Galway, Republic of Ireland
The National University of Ireland, Galway opened a $57.3 million engineering facility in July of 2011. Ground was broken on the project in October of 2009. The four-story, 153,385-sf building provides classrooms, lecture halls, faculty offices, and 36 laboratories. The sustainably designed facility is constructed with a voided slab system which integrates plastic bubbles into the concrete used in the structure. The building is designed to act as a teaching tool and includes heat exchangers, a biomass boiler, and grass roofs. The facility was designed by RMJM of Scotland in partnership with Taylor Architects of County Mayo.
