Tag: environmental

Klohn Crippen Berger Taps Ireland for European Expansion

Klohn Crippen Berger (KCB), a global engineering consulting firm is pleased to announce its expansion into Ireland with the opening of an office in Naas. The office will support KCB’s existing presence in Europe, serving mining clients in Ireland and its surrounding jurisdictions. 

Headquartered in Vancouver, Canada, with offices in ten countries, KCB provides engineering, geosciences, and environmental services for clients in the hydropower, mining, transportation, energy, and infrastructure sectors. KCB aims to establish a multidisciplinary consulting business in Ireland. The initial focus will be on building out its mining team with qualified professionals in geotechnical engineering, engineering geology, hydrology, hydrogeology, and geochemistry.

This project is supported by the Irish Government through IDA Ireland.

Minister for Enterprise, Tourism & Employment Peter Burke TD said “I warmly welcome Klohn Crippen Berger’s decision to establish its new European office in Naas. This investment is another strong endorsement of Ireland’s reputation as a hub for engineering excellence and innovation. KCB’s presence will not only enhance our capabilities in the engineering and environmental consultancy sectors, it will also create high-value employment opportunities for skilled professionals. The Government, through IDA Ireland, is committed to supporting companies like KCB as they grow and thrive in our dynamic business environment. I wish the KCB team in Kildare the very best for the future.”

Ryan Douglas, KCB President & CEO stated: “KCB’s strategic focus is increasing our geographic reach and growing our global workforce across all our key regions, delivering innovative solutions to clients in the hydropower, transportation, and mining sectors. The establishment of our Ireland office in Naas marks a significant milestone in our 75-year history and specifically for our European growth strategy. As KCB continues to evolve with the industry, our unwavering focus on excellence, innovation, and sustainability remains central to our identity as a trusted partner to clients and an employer of choice for top talent.”

Brian Keenan, KCB Ireland Lead said: “The introduction of KCB into Ireland provides high-quality resources to aid in its mining sector transformation. KCB leverages its long-standing experience, company values and exceptional technical standards to meet the needs of clients in Ireland and Europe.”

CEO of IDA Ireland Michael Lohan said: ““IDA Ireland is pleased to welcome Klohn Crippen Berger to Ireland.  The company’s decision to locate in Naas highlights the value of Ireland as a strategic location from which organisations can serve Europe and the rest of the world. We look forward to partnering with KCB to support their future growth and development here.”

Two-thirds of businesses in Ireland struggling with new environmental regulations

Businesses in Ireland are becoming overwhelmed by environmental regulatory obligations, suggests research from the Equinix 2023 Global Tech Trends Survey. Two in three (66%) IT decision-makers in Ireland admit that they are finding new environmental regulations a challenge, while 42% said there are now too many regulations to comply with. Announcing these findings, Equinix is also providing insights into its own sustainability initiatives in Ireland.

Equinix’s survey, which included 100 IT decision-makers in Ireland, explored IT leaders’ attitudes towards sustainability and their regulatory obligations. In April of this year, the EU’s Effort Sharing Regulation, which transformed the targets of the Clean Energy Package into binding annual targets for each Member State for the period 2021–2030, was amended and Ireland’s new target is now to limit its greenhouse gas emissions by at least 42% by 2030. Additionally, policy initiatives from the Union’s European Green Deal began to roll out in 2022, with more to come as the EU seeks carbon neutrality by 2050. However, IT departments appear to be struggling with the volume and speed at which regulations such as these are being introduced, with 39% of respondents saying they are changing too quickly.

Reflecting the commitment and investment involved in paving the road to Net Zero, 49% of IT leaders said new and upcoming regulations will require major changes to business practices, while 47% said they would lead to an increased cost in management. Additionally, highlighting the ongoing IT skills shortage facing businesses in Ireland and across the globe, 44% of those surveyed said they lack the necessary skills internally to meet these challenges.

Equinix’s research shed light on the role that technology is playing in helping organisations to meet new green standards, with 60% of IT leaders said that they are using automation to manage changes and updates to regulations. Meanwhile, 70% are using advanced technologies such as big data and machine learning to optimise their sustainability efficiencies.

As the world’s leading digital infrastructure provider, Equinix is helping businesses to harness transformative technologies and use them in the collective movement towards a sustainable future. Equinix is committed to responsible growth, for itself and its customers, and continues to advance its bold sustainability agenda to reflect the company’s values across environmental, social and governance initiatives.

