Kingspan has today announced a multi-year €3m collaboration with Innovate for Ireland.
This is a major public-private initiative to position Ireland as a world-class hub for doctoral research and innovation talent.
The Cavan-headquartered building materials group aims to support multiple PhD iScholars over the next decade, backing research that connects Ireland's universities with real-world industry challenges in areas including climate action, sustainability, green materials and the future of the built environment.
The investment forms part of the broader Innovate for Ireland initiative, a national doctoral scholarship programme established to attract exceptional research talent from around the world and develop the next generation of innovation leaders in Ireland. Through the initiative, researchers will undertake cutting-edge projects across Irish universities in areas including green materials and the future of the built environment, the circular economy, sustainable aviation fuel, clean energy, and advances in chemotherapy.
The first iScholar being sponsored by Kingspan is Abhishek Kaitheri Edathil, an award-winning India-born materials scientist researcher, studying at TUS Athlone. Availing of research facilities at TUS Athlone and the IKON Innovation Centre in Cavan, Abhishek will research recycling solutions for Polyurethane and Polyisocyanurate insulation waste across the building lifecycle.
Commenting, Sandra Sandra Del Bove, Group Head of Innovation at Kingspan, said: "We are proud to partner with Innovate for Ireland and are delighted to support an initiative that is building Ireland's next generation of sustainability and innovation leaders while strengthening the country's position as a world-class innovation ecosystem.
"For Kingspan, this is a long-term investment in people, ideas and solutions. As we continue to develop advanced solutions to support the decarbonisation of the built environment, access to world-class research talent will be critical. Through programmes like Innovate for Ireland, we can combine outstanding research talent, academic expertise and industry insight to strengthen our innovation pipeline and turn promising ideas into practical solutions.
"By connecting research excellence with industry, we can help transform breakthrough ideas into practical applications with global impact."
