GMIT Construction Management Conference (6 March) to hear of 14% growth projections for sector in 2018

Several hundred delegates are expected to attend the 8th International Construction Management Day Conference, hosted by the GMIT Dept of Building & Civil Engineering, in GMIT Galway on Tuesday, 6 March, to hear experts deliver talks on a wide range of topics from flooding and the planning & regulatory system, to the digitization of the industry, housing versus commercial activity imbalance, R & I and lean initiatives and more.

The conference, chaired by GMIT’s Dr Martin Taggart, will be attended by members from all of the professional bodies such as The Chartered Institute of Building Members (CIOB), Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland (SCSI), Chartered Association of Building Engineering(CABE), Construction Industry Federation (CIF), Construction Industry Register Ireland (CIRI), Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland (RIAI), Engineers Ireland (EI), local authorities, Government and semi-state organisations, along with academics, students and graduates of construction and built environment-related courses.

Dr Martin Taggart, Conference organiser and chair says: “We are delighted to see the continued growth of the conference, which commenced in the depths of the recession in 2011. The conference is now the leading annual event in the west of Ireland, for built environment professionals and contractors”. 

Dr Taggart added “The conference will hear predictions of 2018 construction industry growth of 14%, following on from significant growth in 2017 – this is already leading to shortages of key staff at all levels of the industry. At present, we are seeing exceptionally high industry demand for graduates and work placement students from our degree programmes in Construction Management, Quantity Surveying & Construction Economics, Civil Engineering and Architectural Technolog-”.      

Mary Rogers, Head of the GMIT Department of Building & Civil Engineering, says: “This annual conference is the highlight of our academic year. At GMIT we work closely with our industry and professional partners to meet the ever-changing needs of the sector. We are very proud of our graduates and staff, some of whom are presenting at the conference this year.  In 2017 we were awarded several national education and industry awards for our collaborative development of research-informed programmes and initiatives with our partners in the construction sector. GMIT will continue to meet the demand for implementing innovative processes and technologies to keep pace with a changing construction sector, both in Ireland and globally.”

Speakers:

Dominic Doheny, President of the Construction Industry Federation and joint Managing Director of John Flanagan Developments, will talk about the current landscape and potential for the construction industry from the contractor perspective.

Patricia Calleary, Senior Planning Inspector at An Bord Pleanála, will discuss the planning system in regard to major flooding issues.

David Taylor, President, The Chartered Association of Building Engineers, UK, will examine the future of building engineering, as it undergoes a digital and technological revolution.

John O’Regan, Director and Head of Programme, Cost and Consultancy Services, AECOM Ireland, will present his annual summary of the construction sector for the previous year and prospects for the year ahead.

Gus McCarthy, Director and Senior Planner, McCarthy Keville O’Sullivan Planning Consultants, will review the Irish Planning system in light of recent debates on the need for change.

Oliver Mahon, Senior Vice President, Cement Roadstone Holdings (CRH), Ireland and Spain, and a GMIT graduate, will outline the scope of CRH and reflect on the group view of future developments in materials supply and technologies.

Brian McIntyre, Programme Manager, Sustainable Energy Authority Ireland (SEAI), will

present case study results and summary learning from the SEAI Deep Retro Fit Towards Zero Energy

housing project.

Eamonn Smyth, Advisor on Building Standards, Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government. Eamonn will update us on changes to the Building Regulations during 2017 and proposed changes for 2018 onwards.

Patrick King, Associate Director, Head of BIM Technologies, ECD Architects London, and a GMIT graduate, based in London, will showcase BIM use in Social Housing and outline his work with Westminster City Council BIM rollout project.

Mattie Dwane, Alexion and Lean Construction Ireland,(LCI) will present details of the rapid growth and ambitious plans of LCI and provide an introduction to this very topical area of interest for the industry.

Ms Urszula Jedrol, BIM Manager– Stewart Construction – will present an interesting Case Study in Building Information Modelling, a process, which Stewart are using to improve efficiency across the company. Urszula, is a graduate of GMIT Department of Building and Civil Engineering. 

Kevin Duke, Managing Director, Duke McCaffery Construction Consultants, will review some of the current key topics for the Surveying profession.

For information on all of the programmes offered in GMIT’s Department of Building & Civil Engineering, see: 

http://www.gmit.ie/building-civil-engineering/department-building-and-c…