and be ready to produce; as opposed to having to go through a lot more training in the workplace.

So leading countries are obviously looking at maintaining that edge and

others are trying to drive up to that point.

And when you look at developing, emerging economies around the world they are looking to learn from those countries.

They may not be out to get a gold medal but to increase their performance and they have targeted goals – no different to an Olympic athlete where some will go to the Olympics never with the expectation to win a gold medal but they go there for a personal best and to drive up their performance.

And so, as a collective organisation of course, a lot of the leading economies will sell to the developing emerging economies and so it’s all

about economic development at the community, company and country level.

CMi: It seems that there are fewer and fewer jobs now where you don’t need some training to begin – certainly fewer unskilled jobs, it occurs to us anyhow, than when a lot of us may have left school. Have you any observations on that?

DH: The need for skilled labour is everywhere around the world. Look at developing, emerging economies where young people may not go to university but can learn a skill and immediately, in micro economies, start generating an income.

A lot of developing economies are looking at micro development right, through to fully- fledged national vocational education systems.

You used to have the phrase, ‘a jack

of all trades’, whereas today there is more and more specific technical knowledge required.

The tools that you use have more and more ‘smarts’ and more and more chips go into products.

WorldSkills has large, global corporations who work with us and they give us an insight into the

demands of industry from a global perspective.

We created a model where those companies are ‘global partners’. They are linked in with our mission and vision and give us financial support to drive the mission globally.

(Also, we might have a couple of hundred companies who sponsor the event, say, when we run the competitions and they will be a combination of maybe domestic companies and our global partners. The sponsors could be, say, a leading hospitality company providing cutlery to Restaurant Services for example.)

They have two reasons. They are interested in showcasing their leading edge technology in their products and services.

Stanley Black & Decker, for example, are putting more and more ‘smarts’ into the tools.

Ray English on the WorldSkills General Assembly, Dublin, September 2023

WorldSkills Ireland is hosting the General Assembly of WorldSkills International in September of this year, explains Ray English.

This is clearly a hugely significant event on the international stage with serious players from right around the world set to take part.

It will take place in close proximity to the national event here and the Higher Options event, meaning enormous opportunities to capitalise on synergies created.

Biennial

The assembly, explains Ray – who is Head of Mechanical Engineering Apprenticeships, Technological University

Dublin and WorldSkills Ireland

Chair-Technical Delegate –is a biennial meeting of all of the members and regions and also the global partners.

‘WorldSkills partners with other global organzations like UNESCO, ILO, UNIDO, OECD, African Union, and European Commission and many will

be in attendance,’ he notes.

‘I think we are hosting at a key moment,’ stresses Ray. He refers to how, in Ireland, we have seen key changes in the education system here and value being added to apprenticeship systems.

Registrations

There has been an increase in registrations from ten thousand to close to thirty thousand, he reminds us. And currently you can also go up to level ten – going from post-secondary education levels to PhD.

The range of offerings and the achievements are to be celebrated and this we will be doing as a nation.

‘It’s important’, says Ray, to ‘showcase to the other members how a system can transform itself.

‘There are now so many ways to progress. There is a large variety of apprenticeships. Of course there is still a bit of work to do.’

The statistics, however, look good. For example,

looking at the post-show report from Higher Options in 2022, (the huge careers event that runs at the same time as the national skills competitions), Ray notes how attendance shows at 47% female.

It is he agrees, a really positive indicator.

Positive

‘Our next job is to grow our own range of competitions and reflect more the emerging sectors,’ Ray adds. Indeed, Ireland has been no slouch when it comes

to pushing the envelope along the way. ‘We would have been first to do Cloud Computing and BIM for example’, Ray notes.

‘Others have introduced new sectors also and people should look within their economies to see where the gaps are; where are those emerging trends and gaps?’

WorldSkills Ireland 2022

16,000 registered Over 80 exhibitors

86% likely to visit WSI again 233 schools attended 98% of exhitors were satisfied with event

WorldSkills Ireland 2023 will take place the week before the WorldSkills International biennial General Assembly linking the members and regions in the European Year of Skills.

Dates for WorldSkills

Ireland 2023 are 20-22 September. The General Assembly will be held from 25 to 28 September.

In older times maybe two people would do a job; now it can be done with one person. And some ‘smarts’ on the product which might come back to your phone or whatever.

The other thing is, as they go globally and they have manufacturing facilities around the world, they need workers in those factories, for everything from initial set up and commissioning to ongoing maintenance and production increases.

And if you work in products that are fast moving consumer goods you’re changing your product range every 6 months to two years. So, you have to have people who can flexibly fix etc.

So yes, there is this trend around the world that people are getting more and more specific knowledge.

But the other thing you are seeing around the world is that transversal skills are more and more important.

The ability to troubleshoot, communicate and problem-solve – whether you are in construction, engineering, the services sector or whatever, a lot of these skills are common.

This is a key skill that employers are looking for, as, when you are trouble-

shooting you have to be able to talk to people, to be able to describe what’s happening and work that through.

The other thing is sustainability. In one of our competitions in the past we had a sector called ‘Green Skills’.

But we dropped it because we recognised that now, every sector has

‘greening’ going on and it is something that is very important to us all.

So you are seeing this total, holistic look at skills development around the world – the technical skills, the transversal skills, sustainability etc. And ultimately that is what companies are looking for.

CMi: How is the trip going in preparation for the big event in September – and how are you finding your trip to Ireland generally?

DH: I love Ireland. I love the people; there’s a spirt there. And Ireland is a key player in WorldSkills.

In fact, Ireland was one of the first members to join in Europe as it was growing, in the 1950s.

We have a project – ‘The WorldSkills Museum’ – and we have been able to come to Ireland and dragnet some amazing stuff from the past!

I caught up with a close friend from the building materials and construction industry (on this trip) and saw how, in Ireland there is a high and urgent need for skilled workers coming into the industries, the building industry, industrial, commercial.

To me, what I see in Ireland is common around the world. The opportunities and jobs are there.

Companies have the potential to turn that into business; they just don’t have the labour force to be able to capitalise on it.

So, you come back to grassroots which is that, when people are going through school and thinking about what they are going to do afterwards, we have to showcase that a career in skills, trades and technologies is a really good first choice career option.

It is a rewarding career. You can make a lot of money. It will open doors. You will develop skills that will set you up for life.

Apprenticeships are a great programme as you can earn while you learn.

There is a place for everyone. We have to develop a culture that sees VET as a very good alternative, a very good first choice option to a university pathway.

We have to change the paradigm thinking of parents too. We find that, often, they may be basing their imagery on, say, twenty years ago.

CMi: What would you like to see happen for WorldSkills in future?

DH: I think there are two aspects. Our organisational development and our competition development.

The WorldSkills competition today is globally renowned. It is a showcase for skills excellence, an ability for the counties to benchmark VET systems, and gives individuals the chance to show how good they are.

Wouldn’t it be great if they had the same recognition as a sports star? Because everyone has this opportunity.

Globally I’d like to see the organisation continue to grow our respect and position in the global VET landscape.

We are really good at the moment as we are seen as a key player.

We have partnerships with major organisations but I would still love to be a household name.

Wouldn’t it be great if, when a young person says: ‘I’m going to become a plumber or carpenter, people go, ‘wow, that is a fantastic career option’.

