Workshop Explores how Science and Engineering Educators can help the Smart Economy

Ireland’s educators and industry jointly have a vital role to play in the development of the ICT infrastructure required for the Smart Economy an inaugural workshop was told today at the Royal Irish Academy (RIA).
In the first of its kind for the RIA, the workshop brought together leading industrialists and academics in Ireland to share their views on the challenges and opportunities presented by the infrastructural needs of the Smart Economy. The theme of the workshop was “Evolving Communications Networks – Education in the Service of Ireland’s Infrastructural Needs”.

The workshop focussed on the field of Energy Efficient Data Centres, Green ICT, Virtualisation and Cloud Computing, and the next generation of communications networks.

Organised by the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources (DCENR) and the RIA the half-day workshop called on the assembled experts to explore ways in which the latest innovations in Industry and the latest academic research could be harnessed to improve the competitiveness of the economy and lead to closer links between the two fields in the development of the future skills required to drive innovation in the communications infrastructure of the future.

Speaking at the launch today Roger O’Connor, Director of Business & Technology, DCENR, said:

“We are following an integrated approach involving the latest developments in optical networks developed in Ireland, and energy efficient technologies, to ensure that we take the lead in the development of world class green data centres and cloud computing solutions.”

The workshop was sponsored by Intune Networks, BT Ireland, IBM Ireland, and EMC2.

To find out more about the RIA Workshop log on to

http://www.ria.ie/Events/Events-Listing/Communications-and-Radio-Science-Workshop.aspx