Builders’ merchants Chadwicks has announced that it will partner Technological University Dublin to help deliver a new skills, training and apprenticeship hub for the construction sector.
The Grafton Group-owned company said it would donate €250,000 to the new €22 million Design + Construct centre in Broombridge, which the university hopes will become the first European centre of excellence for construction, engineering and architectural education and training.
Aimed at addressing the well-documented skills shortage and improving the pipeline of apprentices in the construction sector, the hub will also have a focus on sustainable construction methods.
Chadwicks joins a growing a list of corporate partners in the project, including insulation giant Kingspan, which has donated €500,000, and Jones Engineering, which announced a €1 million donation in 2019. Software company Autodesk has also announced a 10-year partnership with the centre, involving the development of a centre to provide training to staff and students through its Autodesk Construction Cloud.
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Announcing the partnership, Chadwicks chief executive Patrick Atkinson said the company was delighted to be involved in the project, which “will play a key role in addressing our nation’s skills gap in key sectors”.
He said: “Training and development are of the utmost importance for our industry at present. This partnership will assist TU Dublin to meet the national demand for skills training, education and craft apprenticeship by focusing on upskilling and reskilling students through flexible, practice-based learning.”
Design + Construct project leader Orla Hanly said the Chadwicks donation would help to deliver a “seamless network of learning and research” for the sector.
“TU Dublin is delighted to welcome the Chadwicks Group to a tightly connected network of industry and academic partners, collaborating to hasten the digital transformation of the sector and set new international standards of practice in support of climate action,” she said.