Instead of that thinking that is still residual that says: ‘oh…you didn’t get to go to university’.

The General Assembly will be held from 25 to 28 September.

David Hoey, CEO WorldSkills International

Recruited in November 2004 ‘to provide professional management of the organization including strategic, operational and administrative responsibility’, David has progressively developed WorldSkills International to be a global organisation capitalising on its unique and very important role in the showcasing and development of skills excellence.

David has a Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering (Mech), Certificate IV in Training and Assessment and a Masters of Business Administration.

He is a Graduate Member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

Recent studies include Strategic Perspectives for Non-profit Management at Harvard Business School and Performance Measurement of Non-profit Organizations at Harvard Kennedy School.

He worked as a Project/Systems Engineer, Sales Consultant, Technical and Sales Support, Training Consultant, National Training Manager, National Manager, and Owner/Manager of a consulting business prior to joining WorldSkills International.

David initially specialised in industrial automation and control technology and then focused on training and consulting, business development, and productivity solutions.

He has worked for and consulted to large Multi-National Corporations as well as small businesses.

‘IN A WORLD THAT IS COMPETENCY BASED YOU WANT TO KNOW THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN COMPETENCY AND EXCELLENCE.’

Construction Activity Republic of Ireland

This time out we take a look back over activity in 2022 courtesy of Construction Information Services.

Planning Applications

Submitted The planning pipeline for 2022 topped the €30bn mark reflecting a high degree of optimism in the Irish economy.

Planned investment was up 35.6 % on the previous year and over 55% from 2020 although the impact of the pandemic must be taken into account in that year.

The residential sector accounted for €18bn of planned pipeline investment with almost €8bn directed towards apartment development in Dublin.

Non-residential planning showed growth in most sectors outside of medical

which saw a sharp decline in the number of hospital beds planned, falling from 610 in 2021 to just 151 in 2022.

Nursing home bed provision planned fell from 3,454 in 2021 to 2,798 in 2022. The highest growth area was

in office developments which rose from 513k SqM planned in 2021 to over 1m SqM planned in 2022.

Planning Applications

Granted The overall value of planning applications granted in 2022 fell by 7% from 2021. In the public sector pipeline investment from projects granted permission rose 35.8% to €3.3bn

Residential Sector

Plans granted in the residential sector fell in

value by 12.3% from 2021, representing a decrease from 44.7k residential units approved in 2021 to 42.2k units approved in 2022.

Somewhat surprising is a decrease of over 5k in apartment units granted permission. At the time of writing, over 15k residential units under appeal are beyond the decision due date

assigned by An Bord Pleanála.

Regionally, the Midlands, South-West, Mid-West and Border regions all showed pipeline value growth while Dublin and the West declined in planned investment by 31.3% and 54.4% respectively. Non-Residential Sectors Projects granted permission showed moderate growth in value in 2022 rising by

3% from the previous year and by 2% from 2020.

Community related projects and shops and retail projects showed the largest decline with plans granted in these sectors falling in value by 19.4% and 43.4% respectively.

In total, there were 1,773 classrooms, 528 hospital beds, 3,195 hotel beds,

Review 2022

1,768 nursing homes beds and 2,438 student accommodation beds granted permission in 2022.

The value of plans granted in the Southern region grew by 13.5% with the largest growth areas being in the medical, pharmaceutical and education sectors while projects granted permission in the hotel sector fell by 58.5% and community related projects granted permission fell by 56.8%

Project Starts

Over 2,400 new projects started on site in 2022 equating to just short of €10bn investment. This represented a modest 1.6% growth from 2021.

Starts in the southern region grewby 33.5% from the previous year to €3.1bn while starts in the in the Eastern and Midland region fell by 8.1% and by 9.7% in the Northern and Western region.

Residential Sector

668 new residential projects started in 2022 equating to approximately 11k scheme

houses and 14.5 apartment units scheduled to be built over the coming years. In addition, there were 13 new student accommodation projects started representing 2,141 beds.

In terms of residential units actually commenced in 2022 from these new projects and from new phases of existing projects, there were 22k scheme and apartment units and over 5k self builds started.

Non-residential Sectors

Although the volume of non-residential project starts

rose from 1,480 in 2021 to 1,711 in 2022, the overall value of these projects fell by 2% to €3.3bn.

Notable declines in projects starts last year compared to 2021 included Warehousing and Storage (down 31%), Data Centres (down 59%), Offices (down7.3%) and Hotels (down 49.6%).

Notable increases in starts from 2021 included the Industrial sector (up 53%), the pharmaceutical sector (up 42%) and the Education sector where school starts rose by 41% and project starts in the Higher Education

sector rose by 138%.

Regional growth in new project starts rose by 17.2% in the Southern Region to over €1bn, most notably in Limerick where new projects accounted for €254m an increase from €77m in 2021.

Kilkenny and Clare also showed significant increases in the value of new starts from the previous year. Although starts in the Eastern and Midland region fell by 8.4% in value from 2021, County Meath had 81 new project starts representing a huge 545% increase on 2021 representing €187m of investment

ABOVE: At the launch of the Capability Development initiative

Lean Construction Ireland Launch Training Course Portfolio

Lean Construction Ireland (LCi) is a not-for-profit, membership-based organisation with a vision to transform the Irish construction sector through the adoption of Lean thinking and practices as part of the design and construction process, and move the industry towards more efficient, cost effective and collaborative approaches where projects are Delivered Better, Faster and Together.

With over 1,700 members, LCi has developed key resources to assist the construction sector adapt Lean, including monthly webinars, annual national conferences and Book of Cases.

A review of case studies from the LCi Book of Cases 2022, revealed that a wide array of Lean tools is being used in Ireland, and all cases indicated

benefits from the Lean initiative, the most common being an improvement in quality, then cost, followed by time and safety.

Enabler

Training of staff has been identified is a key enabler to lean adoption and was referenced in eleven of the sixteen companies (69%) as key enablers to Lean implementation and continuous improvement.

To address Lean training requirements,

Lean Construction Ireland would like to announce the launch of the LCi Course Portfolio, consisting of a suite of training programmes that promise to become the standard for the sector in Lean training and certification within the Irish construction sector.

The Portfolio is made up of the LCi White Belt and Yellow Belt which are currently available, as well as the Green Belt that will be launched in the coming months.

These courses are delivered by a shortlist of LCi-approved, independent training bodies.

The Course Portfolio was developed to provide the

was (From Left to Right) Derek Sinnott, Gordan Darcy, Richard Fitzpatrick and Trevor McSharry

Architecture, Engineering, Construction and Facility Management (AECFM) sector and Clients/Owners with a suite of standardised Lean Construction corporate training courses.

Designed

These courses are primarily designed to enable Lean Construction for capital project design and delivery purposes, as well as for internal organisational operational excellence.

As part of its strategy for capability development, LCi secured funding from the ICBE Advanced Productivity Skillnet to develop the course portfolio training material in Lean Construction.

Trevor McSharry, director with LCi and Head of Department of Civil Engineering and Construction at ATU Sligo who is leading this initiative explained:

‘It was a pleasure to have worked on this initiative and to have developed a robust training process with comprehensive training material to assist the LCi approved training partners. The LCi Course Portfolio may only be delivered by LCi Registered Course Trainers, and I was extremely impressed with the depth and breadth of lean knowledge shown by these training partners.

