Ireland is working toward sourcing 80% of its electricity from renewable sources in just six years.

One of the key players in this mission is the Head of Engineering at EirGrid who is responsible for overseeing the delivery of critical grid infrastructure. In this podcast she shares experience on the complexities of integrating renewable sources like wind and solar into the grid, about balancing supply and storage solutions, plus technical and regulatory hurdles that engineers must navigate. She also speaks about the challenges she has had to face personally as an engineer in this role.

Listen now to get a deeper understanding of the challenges and opportunities shaping the future of Ireland's power grid and our transition to renewable energy.

THINGS WE SPOKE ABOUT

• The role of Head of Engineering at EirGrid
• Do we have a creaking old grid?
• Problems storing energy from renewable sources
• Moving energy across long distances
• The planning system
• Challenges she is facing in 2025

GUEST DETAILS

Louise O’Flanagan is the Head of Engineering and Asset Management at EirGrid, a Fellow of Engineers Ireland, and a leader with two decades of experience in the field.

With her long experience connecting customers such as wind farm developers to the national grid, she possesses a deep understanding of the intricate workings of the power system and the challenges of integrating renewable energy sources.

Louise on Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/in/louise-o-flanagan-3a12ba3a/
EirGrid Website - https://eirgrid.com

MORE INFORMATION

Looking for ways to explore or advance a career in the field of engineering? Visit Engineers Ireland to learn more about the many programs and resources on offer. https://www.engineersireland.ie/

Engineers Journal AMPLIFIED is produced by DustPod.io for Engineers Ireland.

QUOTES

Leadership is one part of project management. Leadership is about getting people to buy into what you want to deliver and to want to help and assist you in that.

There is definitely a shortage of female engineers in Ireland. 23% of engineers coming out of university are female and that drops to about 12% actually entering into the workforce. EirGrid have a very active graduate program where you'd see 50% of our graduates are female.

As an engineer, you can have the most perfect plan on paper. But unless you actually meaningfully engage with your stakeholders, that may be where that plan will stay. On paper.

It's what a lot of engineers’ face when they're delivering infrastructure projects. First, you need to explain what the need of the project is, but then also listen and take on board that feedback. You must engage with the community.

KEYWORDS

#engineering #renewable #grid #womeninengineering #eirgrid

Engineering innovation has created incredible technology and found new ways to use current technology to overcome engineering challenges.

LiDAR is an example of one of these revolutionary tools and today we hear from an art historian turned civil engineer who is using it to scan our cities. We hear about their creation of the world's densest urban aerial laser scanning dataset, which was conducted using a large slice of the center of Dublin City, and the challenges they’ve overcome in transforming how we understand, plan, and protect our cities.

Our guest is a pioneering force in urban data science and has authored over 160 peer reviewed publications, been awarded four patents and worked as a professor in UCD Dublin. She is Professor at New York University's Center for Urban science and Progress, Dr. Debra Laefer.

THINGS WE SPOKE ABOUT

• Using LIDAR technology to create highly detailed 3D scans of cities
• Developing methods to efficiently store, process, and analyze LIDAR data
• How 3D scans are revolutionizing urban flood modeling and emergency response
• Applying the LIDAR data and 3D models to real-world engineering challenges
• Exploring the use of 3D printing technology in conjunction with LIDAR data

GUEST DETAILS
With degrees from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (MS, Ph.D.), NYU (MEng), and Columbia University (BS, BA), Prof. Debra Laefer has a wide-ranging background spanning from geotechnical and structural engineering to art history and historic preservation.

In her decade and a half as a faculty member in both the US and Europe, Prof. Laefer has served as the principal investigator for grants from a wide range of sponsors including the National Science Foundation, the US Federal Highway Administration, the National Endowment for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Humanities, Science Foundation Ireland, and the European Research Council (including a €1.5 million single investigator award from the flagship ERC program for which she is the only civil engineer to have been funded in Ireland in the program’s 11 year history).

