Visual Control Tower

Visual Control Tower, Dublin Airport

Visual Control Tower Headline Facts:

The Finer Details :

The Visual Control Tower at Dublin Airport is one of the tallest structures in Ireland and it is Ireland’s tallest occupied building. Contracted by BAM and standing at 87.7 metres high, the tower provides clear views for current and future runways at Dublin Airport. Designed by Scott Tallon Walker Architects, the building comprises a 17-storey shaft with a 4 storey control room sitting on top and to help achieve the design brief of an elegant, modern structure, it was essential that the tower shaft displayed no cold joints and that the surface was of an excellent finish.

Techrete were involved on the project with Scott Tallon Walker from the initial concept and design stage of the tower to ensure that their design intent of this unusual project could be achieved. Techrete were engaged to provide and install the curved precast panels for the shaft with feature knuckles arranged in a triangular shape.

Future maintenance was a key consideration for the project and as such, the shaft facade was designed as a rain screen with open drained joggle joints, allowing rain water to funnel behind the panels and drain out at the bottom of the structure, fulfilling the ‘self-cleaning’ intent of the design.

The unusual shape of the shaft and panels required Techrete to design bespoke structural hanging brackets to support the heavy loads of the panels. Multiple curved timber moulds of varying shapes and radii were designed and manufactured to produce the unusual and varying shapes of the panels. The mix chosen for the panels was our popular C190, white mix and panels were given an acid etched finish. A key challenge for Techrete on this project was the limited time to install the panels before the Control Room steel frame was due to arrive on site and be installed.

The Visual Control Tower won ‘Engineering Project of the Year’ at the Irish Building and Design Awards 2019.