‘Their approach to continuous improvement and the high level of commitment to further developing lean in the construction community, highlights the appetite and drive overall within the industry to deliver quality projects Better, Faster and Together.’

Aim

The primary aim of the LCi White Belt Course is for Client/Owner and AECFM participants to understand the fundamentals of Lean and to speak the same Lean language on-site and/or in the office.

Upon completion, participants will be able to:

The primary aim of the LCi Yellow Belt Course is for Client/Owner and AECFM participants to develop into frontline practitioners capable of improving the process and workplace.

Upon completion of the Yellow Belt course, participants will be able to:

If you are a professional trainer and wish to apply to be an LCi Registered Course Trainer, email training@ leanconstructionireland.ie for further information on the application process.

For further information on how to join Lean Construction Ireland visit; www. leanconstructionireland.ie or contact info@leanconstructionireland. ie + 353 46 9773434.

ABOVE: Trevor McSharry, director with LCi and Head of Department of Civil Engineering and Construction at ATU Sligo

‘TRAINING OF STAFF HAS BEEN IDENTIFIED IS A KEY ENABLER TO LEAN ADOPTION.’

Completing the visionmaking your mark on your home

The Permanent tsb Ideal Home show took place at the RDS Simmonscourt with hundreds of home improvement professional and suppliers from around Ireland present.

Renovations, extensions and new builds – all were under the spotlight along with a world of furnishings, appliances and lifestyle pieces.

Strength to strength

Catriona O’Connor, permanent tsb Ideal Home

Show director said: 'The show has gone from strength to strength each year, as home buyers, owners and builders seek new, creative solutions to tackle a variety of issues from going green with their energy solutions to making a bold statement through their interior design choices.

‘I am thrilled to say that this spring our Show has the most options for our attendees to make their mark on their home and standout from the crowd.’

It was a fantastic evening of dinner, dancing and networking at the Clayton Hotel, Burlington Road, Dublin when an incredible 500 members of the engineering profession and their guests gathered for Engineers Ireland’s President’s Annual Ball. Of course we have pictures as always!

Following a two-year hiatus due to COVID-19, this was the first black-tie ball for the professional membership body for engineers since January 2020.

In addition to speeches by John Power, President of Engineers Ireland and Damien Owens, Director General of Engineers Ireland, guests in attendance enjoyed a wonderful four course dinner, followed by dancing, with music provided by the Beat Club.

Engineers Ireland’s President’s Annual Ball gets year underway!

ABOVE: (L-R) John Coleman is pictured with Mike Griffin, Chair of Engineers Ireland’s Thomond region.

ABOVE: Barry Mulvey, Chair of the Young Engineers Society is pictured with his partner, Caoimhe Geoghegan.

ABOVE: Matthew Nicholson and Lynton Hartill of Glennon Insurance

ABOVE: Antoinette Dunne (left) of Clifton Scannell Emerson Associates Consulting Engineers is pictured with Peter and Kathleen Fagan.

John Power President of Engineers Ireland, takes to the stage in the main ballroom at the Clayton Hotel, Burlington Road, Dublin.

ABOVE: Pictured L-R at the President’s Annual Ball: Justin Martin, Chair of Engineers Ireland’s West region; Ian Lynch, Chair of Engineers Ireland’s North-West region, John Power, President of Engineers Ireland, Michal Dymet, Chair of Engineers Ireland’s Cork region and Tony Buckley, Chair of Engineers Ireland’s Midland region.

BELOW: Guests enjoying Engineers Ireland’s President’s Annual Ball at the Clayton Hotel, Burlington Road, Dublin.

INSET BELOW: Claire Hughes, Chair of Engineers Ireland’s Public Sector division is pictured with her husband, Richard Truell

ABOVE: Damien Owens, Director General of Engineers Ireland, welcomes guests to the President’s Annual Ball

ABOVE: Shirley McDonald (left) Membership Director at Engineers Ireland is pictured with Tina Burton, Orla Lonergan, and Regiane Vasconcelos.

Our purpose in ESB Networks has always been to connect and distribute electricity – safely, securely, and affordably.

Electricity is so much part of daily life that we often take it for granted. It is a powerful and versatile energy but can be dangerous if not treated with the respect it deserves.

actual damage is caused.

The risk, which is very significant (unless proper control measures are fully and consistently implemented) is electrocution with added risks of an explosion, molten metals and falls from heights.

Contractors are responsible for managing the risks associated with work near overhead electricity wires and underground cables. Competent persons need to review past site records and utility drawings in advance of works and to liaise with ESB Networks prior to works commencing.

According to Michael

Murray,

Public Safety Manager for ESB

Networks, ‘Overhead electricity wires and underground cable are some of the main construction hazards that have the potential to seriously impact the safety of workers and the public.

‘ESB Networks are reminding everyone of the dangers of working too close to overhead electricity wires or striking underground cables.

‘By taking the time to considers the risks and to put all the appropriate controls in place we can all go home safe to our families each and every day.’

Involved

Every year ESB Networks assets are involved in serious safety incidents involving construction workers. In very many of these cases, it is probable that the electricity hazard and the potential consequences had not been fully considered or managed.

The hazard is electricity, and the danger arises when work is carried that is either too close to wires and cables or where

Where these dangerous occurrences take place, apart altogether from the potential of life changing outcomes, there are other consequences including interruption in the power supply to industry and to the community, hospitals; the involvement of the Health and Safety Authority; significant repair and other financial costs, as well as possible reputational damage.

It makes sense to manage the risk to the required lowest possible level.

Important

As well as all the relevant health and safety legislation and regulations, important practical guidance for the control of the electricity risk is set down in these two Health and Safety Authority (H.S.A.) Codes of Practice:

Code of Practice for Avoiding Danger from Overhead Electricity Lines and Code of Practice for Avoiding Danger from Underground Services.

Understanding how to comply with and apply the controls outlined within these documents is a fundamental safety requirement for all contractors and puts the power of safety in your hands.

It is important to note a variance of voltages for overhead electricity lines on ESB Networks distribution and transmission systems, ranging from 230 volts to 400,000 volts.

The minimum safe distances for plant and machinery are dictated by the voltage carried.

It is always recommended to check the voltage carried by contacting ESB Networks and to consult the respective Code of Practice for Avoiding Danger from Overhead Electricity Lines or Code of Practice for Avoiding Danger from Underground Services.

Assume

Always assume overhead electricity wires or underground cables are live unless otherwise confirmed by ESB Networks.

If planning work near overhead electricity wires, contact ESB Networks (1800 928 960 / dig@esb.ie) in advance so that the necessary safety precautions can be evaluated.

In the event of emergency, contact ESB Networks immediately on 1800 372 999

Remember to always stay safe, stay clear of electricity wires and cables

Clúid Housing and Clann deliver new homes in Portlaoise

Portlaoise has recently witnessed the completion of two new high-quality social housing developments.

Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Darragh O’Brien TD, met some of the new residents of The Maltings when he visited to officially open the schemes.

The Maltings, a three-storey block composed of forty twobed apartments, is managed by Clann, Clúid’s age-friendly offering for residents aged fiftyfive and older.

All the apartments were designed and developed using the principles of Universal Design, to ensure the residents can age in place and enjoy their homes for many years.

