Buildings technology giant Johnson Controls is opening an OpenBlue innovation centre at its global headquarters in Cork, Ireland.

The centre aims to create a future-ready built environment for both local and global customers and is part of an international network of centres working to pioneer ways to provide smart, healthy and sustainable spaces.

“We are very pleased to be launching our OpenBlue innovation centre in Cork,” said Tomas Brannemo, vice president at Johnson Controls. “This centre will be focused on working with our customers to identify solutions for them to hit decarbonisation and renewable energy goals while optimising building performance. This centre will serve as our regional centre of excellence to bring clients to see Johnson Controls’ latest cutting-edge innovations on how to solve for net zero.”

Fitted with building technology, the centre will be a showcase of the latest innovations from the company in a live environment. The research and development grant Johnson Controls received from the Irish government will support engineering activities at the centre, including developing a professional services hub for Europe, Middle East, Africa and Latin America over a two-year period.

The company’s research and development presence has grown in recent years and it is expected that 18 new research and development roles will be created as a result of the centre, in addition to 40 roles already in place.

Research and development will focus on reducing carbon emissions in the building sector. The building sector accounts for nearly 40 per cent of global annual CO₂ emissions, making it a key focus area in the pursuit of a net zero world.

“Our partnership with the Irish government through IDA Ireland shows how governments and industry can drive real change,” said Eamonn Hughes, vice president at Johnson Controls. “The financial support will allow us to increase our headcount, which will contribute not only to the local economy, but also to the development of our OpenBlue net zero solutions globally to have a positive impact on climate change.”

IDA Ireland’s head of engineering Eileen Sharpe added: “IDA Ireland is committed to supporting the work of world class companies such as Johnson Controls to utilise the latest developments in AI, data analytics and cloud architecture to build new technologies to enable a more sustainable world. This is a most welcome investment for Cork and for Ireland and is in line with our strategy aim to develop Ireland as a leading location for sustainability engineering.”