Griffith Wood
Award winning development provides high quality residential units for the Marino suburb of Dublin
Case Study5 min read
Seamus Heaney Centre
A home for one of Ireland's beloved poet's treasured poetry and books
The £4m facility houses more than 2,000 books and reference materials from the personal library of the late poet. Its Interpretive Centre features a bespoke tapered insulation roofing system, with other insulation boards used in the walls and floors.
A recipient of 1995's Nobel Prize in Literature, Seamus Heaney was one of Ireland's greatest poets; he was also a playwright, translator and lecturer. A native to Northern Ireland, he was raised in Bellaghy, Derry and later moved to Dublin.
Following his death in 2013, permission was granted by Magherafelt District Council for the state-of-the-art Seamus Heaney Interpretive Centre on the main street in Bellaghy. The fomer PSNI Station site was transformed into a facility to welcome up to 50,000 visitors each year.
The new haven for the arts includes a large exhibition area which houses a selection of Heaney's personal belongings. The £4m facility houses more than 2,000 books and reference materials from the personal library of the late poet.
It also features a library, art studio, café area, a 160-seater theatre and a creative outdoor space. The project architect was W&M Given and the building contractor was Brendan Loughran & Sons. Tandem Design managed the interpretive element of the project.
We were delighted to be a part of this project, designing a bespoke tapered insulation roofing system for the Interpretive Centre. Thermataper TT46
Products Used in this Project
For the floors, 1,710 m² of Thermafloor TF70 was installed. While such a large floor area can achieve a reasonable U-value without insulation due to the thermal resistance of the ground, utilising Thermafloor TF70 significantly improves the thermal resistance and provides a consistent level of performance across the floor area.
Over 1,400 m² of Thermawall TW50 was used to insulate the cavity walls, achieving a U-value of 0.19 W/m²K, and a further 715 m² of Kooltherm K7 was used. Kooltherm K12 for timber and steel framing systems was also used.
Page updated 18/07/2025
Finally, 140 m² of Kooltherm K3 in a thickness of 100 mm was used on the semi-exposed floor sections, and installed between timber floor joists.
Thermafloor TF70
Underfloor insulation board with thermal conductivity of 0.022 W/mK.Thermawall TW50
Cavity wall insulation with thermal conductivity of 0.022 W/mKKooltherm K12 Framing Board
Premium peformance insulation for steel and timber frame wall constructionsKooltherm K3 Floorboard
Premium performance floor insulationKooltherm K7 Pitched Roof Board
Premium performance pitched roof insulation board