The scheme also benefits from a common room which will host many enriching activities for the residents, as well as the provision of local support services for the community.

Recognition

The Maltings name comes from the former use of the site; it provided malt to the Guinness

and Smithwicks breweries, among others.

Completed, the development will include four additional apartment blocks and a nursing home.

Minister O’Brien, alongside the Cathaoirleach of Laois County Council, Cllr Thomasina Connell, and Chief Executive of Laois County Council, John Mulholland, also met with residents of 15 new social homes, owned and managed by Clúid Housing, at the nearby Roselawn.

These three-bedroom homes completed a pre-exiting estate.

The scheme is now fully occupied, with residents allocated from Laois County Council’s housing list.

Mary Lennon, resident of The Maltings, said: ‘We are so grateful to have our forever home. The attention and detail is second to none, the best of everything has gone into these apartments.

‘Everything has been planned out meticulously, down to the personal alarm system Clann has provided in each apartment.

‘We feel part of a community

and are looking forward to the next chapter.’

Minister Darragh O’Brien TD said: ‘I’m delighted to officially open these two new developments, which provide much needed social housing in the heart of Portlaoise.

‘Clúid continues to deliver high-quality homes for families on the local authority’s housing lists.

‘It’s fantastic to see the growing number of homes in their age-friendly offering, Clann.

‘I am always heartened to see new developments like these, which allow households to live within walking distance of the amenities they need, and which ensure continued life in our towns and cities.

‘I commend Laois County Council and Clúid Housing for their hard work in producing these beautiful, well-designed homes, and their contribution to achieving the Government’s Housing for All targets.’

Cathaoirleach of Laois County Council, Cllr. Thomasina Connell, commented: ‘Laois County

Council is proud to support this development dedicated to agefriendly housing in Laois.

‘Clúid and developer ONS Developments have produced high-quality houses in which residents are proud to make their forever homes.

‘Thanks to the Minister and the Department of Housing for the supports given to make such schemes possible.’

Chief Executive of Louth County Council, John Mulholland, stated: ‘The pipeline for the delivery of high-quality social housing is exceptionally strong in County Laois.

‘In the two-year period 2022 and 2023 it is expected that Laois County Council, with its trusted partners in the AHB sector, will have constructed over 550 new homes.

‘The completion of 55 homes at the Maltings is one example where Clúid, ONS Construction and Laois County Council have worked in close collaboration to bring top-class residential development to a great location.

‘I congratulate the team at Clúid and at ONS Construction and I wish well to the many new residents of the Maltings.’

Aoife Flynn-Kennedy, Head of Clann, Clúid Housing, said: ‘We’re delighted to welcome Minister O’Brien, Cllr Connell and John Mulholland to our new homes in Portlaoise.

‘The support of the Department and Laois County Council have been vital in delivering these fine homes, which will have an enormous impact on the individuals and families now living here.

‘It has been wonderful to meet some of the residents and hear what having a high-quality, secure home means to them.

Everyone in Clúid and Clann wishes our new residents many years of happiness as they create a community here.’

Both schemes benefited from support from the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, the Housing Finance Agency, the Housing Agency and Laois County Council.

Pipelife Eco

- Ireland’s #1 Supplier of Eco Heating Solutions

www.pipelifeeco.ie

Pipelife Eco is Ireland’s leading designer and supplier of thousands of Home Heating Solutions each year.

The Pipelife Eco team work with everyone from homeowners, contractors, architects & consulting engineers across the country in projects ranging from residential homes, offices, hospitals, nursing homes, to warehouses, car showrooms and other commercial & industrial buildings.

Options

Pipelife has recently launched a new Home Heating Solutions website that outlines all the different heating options available to heat a home. The website explains in detailed 3D videos the different types of heating systems in the simplest way possible so homeowners and installers can make the most informed decision about the type of system that will work best for their needs.

Padjoe Barry, national sales

manager, comments: ‘Building a house can be quite daunting and within that the heating system that is chosen for a home is one of the most important investment decisions a homeowner will make.

‘Heating your home represents the largest annual running cost you will have in ensuring your family’s comfort over many years.

‘The heating system you choose and the supplier you choose to provide it are decisions that will impact on you for decades to come.’

Reference

The purpose of the website is to give homeowners but also installers a point of reference that they can send their customers to, to learn about the different heating systems available, the pitfalls to watch out for.

The quality of all the components used in your heating solution is critical to its long successful operation and the recommended system the Pipelife would recommend.

At Pipelife Eco we believe in providing our customers with a

one-stop-shop for complete package solutions; from market-leading products, free initial advice, through to bespoke design, final commissioning and technical support, allowing you to purchase with confidence.

Multiple package solutions design service

Pipelife has a team of design engineers ready to assist in the design, sale and installation of a variety of water/energy efficient systems.

Our Renewables Division covers every aspect of underfloor heating and integrated renewables and deliver fully designed, energy efficient systems to a range of Installers, Developers, Builders, Engineers & Architects.

We have a proven track record of twenty years’ service and commitment to the industry backed by exceptionally trained staff and a dedicated technical backup service.

Whether you’re building a new house, adding an extension or renovating your home, we can help you find the right system for your project

Common method

As Underfloor Heating is now the most common method of heating homes in Ireland today it is important to note that the most critical component of an underfloor heating system is the pipework that will be buried in the concrete floor of your home.

Once installed, this pipework will be encased and inaccessible for the lifetime of your home. Any problems associated with this pipework would entail the floor of your home being dug up causing massive disruption.

It is critical that all components used, but especially the pipework, are top quality and fully backed by reputable manufacturers.

Pipelife is the only supplier that manufactures its own specialised underfloor heating pipe in Ireland. We offer our Guaranteed Irish QualPex Plus+ ‘Easy-Lay’ Multilayer Pipe with a fifty-year guarantee!

Rest assured

We provide full design indemnity insurance on all our heating solution systems so you can rest assured our system will deliver on what we promise, providing you with a home heating solution you can rely on for decades to come, safe in the knowledge we will always be there to support you if the need ever arises.

The nationwide Pipelife Eco team of experienced design and technical service engineers always provides complete support to installers to ensure successful completion of Pipelife ECO projects.

Pipelife is a company with annual revenues of €1bn a year. We operate in twenty-eight countries and employ 3,000 employees in twentyeight manufacturing locations.

Pipelife is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Wienerberger Group, with group revenues of over €4bn per year and 16,000 employees worldwide.

Strength

This long history plus the financial strength of Pipelife is the best guarantee we can offer you that we will be there to support our products over the long lifetimes expected of those products.

For more information and to talk to our team call us on 021 488 4700 or e-mail us at ireland@ pipelife.com and check out our website www.pipelifeeco.ie

Put your trust in Pipelife – 50 years of proud Irish manufacturing and serving the Irish plumbing & Heating industry.

Our Reputation…Your Peace of Mind!

E-mail – Ireland@pipelife.com

Phone - +353 21 4884700

Suir Engineering in profile

Suir Engineering, has nearly four decades of electrical & mechanical contracting expertise in its core sectors of Pharma, Energy & Utilities, Food & Beverage and Data Centres, and has an annual turnover of more than €300m.

Suir have offices in Waterford, Dublin, Sweden, Denmark and Germany and a direct workforce of more than 1,300 people.

