On Friday, March 27, we crowned new winners of the ACEI 2026 Engineering Excellence Awards.

In a packed-out Intercontinental Hotel, President Tim Murnane presented awards to each of the category winners as well as two special awards to Michael Moriarty, for a lifetime contribution to the sector, and Seán O’ Driscoll, for his recent work in the Accelerating Infrastructure Taskforce.

More than 400 people gathered to celebrate the achievements of our industry ahead of a period where consulting engineers will lead the way on infrastructure delivery in Ireland.

Congratulations to all our winners and to the fantastic projects which were shortlisted alongside them. ACEI would like to sincerely thank Richard Crowe and his supporting judges Anne Marie Conibear and John Purcell for all their thorough review of the project nominations to arrive at a shortlist and decide on the award winners. 

Arup honoured with four awards for engineering excellence, including Project of the Year

At Arup, we guide, plan and design the future of the built environment. As a global consultancy with extensive technical and advisory expertise, we bring a Total Design approach to our work with our clients. This is how we shape a better world.

We are proud to be recognised for our contribution to engineering excellence in Ireland with four major honours, celebrating achievements in consulting engineering and innovative design solutions, and reflecting Arup’s continued role in delivering innovative, sustainable and socially responsive infrastructure and buildings.

O’Connor Centre for Learning, University College Dublin (UCD)

The O’Connor Centre for Learning at UCD received both the Mechanical and Electrical (Large) award and the prestigious Project of the Year accolade.

Delivered through a collaborative approach between UCD, Arup, RKD, Cumming Group and Walls Construction, the 11,580 m² facility was recognised for its flexible, future‑ready learning environments and highly efficient building services systems, designed to support collaborative, digital‑first education.

Seamus Murphy Bridge and Cumann na mBan Bridge

The Seamus Murphy Bridge and Cumann na mBan Bridge, winners of the Structural (Medium) category, were recognised for enhancing connectivity and liveability through sustainable, adaptive design and advanced flood protection.

Designed and delivered for Cork City Council, Arup led an integrated design team, including Seán Harrington Architects, Brady Shipman Martin, Jons Civil Engineering and Thompson’s Steelwork, to develop these two new pedestrian and cycle bridges. A key part of the Beamish and Crawford Quarter regeneration, the bridges respond sensitively to their historic setting in Cork city.

Dublin Tunnel Tolling System Replacement

The Dublin Tunnel Tolling System Replacement project, winner of the Innovation (Small/Medium) category, is a hybrid tolling solution combining barrier and slow-moving free-flow operations.

Arup worked closely with members of the project team, including Egis Roads & Tunnel Operation Ireland and Indra Sistemas, to ensure the tunnel remained fully operational throughout the upgrade, while delivering safety-critical improvements to Ireland’s transport infrastructure. 

L to R: Joe Burns, Laura Murphy, Rob Ryan, Adrian Ryan, Dan Moran, Ian Anderson, Sean Barrett, Oonagh Reid, Tadgh Hickey, Pawel Ogonowski, Rory McGowan, Aisling Hahessy.  © Maura Hickey Photographer 

George’s Dock Bridge Replacement Project wins Civil-Small Project Award

Roughan & O’Donovan (ROD) was delighted to receive the Civil-Small Project Award in recognition of our work on the George’s Dock Bridge Replacement Project. The award reflects our commitment to addressing project complexity with collaborative and innovative thinking and to delivering more sustainable solutions for the built environment.

In a citation accompanying the award, the judges said: “This programme and the sensitive replacement of the historic bridge could only have been achieved by a team who understood the importance of trust, communication and, above all, collaboration on achieving the best design.”

Marc Jones, managing director of ROD, said: “We are delighted that our contribution to this complex urban infrastructure project has been recognised by the ACEI. We are also grateful to Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) and Jons Civil Engineering Ltd. (JCEL) for entrusting us with the design, and to the many specialists involved, including Banagher Precast Concrete Ltd. and PJ Edwards, for their unwavering commitment to its successful delivery.”

A critical transport link in Dublin’s city centre

On August 19, 2025, George’s Dock bridge was damaged beyond repair when a fire broke out below deck. Its immediate closure caused significant disruption to local residents, businesses and commuters in particular, as it severed the LUAS Red Line, which accommodates c.20,000 passengers on average per day travelling to key financial, entertainment and transport hubs in the city centre. 

Georges Dock bridge.

