In 2002 Radley Engineering was hired by the Dublin City Council to construct The Spire of Dublin. The Spire, also known as the Monument of Light, was designed by Ian Ritchie Architects and is located in the heart of Dublin on O’ Connell Street.
It took five months to fabricate the monument. The diameter at the bottom of the monument is 3 meters, and this narrows to 150 mm at the top of the monument. It stands at a staggering 125 meters high, making it the tallest stainless steel monument in the world, as well as Europe’s tallest sculpture.
The pattern around the base of the Spire is based on a core sample of earth and rock taken from the ground where The Spire stands. This was achieved by bead blasting the steel through rubber stencil masks.
SIAC Construction Ltd. erected the monument on O’Connell Street. The monument was erected in six sections, with the first being installed in December 2002 and the final section installed in January 2003. The total cost of the monument came in at €6,000,000.
The monument has been nominated for a number of awards including:
- 2003 British Construction Industry International Award Finalist
- 2004 RIBA National Award & Stirling Prize Shortlist
- 2005 Miles Van der Rohe Prize List
