Shannon Airport Group calls for rail link and strategic regional investment in new proposal to government
In their proposal, the Group urged 'decisive action' to 'address critical infrastructure deficits in the Southern Region'.
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Irish Times
4 hours ago
- Irish Times
AI needed to help Ireland's infrastructure withstand climate disasters
A powerful set of available AI tools will help improve the resilience of much of Ireland's ageing infrastructure, which is increasingly exposed due to increased floods, storms and other climate-related disasters, according to consultancy firm Deloitte . The newly reviewed National Development Plan (NDP) 'offers a once-in-a-generation opportunity to future-proof Ireland's infrastructure' but AI needs to be widely deployed, said Stephen Prendiville, Deloitte Ireland's infrastructure and sustainability lead. He was commenting on a global report published on Wednesday, which finds AI-enabled infrastructure resilience could help prevent about €65 billion in annual damage worldwide by 2050 – about 15 per cent of projected global losses due to natural disasters. A specific figure for Ireland is not given. With €275 billion planned in the NDP through to 2035, Mr Prendiville said, 'we have the capital needed. We now need to move forward at pace, with smarter planning and data-driven decision-making. AI is rapidly transitioning from being experimental to being an important part of the solution. READ MORE 'With the right vision and collaboration, [AI] can help leaders build infrastructure that's stronger, more efficient, more sustainable and future ready, helping ensure future disruptions are less severe or can be more easily mitigated,' he added. The report by Deloitte's Centre for Sustainable Progress outlines how AI technologies can play a role at every stage of infrastructure life cycles, from planning and prevention to 'rapid post-event recovery'. In urban and regional planning, AI-powered digital predictive models can now support better land use via land elevation data, soil saturation and urban density, it finds. Meanwhile, machine learning can power early warning systems for floods, helping authorities reduce human and economic impacts, while AI-enabled inspection tools can speed up damage assessments and accelerate infrastructure repair, minimising costs and economic disruption, the report says. From storm-related power outages to repeated flooding, Mr Prendiville said Irish infrastructure was increasingly vulnerable to climate impacts. 'New stresses are now also emerging with more extreme temperatures being experienced as a rule in summer and winter.' [ Climate scientists to receive €2.8m for flood future-proofing projects Opens in new window ] A Deloitte survey warned earlier this year that climate change could cost the Irish insurance industry up to €1.5 billion over the next decade, driven by more frequent extreme weather events. 'We found the availability and rising cost of reinsurance was one of the biggest challenges for Irish insurers offering flood-risk cover,' said Noel Garvey, an actuary with Deloitte Ireland. 'If AI, predictive analytics and shared climate intelligence can give governments, scientists, insurers and services the foresight to act earlier, respond faster and recover more effectively, it can turn what are often devastating losses into more manageable challenges, keep more people safe and costs down,' he added. Technology and data were as critical as physical flood defences in protecting against extreme weather events, he said. Storm Éowyn earlier this year resulted in insurance claims of more than €300 million. 'The cascading impacts of persistent power failure, exacerbating the lack of water and telecom service during this time, must be a wake-up call for authorities when it comes to the resilience of our infrastructure,' Mr Garvey said. 'Met Éireann has already set out its ambition to move beyond broad, countrywide weather alerts and towards more localised, geo-specific warning systems,' Mr Prendiville added. 'With the integration of AI and enhanced data and analytics, these forecasts could be made far more precise.'
