The building materials group Saint-Gobain has opened a new construction skills academy in Dublin through which it hopes to train 25,000 new builders over the next five years.
The company says it wants to replace what it called the "lost generation" of construction workers who have left Ireland since the industry was hit by a savage recession in 2008.
Brian Dolan, the managing director of Saint-Gobain Building Materials Ireland, says that the new training centre represents the most significant investment in construction skills since 2008 and is a massive vote of confidence in the sector and in the country by Saint-Gobain. Mr Dolan said the company is trying to help replace the lost generation of Irish construction workers, who have either left the industry or actually left the country. He also says that building standards and regulation have improved greatly over the last few years and so people in the industry also need to upskill and improve their skills. The vast majority of the courses at the skills academy will be free. Mr Dolan says the company wants to teach people how to build "smart homes" which are energy efficient.
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