What does a Building Engineer do?

Building Engineers are responsible for designing the engineering systems in buildings. These systems consume almost half of all the energy we use today. Building Engineers together with architects design energy efficient and environmentally-friendly buildings.

All the mechanical and electrical systems inside a building which make it safe, make it work and make it a great place to be, come under the title of ‘Building Engineering’.

How do we design buildings that consume much less or even no energy at all? This is the challenge that you’ll face as a modern Building Engineer!

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How do you become a Building Engineer?

TU Dublin City Campus offers the only university accredited courses in Building Engineering.

• TU703 - Building Engineering (Level 7)
• TU805 - Engineering (General Entry Level 8). Students specialise in Building Engineering (TU825) from Year 2.

There is a strong emphasis throughout the course on low energy design and the application of what you learn through practical and project work. When you’ve completed the course you will have a detailed knowledge of the design of energy efficient engineering systems in modern buildings.

1st Year

In the first year you’ll complete a “design, make and test” project. An example of this could be to design, make and test a solar collector. You will learn about how energy is used in buildings, how to design heating and ventilation systems and undertake mini project work. You will also study physics and maths.

2nd Year

In the second year you’ll learn more about the design of mechanical and electrical engineering systems and buildings using computer aided design. You will learn about assessing the energy performance and energy rating of buildings. Projects are an important part of the second year allowing you to apply what you have learnt during the lectures to an actual building. You will complete two design projects in the second year working in a group with other students.

3rd Year

The third year of the course includes the major design project and dissertation. The main design project builds on the project in the second year. You will design all the engineering systems for a large commercial building including design drawings and calculations. The dissertation is a detailed study into one area of your project that you find interesting. This might be about solar energy or a new method of air conditioning.

Progression

Students who reach the appropriate level in the final year of the Level 7 programme have the opportunity to join the third year of the Building Services Engineering (Sustainable Energy Systems) Level 8 degree programme within TU Dublin and elsewhere in Higher Education.

A QQI level 5 entry route to this programme is also available. Further details here.

What job opportunities are there in Building Engineering? 

Building engineers are one of the most sought after types of engineer and were the highest paid engineer category in the construction sector in 2019.

There’s a huge range of career opportunities, in four key areas:

• the exciting field of low-energy systems and using renewable energy from solar, geothermal and ambient sources
• design of modern industrial facilities for clean-room manufacturing in pharmaceuticals, microprocessors and medical devices
• energy and facilities management
• project management and statutory validation

There is a 100% employment rate (even in recessionary times) of TU Dublin's Building Engineering graduates.

The course is closely aligned with over 20 industry partners who recruit directly from the course, including Varmings, Haughton and Young, OCSO, ARUP, Jones Engineering Group, AXIS Engineering, Dornan Group, Daikin, Homan and O’Brien, Wilo, Ethos Engineering, OPW, Cundall and Partners, JV Tierney’s, SIRUS, Kirby Group, McElroy and Associates, Designer Group, EICL Industrial Chillers, Heat Merchants, Quinn Downes, Tritech, Temec, Murphy Belton, McGrattan. Tech companies such as Google and Facebook have their own in-house Building Engineering teams.

What salary can I expect to earn as a Building Engineer?

Many of our Level 7 (TU703) students will have a choice of employment contract offers before graduation - while some may also continue to Level 8 (part-time or full-time).

Progression into management and director positions can see salaries rise into the 65,000 to 100,000+ range. (Brightwater)

Building Engineering: typical salary scale for graduates within 1 - 5 years:

Building Engineering graduates are now top 3 ranking earners in the sector. - Engineers Ireland

Want to know more?

Contact Chris Montague, Building Engineering Course Chair: [email protected] [email protected]

• (01) 402 3833