Engineers Ireland has announced the six shortlisted engineering projects in the running for the national title of Engineering Project of the Year 2014. The public is invited to vote for the winning project online at EngineersIreland.ie and the winner will be announced at the Engineers Ireland Excellence Awards ceremony on 7 November. This year, the shortlist features three local and three international projects carried out by Irish engineers. These include:

• The construction of a new bridge overlooking Dublin’s riverscape;
• The design and co-ordination of a light rail public transport system in Norway;
• The redevelopment of the Ireland’s largest water-treatment facility;
• The building of the largest operating wind farm on the continent of Africa;
• The construction of Ireland’s longest tunnel; and
• A structural safety assessment of buildings which are used as factories by the European clothing industry in Bangladesh.

In addition to exceptional engineering expertise, entries for the Engineering Project of the Year are required to demonstrate the particular influence and benefit the engineering profession makes to society. John Power, chartered engineer and director general of Engineers Ireland said the shortlist highlighted the reach and meaningful impact that Irish engineering has contributed to communities and economies worldwide. The six projects span three continents and range from ensuring the safety of workers’ lives to providing renewable energy to a large country. “It’s evident from the shortlist that when Ireland was hit by challenging economic times a numbers of years ago, Irish engineering organisations reacted with flexibility,” he said. “They sought opportunities outside Ireland which provided employment for Irish engineers. The shortlisted projects are a testament to the reputation and talent of engineers who are making a valuable impression on society both at home and abroad. I encourage the public to review and vote for the project they think deserves recognition.”

Engineers Ireland Excellence Awards - Engineering Project shortlist

The 2014 shortlist for the Engineering Project of the Year, sponsored by the NRA is:

• Ballymore Eustace Water Treatment Plant, by RPS Group involved the complete redesign and redevelopment of Ireland’s largest water treatment plant into one modern integrated development which serves Dublin, Kildare, Dún-Laoghaire and South Dublin with 300 megalitres of water daily;
• Bergen Light Rail Stage III involved the complete engineering design and co-ordination, by Mott MacDonald Ireland, of the construction of 7.8km of double track with associated structures (bridges, tunnels, etc) and a tram depot for maintaining and stabling 50 trams, in the city of Bergen, Norway;
• Corrib Tunnel, a key element of the Corrib Gas Project, the tunnel built by the BAM Civil/Wayss & Freytag joint venture is 4.9km long and 4.2m in diameter. It runs underneath Sruwaddacon Bay in north-west Mayo. Constructed using a tunnel-boring machine named ‘Fionnuala’, it is now the longest tunnel in Ireland and the longest gas pipe in Europe;
• Jeffreys Bay Wind Farm, South Africa involved a team of young pioneering Irish engineers in Mainstream Renewable Power, who developed and constructed Africa’s largest operating wind farm, which today supplies power to 100,000 South African homes;
• Rosie Hackett Bridge, by Roughan & O’Donovan, is the newest bridge overlooking Dublin’s riverscape. The graceful structure, with a total depth of only 457mm at mid span, connects the north and south of the city centre with two southbound bus lanes, one southbound light rail (LUAS) track, two footpaths and two cycle tracks;
• Structural safety assessments of garment factory buildings in Bangladesh involved the expertise of an Irish engineering firm ARUP, which developed and implemented a methodology to assess the structure of unsafe buildings. The programme was adopted nationally and allowed for rapid risk-based structural assessments in over 5,000 garment factories to help ensure that there was no repeat of the Rana Plaza building collapse.

Vote for your favourite project before midnight on Thursday, 6 November. The winner will be announced at the awards ceremony on 7 November in the Four Seasons Hotel in Dublin. For more information on the projects and to cast your vote, see EngineersIreland.ie.