TII engaged JCEL with ROD as their designer on an emergency design-and-build basis to replace the structure as soon as practicable. A single span, piled integral bridge, providing a clear span of 18.2m and a total width of 11.6m, was proposed.

An ambitious 12-week programme of demolition, design and construction followed, and on November 27, a new bridge was opened to the public. 

JV Tierney & Co: Market leader in mechanical, electrical, sustainable & energy-efficient design services engineering

Established in 1948, JV Tierney & Co is a market leader in mechanical, electrical, sustainable & energy-efficient design services engineering, with a project portfolio of more than 4,000 designs and €600m of construction works annually.

JV Tierney & Co are a member of the Association of Consulting Engineers of Ireland (ACEI) which is affiliated to The European Federation of Consulting Engineers Associations (EFCA) and FIDIC, the International Federation of Consulting Engineers, the Chartered Institute of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE), the ASHRAE Ireland Chapter, and the Irish Green Building Council.

JV Tierney & Co have a strong focus on sustainability, smart technology, ISO quality standards and regulatory compliance and has extensive experience delivering high‑quality sustainable solutions and award-winning projects across a broad range of sectors, eg healthcare; education; commercial; residential; sports & leisure; and heritage.

JV Tierney & Co work closely with Clients to deliver their brief – from cost-effective compliance with the latest energy and environmental legislation, to achieving a specific BER,HPI, BREEAM or LEED rating, through to the delivery of a zero-carbon building.

future-proof buildings to forthcoming changes to the Irish Building Regulations

The practice provides project-wide guidance on the recast Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) to future-proof buildings to forthcoming changes to the Irish Building Regulations. JV Tierney & Co recently received Building Information Modelling (BIM) accreditation to IS EN ISO 19650-2:2018 from the NSAI, an internationally recognised best practice standard.

JV Tierney & Co provided the mechanical, electrical, and sustainable design services for the National High Level Isolation Unit (NHLIU) at the Mater Misericordiae University hospital.

The development, which is the first of its kind in Ireland and one of less than 20 worldwide, is designed as a “hospital within a hospital” and is a specialized, state of the art biocontainment facility which will play a pivotal role in treating patients with highly contagious or dangerous illness.

The NHLIU was named Winner at this year’s Association of Consulting Engineers of Ireland (ACEI) Design Excellence awards, an annual event celebrating industry professional excellence in design engineering. This recognition underlines JVT’s experience delivering complex projects to the highest standards of efficiency and sustainability. 

Killaloe Bypass, Brian Boru Bridge & R494 Improvement Scheme

Tetra Tech is a leading provider of consulting and engineering services with 25,000 employees worldwide. They provide innovative, sustainable, and resilient solutions for their clients’ toughest challenges. Tetra Tech have nine offices on the island of Ireland: Dublin, Belfast, Cork, Galway, Waterford, Sligo, Kilkenny, Letterkenny and Gorey – employing more than 1,100 people.

The Killaloe bypass, Brian Boru bridge & R494 Improvement Scheme consists of a 2km bypass of Killaloe, a 1km link road across the River Shannon and a 3.2km online upgrade of the R494.

An 18th century heritage masonry arch bridge has linked the twin-towns of Killaloe and Ballina for centuries. However, the existing bridge was extremely narrow and for several years it has been operated under stop-go traffic light control, leading to severe traffic congestion and conflict with pedestrians and vulnerable road users.

Under this scheme, a new bridge linking the towns has been built across the River Shannon, with two traffic lanes and pedestrian/cyclist facilities on both sides. The project also includes a new bypass of Killaloe town and improvements to the regional R494 road which connects Ballina with the M7 motorway.

The concept design of the Brian Boru bridge was developed to ensure that the aesthetic of the new bridge complements the environment in which it is located.

Working closely with the late Bridge Architect Kit Powell-Williams during the detailed design phase, Tetra Tech maintained the original architectural concept of the Brian Boru bridge, despite several challenges, including significant changes to the geometry mandated via planning and changes in design standards to meet modern performance standards. The new bridge is 207m long with six spans consisting of steel arched trusses supporting a steel-concrete composite ladder deck.

The project has positively impacted the area, delivering a 45% reduction in traffic and over 6km of active travel facilities. 