At any one time they would have around forty-five operational sites throughout Ireland and internationally.

Duke Street

Suir Engineering has recently been acquired by private equity group Duke Street.

Duke Street, one of Britain’s best known private equity groups, has a strong track record of investing in industrial service companies.

Over the last twenty-five years it has invested over €2.5bn in more than 50 companies.

The move will consolidate Suir Engineering’s position as a

leader in engineering services.

Range

While they offer the broadest range of M,E&I services available, Suir Engineering never stop pursuing new and innovative solutions to their clients’ challenges.

To be more efficient in delivering projects and explore opportunities for continuous improvement, Suir Engineering has a technology team to collaborate and look at modern methods of construction to ensure they are at the forefront of new technologies.

It is their mission to support a culture of innovation where employees are empowered to use creative and innovative thinking in a supportive environment.

This promotes knowledgesharing, improves efficiencies, and ultimately client satisfaction in a global marketplace.

Digital construction technologies have been integrated across their operations to facilitate the smooth delivery of projects.

The ‘Suir Way’

Investing in its future, Suir Engineering have identified ‘The Suir Way’ as a framework to standardize quality across the business.

The Suir Way is a lean initiative and the way they work.

and cultivating talent from apprenticeship to director level.

Working with the best talent available and putting the client first, they have built sustainable, long-term client partnerships.

Health and Safety

Above all else health and safety are what matters most to the business.

Safety is a core value of Suir Engineering; it permeates every task they do, every process that they have developed and every discussion that they have.

Suir Engineering have the responsibility to ensure that their people are protected by providing them with the tools, training, guidance, and methods to work safely and productively every day.

The Suir Way is about bringing the business together through consistent and familiar processes designed to help and continually improve.

Suir Engineering continues to invest in their most important assets, their people.

Suir invest heavily in talent development and have a proud track record of retaining staff

Reputation

Through its extensive experience in the industry, Suir Engineering has earned a reputation for safe, efficient, and cost-effective engineering services.

The future of Suir Engineering is bright as they continue their sustainable growth in Ireland and across Europe.

‘SUIR ENGINEERING CONTINUES TO INVEST IN THEIR MOST IMPORTANT ASSETS, THEIR PEOPLE.’

STEM teaching in postprimary and Further Education and Training (FET) has received a significant boost with the establishment of the first official headquarters for the Engineering Technology Teachers Association (ETTA) located at LMETB’s Advanced Manufacturing Training Centre of Excellence (AMTCE) in Dundalk.

Signing

It follows the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) by Martin O’Brien, chief executive of the Louth Meath Education and Training Board (LMETB) and founder of the AMTCE and Barry Convey, chairperson of the ETTA on Sat 6 May 2023 in Dundalk.

The purpose of the MoU is to provide close collaboration in the design, development and delivery of bespoke courses, and training opportunities for teachers and educators.

With its official headquarters now located at the AMTCE, the ETTA will have direct access to relevant engineering and technology focused courses and programmes. The AMTCE will also work with ETTA staff on the joint development and delivery of bespoke certified courses for its members.

The AMTCE will also provide active support for ETTA projects that encourage post-primary and FET learners to engage with advance manufacturing, STEM, IT, and other related subject areas.

Importance

Speaking at the event, LMETB CEO Martin O’Brien, founder of AMTCE, said:

‘Given the importance of STEM to the Irish economy, our partnership with ETTA will serve to provide effective, relevant training for its members at the frontline of STEM education in Ireland.

Together, we will explore joint funding opportunities and the launching and promotion of initiatives in our schools and further education that

AMTCE and ETTA join forces to boost second level STEM

will increase access and participation in engineering and technology initiatives and develop a talent pipeline of highly skilled future employees in high value jobs for our thriving manufacturing sector,’ O’Brien continued.

Founded in 1983, the Engineering Technology Teachers' Association (E.T.T.A.) is a voluntary administered association representing teachers of Engineering, Technology and Design and Communication Graphics (D.C.G.).

With over 300 active members, it supports teachers and students in what is a time of immense change in the Irish education system and runs the nationally acclaimed Young Engineer of the Year competition for Leaving Cert students.

Delighted

Barry Convey, chair of ETTA

said, ‘The ETTA is delighted to have the opportunity to develop and sign a Memorandum of Understanding with LMETB/ AMTCE.

‘This MoU highlights the importance of positive relationships and progressive collaboration which will be of huge benefit to the ETTA members and their students.

‘This agreement gives access for the ETTA to amazing opportunities to develop bespoke training courses and world class facilities and gives rise to the development of such courses that will lead to CPD for members in a rapidly changing space in education at this moment in time.’

AMTCE was established in 2021 by the LMETB to deliver hands on skills-oriented training needed to underpin the transition of Irish enterprise to industry 4.0 based operations, with a focus on manufacturing,

pharma, food & drink, construction, and engineering sectors.

The courses offered include Robotic Processes, Cobotics, Additive Manufacturing, IIoT, CAD/CAM, Industrial Control, Cybersecurity, Process Optimization (Lean 6 Sigma), BioPharma and Food Processing to name a few.

Ground-breaking

Sadie Ward McDermott, director of further education and training (FET) in LMETB said:

‘This is a ground-breaking partnership which highlights the significant importance that LMETB attaches to providing access to State-of-the-art FET facilities at the AMTCE for ETTA members.

'The anticipated accrued benefits to the promotion and enabling of students and learners in second and FET levels in STEM will be significant.

‘LMETB view this MoU to be a significant building block in a multi-pronged strategy to support and increase engagement of students and learners in STEM related projects, courses and programmes and to ultimately work towards increasing numbers of those considering career pathways in STEM related disciplines.’

Welcoming

Welcoming the signing of the MOU, Fiona Kindlon, director of schools, LMETB, said:

‘I look forward to working with ETTA in a strong, collegial and collaborative manner to sustain and further develop the positive and professional working relations that currently exist between LMETB, ETTA and Engineering and Technology subject teachers in LMETB.

‘The Department of Education Digital Strategy for Schools and the Looking at our Schools 2022 document require schools to be more creative and innovative about learning, teaching and assessment in our classrooms.’

Designer Group’s Kenya – Kisumu Youth Empowerment Programme Update 2023, by

Brendan Kearns,

training director, Designer Group.

‘We are at the midway point in phase two of our youth empowerment programme in Kenya’, says Brendan Kearns, training director with Designer Group.

‘The programme is part of our construction work in Kenya’, explains Brendan. ‘We decided to give something back to the local community.

‘Our operations director Gary Byrne and myself undertook to work with local youth and partnered with Self Help Africa to develop a programme where, rather than give handouts, we enabled youth groups to provide for themselves through training and development.

‘Phase 1 was completed in 2019 and we had a gap with Covid lockdown; so once we had the “all clear” we commenced planning for the next stages with our partners in Self Help Africa.

Purpose

‘The purpose of our programme is to empower the youth groups involved and enable them with the

skills, training and development to allow them gain employment and/or start their own business.

‘These young people come from local slum areas which would traditionally have low school attendances and high unemployment.

‘Currently, (at time of writing)

we have fifteen students – who mainly were part of the first phase of the programme – who have now commenced their college phase and are now currently on work placement and will be returning to college shortly to commence their module 2 Trades examination at NITA Training College.