Prof. Laefer has authored over 160 peer-reviewed publications, been awarded 4 patents, and has supervised 15 doctoral and 20 Masters theses. Among many honors from IEEE, ISPRS, and other professional societies, the most notable is perhaps the 2016 commissioning and hanging of her portrait by the Royal Irish Academy as one of eight researchers selected for the Women on Walls project to celebrate Irish women in science and engineering.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/debra-f-laefer-09510a11/

MORE INFORMATION

Looking for ways to explore or advance a career in the field of engineering? Visit Engineers Ireland to learn more about the many programs and resources on offer. https://www.engineersireland.ie/

Engineers Journal AMPLIFIED is produced by DustPod.io for Engineers Ireland.

QUOTES

We didn't devise a sensor, we didn't even improve the sensor, but we took a fundamentally engineering approach to it. We took this more systematic approach of; let's reverse engineer the process, figure out what we want to get and figure out how to use the sensor to obtain that data. - Dr. Debra Laefer

This technique has been used in fields as far from civil engineering as breast cancer research. So that not only has it been transferred to other LIDAR applications, but people have used it for other remote sensing and medical imaging datasets. - Dr. Debra Laefer

It's good to make mistakes, and it's good to have senior engineers check them. - Dr. Debra Laefer

As crazy as your idea may seem, a lot of the time the best ideas are initially too far ahead of the curve, so don't give up on them. - Dr. Debra Laefer

KEYWORDS

#buildings #data #dublin #engineers #civilengineering #lidar #computationalmodel

Engineering is a diverse and exciting career that fosters immense creative thinking, but just how far can it take you?

Today we hear from an engineer who turned their wildest dreams into reality and took them all the way to NASA. We hear how an opportunity to attend Space Camp inspired their ‘nothing is impossible’ attitude and how engineering has supported further creative pursuits in different disciplines.

Our guest is a trailblazer in the aerospace engineering industry, but also in promoting the idea that ordinary people can do extraordinary things. She is Professor of Aerospace Engineering at Illinois Institute of Technology, Sinéad O’Sullivan.

THINGS WE SPOKE ABOUT

• Early experiences that foster a ‘nothing is impossible’ attitude
• The impact of surrounding yourself with inspiring people
• Mission design and AI at NASA
• Parallels between engineering and other creative pursuits
• The role of AI and automation in the future of engineering

GUEST DETAILS

Sinéad O'Sullivan is an Aerospace Engineer. She formerly led strategy at Harvard Business School’s Institute for Strategy and Competitiveness with Professor Michael Porter and is currently a Professor of Aerospace Engineering at Illinois Institute of Technology. Formerly a Research Fellow at MIT’s College of Computing and MIT Sloan as well as a Human Spaceflight mission designer for NASA and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Her work focuses on the intersection of technology, innovation, geopolitics, and national security. She sits on the board of the European Space Policy Institute, is a frequent contributor to the Financial Times, and is Board Member of IMMA - the Irish Museum of Modern Art. She was also recently nominated as a fellow of Engineers Ireland.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/sineadcosullivan

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Come meet the Engineers Ireland Team at the National Ploughing Championships on September 17th to 19th and have a blast at our Space Station.

We will have three incredible experiences at the Engineers Ireland 'Space Store', ran by former NASA Engineer Steve Ringler - who will be down at the Ploughing Championships with our team.

You can immerse yourself in the cosmos with virtual reality adventures using state-of-the-art headsets, try on a replica spacesuit, or get a hands-on experience with real space rocks, including pieces of the moon.

Join us at Block 2, Row 11, Stand 169 for an unforgettable journey through space and engineering.

Looking for ways to explore or advance a career in the field of engineering? Visit Engineers Ireland to learn more about the many programs and resources on offer. https://www.engineersireland.ie/

Sineads book “Good Ideas and Power Moves” is due to be published September 2025.

Engineers Journal AMPLIFIED is produced by DustPod.io for Engineers Ireland.

