Heron Bros in partnership with the Buckingham Group (HBJV) successfully delivered the new state of the art, Sport Ireland National Indoor Area, Blanchardstown. The Sport Ireland National Indoor Arena is the new flagship facility at the National Sports Campus. This fully accessible multi-sport and multi-purpose arena is the newest of its kind in Europe. Built to the highest world class standards and specifications, it will ensure that Ireland has the best facility for indoor sports and events which can be used by everyone, from Irish sporting bodies, to high performance athletes and the general public.

The Sport Ireland National Indoor Arena magnificently houses three indoor arenas, each one as impressive and as multi-functional as the next, facilitating both the high-performance and recreational ends of Irish sport, and everything else in between. The Arena has a signature structure (ranging in height from 12 to 17 metres with circa 18,000m2 gross floor area) over three levels.

An Taoiseach, Enda Kenny TD, officially opened the new Sport Ireland National Indoor Arena in Dublin on Thursday 26th January 2017. Heron Buckingham Joint Venture (HBJV) is proud to have been principal contractor on this world-class addition to Irish sporting infrastructure.

Speaking at the opening, An Taoiseach said: “I am delighted to officially open the Sport Ireland National Indoor Arena today. This most impressive facility is a very welcome addition to Ireland’s sporting infrastructure and I look forward to the many events which the Arena will host of the coming months and years. I would like to congratulate all involved with the development of this facility.”

The centrepiece of construction is the 200-metre indoor running track, partly laid on hydraulics, which means the bends can be raised for competition purposes, or else levelled, allowing the floor space to be used for a variety of purposes from concerts to show jumping events.

Off to one side is the indoor sports hall, which can be used for 20 different sports from badminton to basketball; off to the other side is the indoor gymnastics arena, the first of its kind in Ireland.

The interior space – some 18,000m2 – is larger than the entire stadium dimensions of Croke Park: it also comes with a variety of seating arrangements and is capable of staging national and major championship events. The building is designed to hold a range of events from junior and club level, though to regional and international events, whilst also catering for concerts, equestrian, exhibitions and conferences.

Site works include car parking for approximately 300 cars, access roads and traffic signal-controlled junction on Snugborough Road, surface water drainage, foul water system and utilities.

NIA has been described by Minister Shane Ross as the missing link to the “important gap in our national sporting infrastructure”. The project has been shortlisted under the Cultural Project category for Irish Building & Design Awards 2017.

National Indoor Arena was awarded ‘Sustainable Building Project of the Year’ at the Sustainable Ireland Awards 2017. This was the second year in a row that a Heron Bros project picked up the prestigious award which demonstrates the company’s commitment to sustainability across all projects.