Helping to reduce its customers’ scope 2 and 3 emissions, Equinix is making continuous efficiency improvements of 5% year-on-year though innovations and upgrades inside its data centres in Dublin. It is also giving capacity back to the electricity grid by using its own back-up supply of power during periods of high demand. It does this using natural gas generators. While Equinix is committed to investing in the production of renewable biomethane gas in Ireland, natural gas is recognised by the International Energy Agency as the best available backup energy source in the global transition to renewable electricity. Meanwhile, in collaboration with local authorities and Codema, Equinix is currently exploring the feasibility of a district heating solution that will reuse waste data centre heat for the provision of the year-round heating requirements of vital infrastructure in Dublin’s Blanchardstown area.

Equinix is committed to meeting and exceeding all environmental regulations and standards that apply to it. The company adheres to the Government of Ireland’s Principles for Sustainable Data Centre Development and welcomes the EU’s Energy Efficiency Directive, which as of May 2024, will require data centre operators to submit annual reports on their energy performance for the previous year. Equinix is a founding member of the EU Climate Neutral Data Centre Operator Pact and has pledged to be climate neutral by 2030, backed by a near-term, science-based target validated by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).

Peter Lantry, Managing Director for Ireland, Equinix, said: “We are entering a new era of industry where green credentials will be front and centre of everything a business does – to the point where unsustainable businesses will struggle to succeed. While an increase in environmental obligations can be daunting, meeting them must now be viewed as a normal part of doing business. Without them, we will simply not be able to turn the tide on climate change.

“It is encouraging to see that the majority of IT leaders are using technology to help them to manage regulations. It reflects a larger trend that sees technology unlocking solutions to    sustainability challenges. Digital infrastructure will have a key role to play in this, ensuring businesses can deploy game-changing technology solutions with agility and speed.

“At Equinix, we are ahead of the curve when it comes to sustainability, adhering to and exceeding international standards, as well as meeting our own internal targets. This enables us to set a new standard for the data centre industry, while also ensuring we help customers to meet their obligations by continuously reducing our carbon footprint.”

Irish digital services company TEKenable is creating 10 new jobs with the establishment of an ESG Practice

The establishment of TEKenable’s ESG Practice is a key investment area for the company and a critical pillar of its growth strategy.  TEKenable’s clients can define a path to a more sustainable future.

The ESG Practice will provide ESG consulting services to TEKenable customers, especially around the areas of data collection and reporting, carbon reduction and return on investment. The ESG Practice will also provide services to TEKenable itself ensuring ESG is integrated into TEKenable’s customers’ purpose, governance, strategy, decision-making, risk management, and accountability reporting across all divisions of the company and will work closely with them to ensure that understanding and alignment of sustainability and ESG priorities are embraced throughout the organization.   As a result, TEKenable’s customers will be supported with advice, ESG aware project deliveries, ESG related software solutions and sustainable procurement.

“We have developed TEKenable’s ESG services to accelerate our customers on their sustainable transformation journey,” explains Nick Connors, Group CEO, TEKenable.  “Through the use of cloud-based technologies to enable secure data storage and seamless interactions to drive sustainable decisions across our customer’s operations and stakeholders, we will help them accelerate transformation of their organisations and value chains.”

TEKenable has partnered with EcoVadis, the world’s trusted provider of business sustainability ratings, in its quest to use technology to help achieve its objectives and help organisations improve their environmental, social and ethical performance faster and also with Irish ESG consultancy BluePlanet.

TEKenable delivers digital services through Low Code platforms to medium and large-scale enterprises in Ireland, the UK, Spain, Hungary and the UAE.  The company is Irish owned and is committed to transforming forward-thinking public and private sector businesses into fully digital businesses in the cloud.

The ESG Practice will be headed by a sustainable industry expert with a long track record of handling the interests of clients, stakeholders, regulators and partners. The new positions include Cloud Engineering, Data and Analytics and Consulting and will be fulfilled in 2024.

“TEKenable is committed to helping clients move from sustainability and climate commitments to action,” adds Peter Rose, Group CTO, TEKenable.  “We will do so by working with organisations to create a transformation plan as well as helping drive collaboration across a broader ecosystem – of suppliers, clients and customers, policymakers, and alliance partners across industries. Sustainable IT can lead the way while delivering service enhancements and cost savings for a business.”