The Polaris building on Dublin City University’s Glasnevin campus has been officially opened by the taoiseach, Micheál Martin, and James Lawless higher education minister. 

Brid Horan, chancellor of Dublin City University; taoiseach Micheál Martin; James Lawless higher education minister; and Prof Daire Keogh, president of Dublin City University. Photo: Kyran O'Brien.

Polaris is the new home for DCU’s School of Health & Human Performance and will include a High Performance Lab focused on high performance sports research, a Life Lab to help students develop improved health literacy, and a Movement Lab that will use state-of-the-art indoor sport facilities to help the local community access data analytics and visualisation techniques.

Taoiseach Micheál Martin said: “This landmark building is a testament to Dublin City University’s innovative vision and its commitment to excellence in STEM teaching, learning and research. The state’s significant investment in Polaris is a strategically important one in terms of Ireland’s skills pipeline.

"In Ireland and worldwide, the demand for talented STEM graduates is greater than ever, and the facilities Polaris offers will ensure that DCU students stay at the forefront of developments in this field.” 

Taoiseach Micheál Martin TD and James Lawless, hgher education minister speak to students at the official opening of the Polaris building on Dublin City University's Glasnevin campus. Photo: Kyran O'Brien.

Professor Daire Keogh, president of Dublin City University, said: “Polaris is a game changer for STEM at DCU. It provides a state-of-the-art learning environment for students and a flexible, collaborative space in which our researchers can innovate and explore.

"The project was delivered through an incredibly challenging time marked by worldwide supply chain and hyper-inflation. But thanks to the hard work and innovation of all involved in the Polaris project, we now have a world-class facility that we can be proud of.” 

Cost of €80m

Polaris covers 10,000 sq m and was constructed at a cost of about €80m. It has an A energy rating and is designed to be a net zero energy building and it uses heat pump technology and has 300 sq m of PV solar panels on the roof. 

Polaris is designed as an immersive eco-system that actively breaks down boundaries, sparking collaboration across subjects and between groups, inside and outside the university. 

Taoiseach Micheál Martin shares a joke with former Dublin selector Mickey Whelan and Prof Niall Moyna from Dublin City University's School of Health and Human Performance Photo: Kyran O'Brien.

Active learning spaces like the planned Industry Robotics Lab and Immersive Visualisation Suite will help students collaborate with industry and peers from around the world, while on-site STEM outreach programmes will help local students explore STEM options at third level. 

An Immersive Visualisation Suite is one of the key learning spaces in Polaris. Its VR equipment creates a virtual space where students can collaborate on projects with other students across the globe, or learn from industry experts in a virtual environment.