Working hard

‘Exams are upcoming and the students are working hard with mid-June the date for completion of this, and graduation.

‘The students are engaged in Plumbing, Electrical, Hair and Beauty and NITA Training college has proven to be an excellent choice as a partner to train and develop our youth group involved.

‘Our latest meeting in NITA with the students was an inspiring visit, as each student was given a chance to tell their stories, speak about their own goals and ambitions, provide feedback on how things were progressing.

‘Our second activity involves almost 200 youth, based in local slums Kondele and Obunga.

‘We have broken these into ten Youth groups with ten ambassadors overseeing and providing guidance and feedback .

‘The groups are well established, and we met them in their neighbourhoods, to hear their stories, discuss their plans and provide feedback and guidance advice.

Next steps

‘Next steps for the youth groups is commencement of the business development phase where we engage closely with each group and the ambassadors to bring the working groups to self-sufficiency stages.

‘Our youth empowerment programme is scheduled for completion at the end of June 2023 and we look forward to meeting the young people at this stage and hopefully successful news!’

Further education and career choices are always under the spotlight at this time of year across the country.

At leading mechanical and electrical engineering contractor Kirby Group Engineering, the team is once again reminding students that there are many ways to begin a rewarding career in the sector.

The firm is proud to run hugely successful graduate and apprenticeship schemes that form a vital stream of their talent pipeline.

Kirby has been supporting apprentices for nearly sixty years and currently has over 200 apprentices training and working throughout its business.

First year

Amy Delaney is in the first year of her apprenticeship and is currently working on site. She joined Kirby in October 2022 and is loving the experience so far:

‘I was going to go to college, but I was chatting to my Dad who’s an electrician and I decided to give the apprenticeship a try,’ she says.

‘I was afraid it might be intimidating on site but everyone has been so nice.

‘Most of the time we’re out working and then we go back into training to learn more.

‘It’s even better than I expected and I’d recommend it to girls and guys as a career choice.

‘I’m going back to my old school in Dublin to talk to sixth years about my course in a few months’ time and I can’t wait to tell them it’s such a good option.’

Started

Many of the company’s senior leaders also began their careers as apprentices, including Mikey Ryan who started his training with

Kirby highlights variety of routes into engineering careers

County Wexford is a third year Engineering student at SETU (South East Technological University), and one of four female students from third level institutions in Ireland who were recently offered bursaries by Kirby.

Ella is currently in Zurich, Switzerland working on a Data Centre project, as part of a nine month placement with the company.

Ella believes that gaining practical experience while still in college is invaluable:

‘Kirby was recommended to me by one of my lecturers at SETU, based on the fact the company offers a really useful mix of office based and practical training,’ she says.

‘Seeing how things work on site and being involved in a project has already taught me a huge amount about engineering.

‘Kirby has also made travelling to Switzerland a seamless experience as they sorted out flights, accommodation and other logistics for me.’

Priority

Group HR director at Kirby, Fergus Barry, says a priority for him at this time of year is demonstrating how varied the pathways into engineering can be:

Kirby back in 1997.

From there the Limerick man went on to be an electrician, a charge hand, site manager, and project manager.

Mikey was appointed operations director last year and is based at the Galway office.

Mikey says taking up an apprenticeship with Kirby straight after finishing his Leaving Cert was one of the best decisions he’s ever made and has afforded him opportunities to work in countries all over the world:

‘Training as an apprentice

is a massive learning curve but if you work hard and commit yourself, it’s also a gateway to fantastic experiences’, he says.

‘Kirby invests in people, that’s one of our core values – and the company really invested in me. I’ve always felt very supported throughout my career here.’

Working hard

Kirby is also working with third level institutions to address gender balance in what has traditionally been a male-dominated sector.

Ella Peare from Rosslare

‘Engineers often have to find the right path to a solution on a project and I think that’s reflected in our approach to recruitment,’ he says.

‘We seek out talent from a wide range of sourcesapprenticeships, graduate programmes, those with other qualifications and others from around the world who have the right strengths and skills.

‘At Kirby we put people first. If you believe your future is in engineering, talking to us could be the best first step you’ll ever take in your career.’

The Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland (SCSI) has warned the country will face a major shortage of qualified surveyors if the economy enjoys growth of 4% per annum over the next four years. The SCSI says this will put further pressure on the country’s ability to address the housing crisis as well as key infrastructural and commercial developments.

According to the SCSI’s Employment, Remuneration and Workplace Report 2023, which examined the supply of and demand for Irish graduates across the built environment life cycle, in a 4% per annum growth scenario

2,910 new surveyor positions will be created across the profession between 2023 and 2026.

Current levels

However, based on current levels the number of Irish graduates entering the workforce during that four-year period will be just 1,829, a shortfall of 1,081 or 59%.

If the economy grows by 3% the shortfall of surveyors will still be significant at 18%.

The biggest shortfall in the more optimistic growth scenario will be in property, where almost 500 estate agents and property managers will be required.

In this situation the country will also need to treble the number of building surveyor graduates from 77 to over 200 and double the number of land surveyors from 99 to 221.

The survey found that the median salary of a surveyor is €77,200, an increase of 10% on the last survey which was carried out in 2019.

Urgent

The President of the SCSI, Kevin James, said the figures showed the urgent need to ramp up the enrolment of surveyors in our third level colleges and to develop additional pathways to the profession, including through apprenticeships.

‘Solving our housing supply

The Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland Employment, Remuneration and Workplace Report 2023

crisis and achieving our targets with regard to the Climate Action Plan and the National Development Plan will require sufficient numbers of qualified graduates coming into the surveying profession.

‘Eight out of ten respondents to this survey confirmed inflation is a barrier to employment growth and that is very concerning.

‘We know the construction sector is facing shortages of skilled workers, but this survey puts numbers on the scale of those shortages from a surveying perspective.

Revision

‘It is very likely that the Housing for

All targets will undergo significant upward revision in the coming weeks (at time of writing), and this is going to increase the demand for all types of surveyors. Given that this research was conducted at a time of market uncertainty it is likely that the estimates of future employment demand are conservative.’

Mr James was speaking ahead of the SCSI’s annual dinner which took place at the Clayton Burlington Hotel, due to be attended by over 1,300 chartered surveyors and guests.

In his speech, Mr James suggested there may be opportunities for people previously

employed in the tech sector to transition to new careers in property, land, or construction.

Prioritise

‘The construction sector needs to prioritise digital adoption to keep pace with client demands and I believe this is just one area where people previously employed in the tech sector have a great deal to offer.

‘For its part, as this survey shows, a career in surveying is hugely rewarding, not only for its financial rewards but also in terms of the diverse nature of the work and the variety of opportunities available.

Key points

be created across the profession between 2023 and 2026 if economy grows by 4% per annum

a shortfall of almost 1,100 surveyors over that timeframe

pressure on the country’s ability to address the housing crisis

‘That’s an important message which we need to reinforce to our young people – and their parents!’

Salary

The report examined salary levels across the three main areas surveyors work in and found the highest median salary was in construction at €85,000, followed by property on €70,000 and land on €64,000.

It also found a considerable difference existed between salary levels in Dublin and the rest of the country.

The median salary in Dublin is €80,000, 15% more than the

median for the rest of the country, which is €68,925.