QUOTES

I got to spend time with the engineers at NASA, and it just put this very kind of human, normal person face on this career that seemed totally inaccessible. - Sinéad O’Sullivan

There are a ton of really smart engineers that are solving these problems at any given time. But the problem really, I think, lies with the bureaucracy of how we fund science, how we create policy around that. - Sinéad O’Sullivan

I feel like to be creative, you have to let that child part grow up with you, like if you really want to be good at doing these types of jobs, don't let people tell you they're dumb ideas. - Sinéad O’Sullivan

To be a great engineer, you need to be around great engineers. - Sinéad O’Sullivan

My entire career has been curiosity driven for the simple reason that if I'm really interested in it, I'm going to work hard enough at it to be successful in it. - Sinéad O’Sullivan

Engineering is really about learning a way of thinking, and it's one that allows you to understand nuance, complexity, and difficult challenges that you can apply to literally any other career. - Sinéad O’Sullivan

KEYWORDS

#engineering #nasa #career #space #mission #taylorswift #robots

One of the biggest challenges of the climate crisis is power. How do we harness it, store it, use it and most importantly, make it more sustainable.

Engineers have been creating fantastic solutions in power, but storing it is one of the biggest obstacles to overcome. Today we hear from an Irish engineer who is actively responding with some very clever solutions.

Our guest has worked with decarbonization at EU level and is leading his own social enterprise that creates energy storage solutions for homes, farms and small businesses. He is co-founder and Director of Range Therapy Eamon Stack.

THINGS WE SPOKE ABOUT

• A new way of thinking about power supply and storage
• Second life batteries and how they can be utilised
• Using battery stored power in buildings, businesses, farms and home
• Creating a circular recycling programme for batteries in Europe
• Storing wind and solar power in batteries for cost effective power

GUEST DETAILS
Eamon Stack is an award-winning serial social entrepreneur. He co-founded Range Therapy in 2020, responding to the climate change crisis by focusing on reducing energy emissions, one of the big three human causes. Range Therapy offers second-life EV battery packs to upgrade older EVs and to offer substantial energy storage solutions at an affordable price for homes, farms and small businesses.

Eamon’s background is in software engineering, with 35 years development experience in the nonprofit sector. He was founder and former CEO at ENCLUDE for 18 years. This charity is focused on building the ICT capacity of the Irish Charity Sector.

https://ie.linkedin.com/in/eamon-stack-25a3242

https://rangetherapy.org/

MORE INFORMATION

Looking for ways to explore or advance a career in the field of engineering? Visit Engineers Ireland to learn more about the many programs and resources on offer. https://www.engineersireland.ie/

Engineers Journal AMPLIFIED is produced by DustPod.io for Engineers Ireland.

QUOTES

After high powered use of a battery in a car for 15 or 20 years, they have another 20 years of life available to them as energy storage. - Eamon Stack

That's what's wonderful about the transition from an energy system where we just burn and waste fossil fuels to one that is perfectly circular and completely sustainable. This is really very good news for everybody in the system. - Eamon Stack

The Environmental Protection Agency might view a second life battery out of a car as a hazardous waste. That's a problem we need to deal with, this is a national asset. - Eamon Stack

It's a whole new world, and it's an exciting new world where there's a potential. The Holy Grail here is storage, we make tons of power, where can we store it at a price that makes sense. - Eamon Stack

KEYWORDS

#batteries #energy #cars #electric #engineers #grid #power #recycling #sustainability

The water sector needs the help of engineers to develop plans and innovative solutions for the maintenance of one of our most essential commodities.

Today we hear of all the challenges facing the sector, from inefficient leaky infrastructure to an urgent focus on sustainability thanks to the rapidly changing climate.

Our guest has been a leader in this area for 25 years since founding his company in Loughrea, and has had success not just here in Ireland but across Europe and to the USA. He is Group Managing Director of Glanua, Karl Zimmerer.

THINGS WE SPOKE ABOUT

● Working with water as a valuable resource and commodity

● The history of Glanua and the group MD’s career path

● Innovation to meet customer needs and regulatory standards

● Balancing supply, sanitation and sustainability in improving treatment plants

● Where to improve water knowledge as an interested engineer

GUEST DETAILS

Karl Zimmerer is Group Managing Director of Glanua. Karl has over 25 years experience in the design, construction and operation and maintenance of water and wastewater infrastructure throughout Ireland, with over 15 years in a Senior Management position. Karl’s professional qualifications include an Honours Degree in Structural Engineering and a Master Degree in Project Management.

