Commencement of Science Centre (Phase 2)
Building on the success of the recently completed Centre for Molecular Innovation and Drug Discovery, the next phase of the UCD Science Centre development will commence over the coming weeks.
Consisting of refurbishment and new build components, Science Centre (Phase 2) will provide accommodation for undergraduate, taught postgraduates, and researchers in a multi-disciplinary environment.
Complementing the overall redevelopment of the UCD Science Centre, this development unites the scientific disciplines to provide an educational roadmap from primary school through the undergraduate programmes and onto postgraduate training and research. The development will contribute to the creation of a new vision for scientific research, education and university industry partnerships in Ireland and will create a hub of discovery and enterprise showcasing Ireland’s ingenuity and drive for excellence.
Focussed on delivering national objectives and housed in a facility which bears favourable comparison with the top European science institutes, Science Centre (Phase 2) will develop and deliver a set of programmes which will play a major role in stimulating scientific excitement and inquiry, developing scientific capability and attracting the brightest academics and leading industrialists to Ireland.
Funded through the Higher Education Authority (HEA), UCD and exchequer funding, Science Centre (Phase 2) will provide accommodation for undergraduates, taught postgraduates and researchers, and will deliver on the following distinct but close interrelated objectives; namely:
- Lighting the flame of curiosity early;
- Developing the new science graduate;
- Developing a research-enterprise-industry continuum.
Science Centre (Phase 2) will help to contribute to UCD’s vision to transform research, teaching, training and innovation in science and engineering in Ireland. It will underpin the ambitions of the ‘Smart Economy’ by forging a global hub of leading-edge research and science education. This approach will not only form the next generation of researchers, but a wider cohort of graduates committed to innovation and entrepreneurship, economic and social, who will leverage the outcomes of research for wider societal benefit.
This development will provide modern, safe and bright science facilities to enable the highest quality of teaching and research and industry collaborations. By encouraging participation in science and engineering disciplines, and supporting independent thinking and discovery, the proposed physical development will facilitate enhanced solution-based learning, the communication and sharing of ideas, collaboration, multi-disciplinary teamwork, and cutting edge research.
Following an EU procurement process, the design team led by RKD Architects were selected for the design of the UCD Science Centre. A series of workshops with the relevant Schools, Colleges, Institutes and Senior Management were initiated by the Design Team to develop a masterplan for the Science Centre. The workshops focused on strategies for strengthening research capacity, improving the quality of teaching and learning infrastructure, developing thematic research neighbourhoods and promoting links with government, industry and other third level institutions.
The main contractor has been appointed recently and construction works will commence over the coming weeks. It is anticipated that the new facilities are projected to be complete by 2013.
