Project Description
Fosterstown Place Phase 2 is a prominent 7-storey residential development in Swords, comprising 111 high-quality apartments. Located just 2km from Swords Village and 15km from Dublin City Centre, the development was led by MKN Group as both developer and main contractor. Arc Engineering was appointed as the specialist subcontractor for both the balcony and architectural metalwork packages.
Working in close collaboration with architects McCrossan O’Rourke Manning (MCORM) and structural engineers Garland Consultancy, Arc Engineering designed, fabricated, and installed an extensive suite of steel, aluminium, and glass elements. These included cantilevered balconies with privacy screens, Juliet balustrades, balustrades to podium and terrace levels, external stairs, entrance railings, stair core handrails, and basement louvres.
The balconies were based on Arc Engineering’s Perch system — a hot-dip galvanised mild steel platform with powder-coated aluminium decking (fire-rated A2, non-combustible, lightweight, slip-resistant, and qualicoat certified) and free-draining PPC aluminium soffits. Two balustrade types were used:
(i) Vertical post and glass-infill balustrades with clear toughened glass horizontally clamped into powder-coated mild steel frames; and
(ii) Vertical bar balustrades with 100mm c/c spacing, powder-coated, and fixed via a continuous base plate. Privacy screens were formed using perimeter mild steel frames with satin-finished opaque toughened glass infills.
All balcony components were preassembled offsite in Arc’s workshop and delivered to site fully finished for crane-in installation. Cast-in anchors and stubs were used for accurate structural integration. The full balcony package included:
- Three types of single glass-fronted balconies (two over three storeys, one over seven);
- A five-storey stack of single vertical bar balustrade balconies;
- Five double balconies with integrated privacy screens (one over seven storeys, the rest over five).
The architectural intent was to create a cohesive exterior using transparent and metal elements that offered openness, privacy, and safety. Balconies were treated as key design features, carefully coordinated to interface with a façade that included brick, render, and stone cladding. All materials were selected for durability, low maintenance, and suitability for exposed urban conditions — while also supporting the delivery of a fast-track construction programme.