Karl is a founding member of Glanagua LTD and has successfully developed the business into one of the leading companies in the water sector in Ireland, providing a full range of services throughout the industry.

https://ie.linkedin.com/in/karl-zimmerer-4b73a319

MORE INFORMATION

Looking for ways to explore or advance a career in the field of engineering? Visit Engineers Ireland to learn more about the many programs and resources on offer. https://www.engineersireland.ie/

Engineers Journal AMPLIFIED is produced by DustPod.io for Engineers Ireland.

QUOTES

It is a very expensive resource that is absolutely essential to life. - Karl Zimmerer

It is something that requires a significant level of investment to ensure that that is provided at a certain standard and a lot of governments aren't allocating enough for that. - Karl Zimmerer

Innovation is something that we feel very, very passionate about, because innovation can be how you dig the hole, how you construct the tank, it can be about the technology, the pump system, the mortar that drives the pump, water efficiency, setpoint and understanding what the needs are for your customers. - Karl Zimmerer

There's absolutely no stupid questions. Don't come to me with questions, come to me with solutions, and just ask me to do I think the solutions are right - Karl Zimmerer

KEYWORDS

#water #Ireland #engineering #challenge #wastewater #treatmentplant #sustainability

Engineers are naturally creative, from problem solving to designing and planning. But when you combine that with visual creativity, it leads to unique and beautiful things.

Today we meet an Irish engineer who is using his engineering skills and artistic flair to design some of the most impressive structures across the world, including a very well known New York tourist attraction.

Our expert guest has worked in over 20 countries across the globe and is passionate about the architectural response to the climate crisis. He is Principal and Founder of VOLUTA, Eoin Casserly.

THINGS WE SPOKE ABOUT

● Engineering as a passport to the world
● Working through design limitations with efficiency
● Complex design with user experience in mind
● The architectural response to the climate crisis
● Chartered Engineer of the Year award and its benefits

GUEST DETAILS

Eoin Casserly is principal and founder of VOLUTA, a specialist structural engineering consultancy operating internationally, based in Sligo. Previously, he held structural engineering positions in Paris, New York, and Stuttgart. He has designed advanced structures such as gridshells, cable nets, facades, stadia, and artworks in more than 20 countries, working through six languages.

Project highlights include the highest outdoor observation deck in the Western Hemisphere, the world’s first cable net with curved glass, the largest-spanning glazed roof in South America, and gridshells for the largest botanic garden in the world. His current research combines pre-industrial materials with innovative construction and analysis techniques.

Eoin won the Engineers Ireland Chartered Engineer of the Year Award in 2023.

MORE INFORMATION

Looking for ways to explore or advance a career in the field of engineering? Visit Engineers Ireland to learn more about the many programs and resources on offer. https://www.engineersireland.ie/

Engineers Journal AMPLIFIED is produced by DustPod.io for Engineers Ireland.

Engineers are on the frontline of influencing our future and play a key role in the race against climate change.

As we embrace the digital transition, one Irish company is leading the way in decarbonisation. Today we hear how the firm has achieved rapid success in just three years of business, how they develop passionate and innovative teams and the incredible creative opportunities available to Irish engineers across Europe.

Our expert guest believes in the power of combining engineering and business and is passionate about Ireland’s ability to be world leaders in this space. He is Founder and Managing Director of Skanstec, Declan Wynne.

THINGS WE SPOKE ABOUT

• Filling the market gap for decarbonisation innovation
• Transitioning from fossil fuels to clean energy in Ireland’s grid
• The challenges causing a race against time for engineers
• How Ireland can be a world leader in energy and digital
• CPD and opportunities for Irish engineers across Europe
• The role of data centres in decarbonisation

GUEST DETAILS

As Founder and Managing Director, Declan Wynne leads the Skanstec Executive Management Team and sits on the company’s board. Declan has a strong Engineering background with dynamic business acumen and a human approach. Declan has over 20 years’ experience in the Engineering sector and has a passion for Engineering and sustainability.

