Darragh Beirne, Róisín Buckley, Gráinne Egan, and Aaron Smyth have all been selected for the final for their pioneering achievements across a range of engineering projects.
Chartered Engineer, Engineers Ireland’s most popular professional title, is considered a gold standard of quality within the engineering industry and is a significant career milestone for any engineer, highly valued by employers. Established in Ireland more than 50 years ago, Engineers Ireland has sole statutory authority to award the title, which is granted to professional engineers following a rigorous review process that assesses their abilities to apply professional competence in the workplace.
Damien Owens, Director General of Engineers Ireland, commented: “This year’s finalists demonstrate the excellence and innovation that are the hallmarks of what a Chartered Engineer, at his or her best, should exemplify. I would like to congratulate each of the finalists on being shortlisted for this year’s Award and I also thank Arup for their continued and valued support of this competition.”
Róisín Buckley, Senior Lecturer, Glasgow University:
Róisín Buckley is currently a Senior Lecturer at Glasgow University where she undertakes leading geotechnical engineering research to support the energy transition.
Having spent six years as an engineer in Ireland and Australia, she is passionate about bridging the gap between academia and practice. She is currently the Principal Investigator of a major government and industry-funded project that aims to optimise offshore wind-turbine foundation design.
Her recent contributions, as part of joint industry projects, have led to practical new design approaches that are being applied at several multi-€bn developments. Roisin regularly gives advice to contractors, consultants and developers on major projects. She teaches courses up to Masters Level and currently mentors 6 PhD candidates. Róisín is an Associate Editor of Géotechnique and a Visiting Fellow in Engineering at Oxford, where she was a lecturer until 2021. Roisin graduated with a BEng from NUIG, and an MSc and PhD from Imperial College.
Project title: SOURCE: Improved insitu Stiffness measurements for Offshore foundation design considering Uncertainty, Repeatability and Common sources of Error.
Darragh Beirne, Associate (Rail), ARUP:
With over 15 years of experience in the railway industry, Darragh has built a distinguished career in delivering large-scale infrastructure projects. Starting in 2007 with TII (formerly RPA), he later moved to the UK in 2012 to work with Network Rail, before joining Arup in 2014 and returning to Ireland two years later.
Darragh is recognised for his ability to lead cross-functional teams and consistently deliver projects on time and within budget, with a strong focus on safety and regulatory compliance. His innovative approach integrates advanced technologies and sustainable practices, enhancing operational efficiency and cost-effectiveness. A standout project is the value engineering and design development of the Tottenham Hale tunnel portal for Crossrail 2.
Passionate about the future of railway engineering, Darragh champions energy-efficient solutions and actively mentors emerging engineers. His dedication to excellence, innovation, and positive industry change underscores his commitment to making a lasting impact on the engineering community.
Project title: Applying the Philosophy of ‘Total Architecture’ on Crossrail 2.
Aaron Smyth, Senior Engineer, AECOM:
Aaron is a Senior Engineer at AECOM, with 9 years’ experience in the design, supervision, and overall management of infrastructure projects. With a particular focus on highways and active travel schemes, Aaron has consistently demonstrated his skill in delivering high-quality, innovative and sustainable schemes from conception to completion, ensuring they meet both client expectations and regulatory standards.
Passionate about sustainability, Aaron is committed to providing engineering solutions that contribute to achieving the target of net-zero emissions by 2050 while supporting compact growth. This passion has enabled Aaron to upskill from solely delivering highway infrastructure to researching and developing active travel as part of the wider multimodal transport solutions.
Aaron holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Ulster University. Since graduating, Aaron has returned to deliver talks on how AECOM is promoting sustainable infrastructure. He has also volunteered time to promote engineering in schools through the Engineers Ireland STEPS Programme, further showcasing his commitment to advancing the industry.
Project title: Tackling net-zero through sustainable transport solutions
Gráinne Egan, Senior Project Manager, AtkinsRéalis:
Gráinne Egan is currently working as a Senior Project Manager with AtkinsRéalis in Belfast. An avid sportswoman, Gráinne thinks dynamically and has honed her technical knowledge though years of planning and project management with John Paul Construction.
Starting on site, she quickly progressed to Senior Planner and Project Manager, delivering the Hyatt Centric Hotel in Dublin 8. As a Senior Planner she worked on the National Gallery of Ireland and the Merrion Hotel and became synonymous with complex city centre projects. Gráinne has significant expertise in sustainability, developing and introducing new policies and has worked with TransLink’s PMO to transform their planning practices.
Gráinne is passionate about the development of the role of the planner who she believes, in conjunction with the latest digital tools can serve to create efficiencies and deliver projects to schedule. She holds a BSc in Civil Engineering and a MS in Process Systems Engineering.
Project title: The National Gallery of Ireland: Respecting the past and underpinning the future
