The brief
Located in the heart of Dublin City University's Glasnevin Campus, the state-of-the-art Student Centre opened in September 2018. The new 5,500sqm facility cost €15m and was fully funded by philanthropic donations. It is one of the most ambitious projects in the DCU's ongoing development plan as it looks to an exciting future.
Dubbed 'the U', the new student centre includes a Student Leadership and Life-Skills Centre, an Entrepreneurship and Innovation Hub, and a Global Village to celebrate the cultural diversity of the institution. The rapidly growing student community of over 17,000 is comprised of over 115 nationalities. The performing arts and cultural spaces for students and the wider community are flexible and can host events in excess of 2,000 attendees.
Dedicated to enhancing the student experience, it will support an array of student clubs and societies in its comprehensive range of meeting and engagement spaces. Student union media including a radio station and newspaper will also be housed here. DCU is commitment to becoming the world's first autism-friendly university, so 'the U' also features two 'Escape Pods' which provide dedicated social spaces for students with autism.
Our solution
Maestro chairs
Plaza chairs
As a core facility for the wider university community, the centre provides students the perfect setting to develop themselves beyond the traditional classroom. Fostering a cross-faculty, collaborative culture, the new facilities required furniture that was colourful, durable and flexible. Working alongside Codex Office Solutions, the University selected KI's Maestro and Plaza seating in a vast range of colours to provide comfortable yet versatile seating.
Over 650 high-density stacking Maestro chairs were selected in Ultra Blue, Zesty Lime, Nemo (orange), Rubber Ducky (yellow), Flannel (dark grey) and Mardi Gras (purple). Many of these were upholstered with seat pads in Camira fabrics to provide additional comfort. Several transport dollies were also provided to allow these chairs to be stacked and moved around quickly and easily, adapting to student needs. A further 65 stacking Plaza chairs were selected in Apple Green and Flannel to complement large, collaborative tables.
More information
Project type - New Build
Project partners - Codex
Website - www.dcu.ie
Featured Products