Females make up 25% of the SCSI’s 6,000 overall membership but have a higher representation in property 34% as opposed to 16% in land and 10% in construction.

While the median salary for female is €70,000, 14% less than the median male salary of €80,000, the report’s author Dr Roisin Murphy, Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment at TU Dublin, says it should not be construed that female respondents generally earn less than males.

Important

‘It’s important to remember that the lower number of female SCSI members compared to males, will have a distortive effect on the sample size. In addition, there are proportionately more female members within the property designation, which has a lower median salary overall.

‘While considerable progress has been made in addressing gender imbalance across the built environment sector nationally, there remains work to be done to address the ongoing lack of diversity. Trends in relation to salary provision across gender should be monitored on an ongoing basis,’ Dr Murphy concluded.

The full report is available at www. scsi.ie

employment growth

New research from Chadwicks Group reveals that a lack of female representation and role models in construction is the key barrier to entry for young women in Ireland.

Attitudes

The research, which was conducted ahead of International Women’s Day, examines the attitudes of 350 women aged 18-24 towards a career in construction.

The results reveal that 44% feel there’s a lack of female representation in the industry and a resounding 93% believe more should be done to promote the industry to women.

As well as the issue of representation, the Chadwicks Group survey finds that 10% say there’s a lack of understanding around the types of careers open to women in the sector and 9% say they felt pressure by their teachers or parents to pursue third level education over an apprenticeship.

Promote

A total of 88% say that more should be done to promote apprenticeships and tradebased careers at school and 60% would consider a career in construction if they knew more about it.

While barriers to entry were acknowledged, 45% say they had considered a career in the industry with architecture (26%) engineering (16%) and project management (11%) the top three choices.

Indicating that more needs to be done to promote apprenticeship and trades to women, only 5% of those polled say they have considered becoming a carpenter or electrician while

only 3% have thought about becoming a plumber.

Encourage

Commenting on the findings Patrick Atkinson, CEO Chadwicks Group said: ‘The research clearly shows more needs to be done to encourage women into the industry.

‘While it is positive to see 45% of women had considered a career in construction, it is disappointing to see a career in a trade was still very low.

‘We are currently facing a drastic shortage of tradespeople in Ireland and more needs to be done to showcase the opportunities

and benefits of a career in the trades – particularly to women.

‘To address the findings of this research, more needs to be done by everyone to highlight women in construction roles.

Opportunity

‘Respondents are calling out to learn from women working in construction. We need to grasp this opportunity and tell those stories.

‘At Chadwicks Group, we’re on our own journey to encourage more women join the business.

‘We are committed to proactively challenging ourselves to achieve this and

have a number of initiatives in place to drive higher female representation.

‘This includes our trainee merchanting programme which launched in 2019 and investing in enhanced family leave policies including maternity, fertility, adoptive and carers leave.’

Branch manager Diane McDonald who was recently named Chadwicks branch nanager of the year said:

‘I have been worked with Chadwicks for over fifteen years and over the years have worked my way up to branch manager of Bray, one of our largest branches in the country.

‘Over the years I have seen more women join the business and it’s fantastic to see this trend going in the right direction.

‘I would encourage more women to consider a career in construction; whether that’s in a trade or indeed going into the building materials side of things.

‘It’s a fascinating sector and I absolutely love what I do every day.’

Celebrate

To celebrate International Women’s Day, Chadwicks Group was launching Season 3 of its award-winning podcast Under Construction with an episode dedicated to women in construction.

Donncha O’Callaghan was joined by Crane Driver Kate Fahey who shared her journey on how she became Ireland’s youngest ever female tower crane driver at 18 and Amy O’Toole – who did her apprenticeship as an electrician. And she is now a successful project manager.

Lack of female role models and representation ‘is the key barrier to a career in construction’

Chadwicks Group research reveals women’s perceptions of a career in the construction industry

‘THE RESEARCH, WAS CONDUCTED AHEAD OF INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY.’

As a leading Irish mechanical engineering contractor, MSL Engineering Ltd. are the partner of choice across many industries including Life Sciences and Semi-conductor.

With over 40 years of construction and engineering expertise and a utilising BIM design and off-site modular construction processes to the

SPOTLIGHT ON: MSL ENGINEERING LTD.

KEY

ACTIVITIES: Mechanical Engineers and Contractors.

MSL Engineering Ltd. is a full-service mechanical engineering contractor operating across a wide range of industry sectors.

With over 40 years of expertise and a flexible project management approach, MSL delivers best-in-class projects utilising BIM and modular fabrication processes to the highest standards of workmanship, safety, quality and reliability.

Founded in 1979, MSL Engineering specialises in the fabrication and installation of process, utility and high purity pipework, platforms and steelwork and equipment installation across many industry sectors.

MSL’s service offering includes modular fabrication and assemblies, managing multi-discipline subcontractors including HVAC, scaffold, craneage, insulation, painting, NDT etc, while utilising BIM and 3D modelling design processes.

With a workforce of over 700 people, MSL has grown to become one of the leading players in an industry that has seen parallel growth in the pharmaceutical, biopharma, semi-conductor, chemical, oil and gas, energy, data centre and food & beverage sectors.

Established

Originally established to provide craft support to the fledgling but now defunct NET plant in Marino Point, Cork, over time, the business expanded its client base and developed a reputation for reliability, engineering excellence, and the ability to get the job done.

Retaining the roots of the original founders of the business, the company is a wholly owned Irish entity, which has organically evolved from providing support services to local industry to a position where it now competes successfully for large-scale engineering projects and provides a full range of engineering and constructability solutions to clients throughout Ireland, UK, Europe and the US.

Working in inherently hazardous industries, the business has always taken an uncompromising approach to safety. This can be seen in its high standards and long-standing safety record, its ISO45001accredited safety management system and its behavioural safety-based systems of work.

Improve

MSL’s desire to continuously improve to stay ahead of the competitive curve has led it to identify and invest in new business processes in recent years.

As a result, the company significantly increased turnover and expanded its area of operation to include the UK, the Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, Sweden, and Denmark.

relocated Port Of Cork, includes a largescale modular fabrication workshop, a piping fabrication workshop and an 8,000 sq. foot clean piping workshop.

It enables MSL to continue to service all their existing clients and allows them to expand and develop relationships with new clients in Ireland and abroad.

Focus

MSL managing director Brian McGrath comments: ‘Our focus in developing a standard of performance is to ensure all MSL personnel are empowered to achieve their full potential and are recognised for doing so.

‘Our performance standard defines how well each function or task must be performed in order to meet or exceed expectations thus ensuring our standards are best in class.’

MSL encourages and promotes early contractor engagement and an integrated project delivery (IPD) approach by offering modular design and modular construction experience to maximise offsite manufacturing and fabrication (OSM) opportunities for clients.

The company’s investment in digital technologies means MSL continuously improves its BIM offering to clients and its digital project delivery (DPD) capabilities.

Strong growth

Reflecting strong growth, MSL has invested in a modern 140,000 sq. foot fabrication facility in Ringaskiddy, Co. Cork.

This new facility, adjacent to the newly

With continued growth, a new modern Fabrication Facility, ISO accredited Management Systems in Safety (ISO45001), Quality (ISO9001) & Environmental (ISO18001), and investment in new innovative business processes, they continue to challenge themselves at MSL Engineering Ltd. to deliver the highest standard of service that they believe is deserved and expected by their clients.