The transition to a climate neutral society, coupled with the convergence of Digital Energy and Connectivity, inspired Declan’s vision for Skanstec to be a leading specialist Engineering company in the Energy and Telecommunication Sector with a focus on Decarbonisation and the Digital Transition.

Declan holds a Degree in Engineering and a Master’s in Business Administration (MBA), including Level 9 Post Grads in Project Management and Coaching.

www.skanstec.com

MORE INFORMATION

Looking for ways to explore or advance a career in the field of engineering? Visit Engineers Ireland to learn more about the many programs and resources on offer. https://www.engineersireland.ie/

Engineers Journal AMPLIFIED is produced by DustPod.io for Engineers Ireland.

QUOTES

I've always had a passion for engineering and particularly a passion for business, and I think both work very much hand in hand, particularly in an Irish context. I think Irish engineers are quite good at being innovative and have a way about doing business that seems to be quite successful in many parts of the globe. - Declan Wynne

Engineering becomes more and more important in terms of what we're trying to achieve at a national level and at a global level in terms of decarbonisation, and the digital transition that we're experiencing. - Declan Wynne

The world is changing, and we've got to act, we've got to adapt. - Declan Wynne

Irish engineering businesses are dominating across Europe. It's a huge opportunity for engineers. - Declan Wynne

The data centres are absolutely fundamental to decarbonisation. We can't decarbonize without data centers. Ireland's challenge at present is power. It's not data centers in my own view, and that's something that we're proud to be involved in. - Declan Wynne

KEYWORDS

#engineering #decarbonisation #opportunity #datacentres #business #sustainability

Irish engineers are incredibly creative thinkers and innovators, but it's a big leap going from innovator to entrepreneur, and taking an idea you might have to market.

Today we hear from a prominent engineer with a fascinating career history, which took her from aeronautical engineering into the biomedical space. We'll be finding out how she looks at problems, overcomes obstacles, where she sees innovation and opportunity, and getting some great advice for any engineers who are thinking of launching their own business.

Our guest is CEO of Altratech and the Assistant Director of the Stokes Research Institute at University of Limerick, Dr. Tara Dalton.

THINGS WE SPOKE ABOUT

• Transitioning through different disciplines of engineering
• The benefits of working within interdisciplinary teams
• Learning to ‘skate where the puck is’
• Being aware of trends and spotting gaps in the market
• Striving for progress over perfection and asking for help

GUEST DETAILS
Dr Tara Dalton, CEO of Altratech and Assistant Director of the Stokes Research Institute in the Department of Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering at the University of Limerick.

Dr Dalton is a fellow of the Irish Academy of Engineers. She is one of the founders of Stokes Bio – a spin-out company that was sold to Life Technologies that developed high throughput microfluidic instruments for PCR. Her research interest is in the development of microfluidic devices for biological assays. She has graduated 20 PhD Students, published over 100 refereed papers and has over 50 granted patent and patent applications.

https://altratech.com/

https://ul.ie/research/dr-tara-dalton

MORE INFORMATION

Looking for ways to explore or advance a career in the field of engineering? Visit Engineers Ireland to learn more about the many programs and resources on offer. https://www.engineersireland.ie/

Engineers Journal AMPLIFIED is produced by DustPod.io for Engineers Ireland.

QUOTES

In my mind, in engineering, you don't want to be at the cutting edge of absolute new science. You want to be just behind it, so you can help people with that science. - Tara Dalton

When you work with interdisciplinary team, and I work with medics, physicists, chemists or even with other entrepreneurs, it's just amazing, because I find that everybody wants to help you be better. Nobody, at least in my experience, gatekeeps their knowledge. - Tara Dalton

Skate where the puck is, right. It didn't matter that I had this great product, but to get venture capital funding, that was never going to happen, because it wasn't in that ecosystem at the time. So that was one really big learning lesson. - Tara Dalton

Ask for help. Everybody, ask for help. Go talk to people, go talk to Enterprise Ireland, go talk to lawyers, go talk to VCs. Don't go saying I want, want, want, just say, What should I do? How could you help me? You'd be surprised how many people will give you their time. - Tara Dalton

KEYWORDS

#engineering #problemsolving #entrepreneurship #biomedical #aeronauticalengineering #science