Don O’Malley & Partners' ACEI Engineering Excellence Award 2026 for Sustainability in Built Environment

Don O’Malley & Partners were honoured to receive the ACEI Engineering Excellence Award 2026 for Sustainability in the Built Environment for its service on the University of Limerick’s new Student Services Centre.

Founded in 1967, Don O Malley & Partners is one of Irelands long established engineering design consultancy practices, specialising in mechanical, electrical, energy and sustainability design. From our Limerick city base we provide a nationwide service on a broad range of projects including, but not limited to residential, commercial, industrial, sports & leisure, healthcare, education and pharmaceutical.

We are thankful to the University of Limerick for the appointment as building services consulting engineers to their new landmark building project on the university campus. Our brief was to create innovative, energy efficient design solutions, which could provide improved indoor comfort, higher efficiency and save energy on a sustainable basis.

From the outset of this project and in collaboration with all other members of the design team, we adapted an ‘environmentally conscious’ design approach to limiting the buildings reliance on fossil fuels and towards the delivery of a A3 energy rated building. Specialised computer software was extensively used during the course of optimising the buildings energy load profile and evaluating the integration of sustainable design solutions such as natural ventilation and natural daylighting.

Following extensive dynamic thermal modelling, indoor comfort analysis and energy conservation design, the final optimised design included a blend of renewable energy systems with sustainable solutions. Renewable energy systems included high efficiency low temperature air to water heat pumps catering for approximately 90% of the buildings annual heating, along with an array of solar photo- voltaic panels to contribute electrical power to the main distribution system.

Sustainable solutions included optimising the use of natural daylight and ventilation and the use of water saving appliances. Other energy savings features of the design included a mixed mode variable air volume ventilation system and high efficiency artificial lighting with automatic lighting controls. 

The Renovation & Extension of the Treasury Building, Dublin

The renovation and extension of the Treasury Building in Dublin, Google Ireland’s first self-build project, represents a landmark achievement in structural engineering excellence. By prioritising innovation and low embodied carbon design, the project serves as a blueprint for the future of sustainable urban redevelopment.

A Pioneering Approach to Sustainability

The project’s defining feature is a commitment to Low Embodied Carbon Design. Rather than adhering to standard practices, the engineering team implemented several "firsts" for the Irish construction industry:

• Steel reuse: In a major milestone, 85 tonnes of existing structural steel were recovered, recertified with CE marking, and integrated into new locations within the building;
• High-content GGBS: The project replaced 70% of the cement content with Ground Granulated Blast-furnace Slag (GGBS) in the majority of new concrete, such as the floor slabs;
• Circular economy: Beyond steel, the team facilitated the reuse of 16,000 raised access floor tiles and 500m² of stone cladding, while recycling all reinforcement and aggregates from demolished sections.

These efforts resulted in an extraordinary embodied carbon measurement of 207kgCO2e/m² for the renovation stage, far surpassing the initial ambitious target of 500kgCO2e/m².

Technical innovation and Problem-Solving

The team demonstrated exceptional creativity in overcoming the physical constraints of the original 1946 structure while adding two additional stories and multiple mezzanines. Key technical highlights include:

• Imposed loading reductions: By matching Eurocode requirements for imposed loading (3.0kN/m² + 1.0kN/m²) rather than traditional, higher Irish standards, the team achieved an approximate 5% saving in total steel weight;
• Load management: To avoid overloading the original 1940s foundations, new stories and lift cores were constructed using lightweight structural steel and composite metal decks rather than traditional heavy reinforced concrete;
• Pre-loaded mini-piles: To strengthen foundations without risking settlement, the team used a "flat jack" hydraulic system to pre-load new mini-piles to their safe working loads, using the building's own weight as a counter-force;
• Stability through bracing: Rather than trying to add stability to the existing frames, diagonal cross-bracing was used in new insertions to resist the increased lateral loads caused by the vertical extension.

Economic and environmental value

The overall approach proves that a low-carbon design is synonymous with an efficient design. By reusing 16,000 floor tiles and 85 tonnes of steel, the project achieved significant cost savings compared to purchasing new materials. Furthermore, diverting 500m² of stone cladding for reuse and concrete demolitions from landfills to be reused as aggregates in roads reduced both disposal costs and environmental impact.

In conclusion, the Treasury Building project is an example of how structural engineers can lead the transition to Low Embodied Carbon Design of a building. By combining historical research with material reuse and creative foundation techniques, the project delivered a world-class workspace that balances modern commercial needs with environmental responsibility.