ADDRESS: Ringport Business Park, Ringaskiddy, Co Cork. P43

RX06

PHONE: +353 21 451 3550

WEB: www.mslengineering.ie

LINKEDIN: MSL Engineering Ltd

YOUTUBE: https://youtube.

com/playlist?list=PLEUdtnGLz_-

V60VF3N0GWUBU3PGM0vMp_

The Irish construction and property industry needs to act faster and to be more ambitious in tackling climate change. This was the key message delivered at the Irish Green Building Council (IGBC)’s Build Green Now conference.

Call for faster and more ambitious actions in industry to decarbonise Ireland's built environment

Six months after the launch of ‘Building a Zero Carbon Ireland – A roadmap to decarbonise Ireland's built environment’, over 200 industry leaders gathered in Dublin to discuss challenges and actions needed to accelerate the transition to net zero carbon buildings.

Opening the event, Pat

Barry, CEO of the Irish Green Building Council (IGBC) said:

‘Despite ambitious climate policies, our national emissions are still growing. Tackling this crisis requires immediate action from everyone, everywhere.

‘As an industry, we must advocate for a better use of our existing stock, but also design and construct

buildings that are not only zero carbon emissions, but also constructed in more eco-friendly ways.

‘I urge everyone in the industry to endorse the roadmap and to take the actions set in it now.’

Actions

The Building a Zero Carbon Ireland roadmap includes a series of actions broken down by sector to fully decarbonise Ireland’s built environment.

The report also shows that embodied carbon emissions in construction and the built

ABOVE: Build Green Now conference

ABOVE: Pat Barry – Ceo of the IGBC

About the Irish Green Building Council

The IGBC is Ireland’s leading authority on green building best practices with a network of over 340 green building organisations spanning the entire built environment industry.

The IGBC is affiliated with the World Green Building Council. This is a network of over 80 national Green Building Councils worldwide with a total membership of over 27,000 of the most progressive international organisations and businesses making it the largest organisation globally influencing the sustainable building market. www.igbc.ie.

environment currently account for 14% of Ireland’s national emissions.

These are emissions associated with the production of construction materials and the construction and maintenance of buildings.

Mr. Barry added: ‘Significant progress has been made on improving energy efficiency in buildings,

but embodied carbon emissions are the elephant in the room.

‘We cannot deliver 400,000 homes and reach our 2030 climate targets without addressing them.

‘Government has a key role to play, and the public sector must lead by example, but they cannot do it alone.’

Crucial

Speaking at the conference, Audrey Nugent, Director of Global Advocacy-World Green Building Council, explained: "The Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) is currently under review.

‘This is a crucial piece of EU legislation, which previously led to the implementation of Building Energy Rating (BER) and the Nearly Zero Energy Building (NZEB) standards.

The proposed revision is a significant step forward towards achieving Zero Carbon buildings, as for the first

ABOVE: Panellists at Build Green Now 2023: Susan Vickers (Cluid Housing) and Joe Jack Williams (LETI)

From left – Neil Menzies – Hibernia Real Estate Group, William O’Donnell – IN2 Engineering design partnership, Charles Mitchell– OGP, John Casey-CORA

time ever, it aims to address the issue of whole life carbon emissions.’

Several European countries such as Denmark, France, and the Netherlands, have already regulated embodied carbon emissions. To support this transition in Ireland, the IGBC is developing a national methodology and establishing high-quality baselines.

Joe Durkan, Head of Technical National Retrofit at SEAI, said: ‘Collecting standardised data is extremely important, and SEAI is proud to support the development of a national methodology to measure whole life carbon emissions.

‘As part of this process, the IGBC is collecting case studies of whole life carbon assessments of buildings.

‘I would like to encourage everyone in the industry to submit case studies and support the development of the methodology.’

In addition to embodied carbon emissions, energy efficient designs and circularity in construction, including effectively reusing construction materials and existing structures, were extensively discussed at Build Green Now.

About the Roadmap

The ‘Building a Zero Carbon Ireland’ roadmap was developed by the Irish Green Building Council in close cooperation with over 200 key stakeholders.

It sets out a detailed strategy towards a net zero carbon-built environment by 2050 and details a series of near-term actions to put the construction industry on a clear path towards this, as well as a range of further, longer-term actions to accelerate the transformation of our built environment.

Similar roadmaps were developed in Croatia, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, and the UK, as well as at European level. These will support the work of officials at local, national and EU levels. The roadmap was developed as part of the #BuildingLife Campaign and is available on IGBC website. https://www. igbc.ie/building-a-zero-carbon-ireland/

Conference in session

ABOVE: From left – William O’Donnell (IN2 Engineering design partnership), Joe Durkan (SEAI), Pat Barry (IGBC) Audrey Nugent (WGBC)

Facilities management –catching up on EuroFM, awards and more!

Once again we check in with Pat Gaughan of Advanced Workplace Solutions for a look at the world of facilities management!

EuroFM

The mission of EuroFM is the advancement of knowledge in Facility Management in Europe and its application in Practice, Education and Research.

The association focuses on; information

practice large European FM sector.

Our sector is the largest European Business Services market, the second largest European sector (5-8% of the world. Twenty-three were national

The university and educational three European countries.

EuroFM projects and activities are initiated by four groups:

These groups form the core of

support the development of FM internationally.

the ‘added value’ of the FM profession in the field of FM will have a higher impact.

developments, launching FM projects and initiatives in the FM industry.

Increase

will increase the EuroFM reach professionals.

‘hands, ears and eyes’ for the EuroFM network.

meetings, seminars and workshops,

and through the development of joint educational programmes. Proceedings of these activities are disseminated through the an annual conference, EuroFM through newsletters, research papers

Since its foundation thirty-five years ago the EuroFM community

international independent FM network it is today.

FM profession and to come to

knowledge worldwide, EuroFM steps up to maintain and develop FM networking.

Involvement

Providing support for the FM professional, EuroFM shows its lively involvement with the FM industry and FM networking.

concerns Facility Management professionals known for accomplishments and involvement with the FM profession worldwide, to support and disseminate EuroFM initiatives and activities.

The Ambassadors cover thirty-one countries world-wide and your author, Pat Gaughan of Advanced Workplace Solutions is the current Ambassador for Ireland.

Here at Construction Management Ireland we know we couldn’t do it without you - without our contributors, without our readers, without those who support us with advertising. We also know that sometimes these descriptions are not mutually exclusive – that our supporters can exist in one or more – or even in all three of these categories at the same time. How does this affect our approach? Simple. We keep the professional and professionality centre stage. It’s our common ground. It’s what unites us.

At CMi we don’t go in for unnecessary jargon, we don’t like to over-use buzzwords and, as a rule we’re not ones for slogans. But we do like to say:

If it’s of interest to the Irish Construction Professional then it’s of interest to ‘Construction Management Ireland’.

As usual Jeff Haden rounds things off for us with some positive inspiration. This time out he explains…

though research

I recently asked LinkedIn followers two questions:

want to hear share Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin found

Factor

Why emotionally intelligent people always follow the 'bad news first' rule, backed by science

Even

shows most of us tend to start with sharing the good news first.