RTÉ News
a day ago
- RTÉ News
Engineering firm Egis to create 100 jobs in Dublin
Engineering consultancy Egis has announced the creation of 100 jobs after the company secured a number of new contracts in the last few months. Egis, which has been operating in Ireland since 1994, said it will fill the new roles over the next 12 months, adding that most of the positions will be in engineering. The jobs announcement was made as Tánaiste Simon Harris officially opened the company's revamped engineering headquarters at Classon House in Dundrum in Dublin 14. Egis has already recruited 80 new engineers in the last two years in Ireland, and its total Irish workforce now stands at over 630 with operations across 16 offices and sites. The planned expansion in staff numbers comes after the company's acquisition of Dublin-based JB Barry & Partners in 2023. Egis was recently awarded a new contract by Transport Infrastructure Ireland to operate and maintain the Dublin Tunnel, the Jack Lynch Tunnel and monitor 1,200km of motorway. It is also acting as engineers for the Sisk Sorenson joint venture, which is building the new Adare Bypass, and is involved in the REPower EU Energy Survey, which is conducting energy assessments on 4,000 schools in Ireland. Egis also wants to strengthen its ability to support the State's planned investment in infrastructure as outlined in the updated €275 billion National Development Plan. The plan includes major transport projects such as DART+, Metrolink, Bus Connects and key water improvements such as the Greater Dublin Drainage Project and the Shannon to Dublin pipeline. Both Eirgrid and the ESB are also expected to invest in new infrastructure in the coming years. Egis already works in partnership with public sector clients such as Transport Infrastructure Ireland, the National Transport Authority, Iarnród Éireann, Uisce Éireann, local authorities and the OPW. Steve Preece, CEO of Egis in Ireland, said the company's ambition is to help enable the country's stable economic growth through the delivery of essential infrastructure and buildings that can deliver a better and more sustainable future for all. "Our plan to increase staff numbers comes as the Government and state agencies are investing in major infrastructure projects and undertaking updating works on existing infrastructure," he said. "By investing in new staff, we are seeking to position ourselves to successfully compete for a share of this work and to provide the support and expertise required to ensure the Government maximises the return on its investment," he added. Tánaiste Simon Harris said that Egis has already successfully partnered with the Government and with a number of state agencies on the delivery and operation of major infrastructure projects, adding that he welcomes the company's plans to continue expanding and to create 100 new jobs over the next year.
Irish Times
2 days ago
- Irish Times
The Irish Times view on building infrastructure: where will the workforce be found?
The recent revision to Ireland's National Development Plan (NDP) put a welcome emphasis on infrastructure and underlined the financial resources that would be needed to deliver significant improvements. However, the plan was weak on detail and the projects that it would fund are only to be announced around the time of the budget. Meanwhile, it had little fresh to say on where the workforce to deliver the new programme would be found, beyond pointing out the scale of this issue. Without this missing piece, the whole programme could quickly run into the sand. A few scant pages are included in the revised NDP on this key question. This is disappointing as this is a keynote document on one of the most vital issues facing the State – the housing and infrastructural shortage – and has been in preparation for a significant period. Economic consultants Indecon have been hired 'to develop an integrated national framework for addressing priority construction workforce needs.' This is long overdue – though it is strange that consultants always seem need to undertake this kind of project. The document refers to previous official estimates that around 80,000 additional construction workers would be needed to build the 300,000 houses targeted by the Government during its term and to retrofit the existing housing stock. As the construction sector currently employs some 177,000 people, this is a very significant 45 per cent increase. Work by the Fiscal Advisory Council, the budget watchdog, comes up with a similar figure of 80,000 extra constructions workers being required to upgrade Ireland's lagging infrastructure. READ MORE There are no easy answers in terms of where the additional workforce can be found. The sector has hired many migrant employees in recent years and more are likely to come. In the short term, however, the question is where are these people to live, in an economy where there is a shortage of housing and rents are sky high? There will be trade-offs. Can Ireland manage to build new houses while also retrofitting the existing stock ? Can employees be diverted from other sectors? Expanded training and apprenticeship programmes are another obvious route. There has long been talk, meanwhile, of improving the productivity of the building sector, estimated by the council to be 30 per cent below the European average. But the value of 'modern methods of construction' have featured in many official reports over the years and it seems Ireland still lags well behind. This complex issue of finding the workforce is the kind of detail which has been missing from national planning in recent years. Lip service is paid, but little is done to forensically address the issues vital to actually getting things done.
