Forty-six construction cranes were visible over the centre of Dublin on July 1st from the seventh floor of The Irish Times building on Tara Street.

This is an increase of one – or 2 per cent – on the previous month’s total of 45.

Seven cranes were located north of the river Liffey – a decrease (22 per cent) of two on the nine recorded on June 1st. The remaining 39 cranes were concentrated in the south docklands and along the Grand Canal – up three on the previous month.

Site-clearance work has begun on Trinity College's new €70 million business school on Pearse Street. This involves the demolition of the 1970s Luce Hall sports block and the 1990s Simon Perry engineering building while also regenerating six three-storey terraced buildings dating from about 1825.

Another large site beside the 3 Arena in the north docklands is also being cleared while Irish housebuilder Cairn Homes is busy preparing the ground for a large scheme of offices and 100 apartments over 42,500sq m at Hanover Quay in the south docklands.

With the economy expected to continue its recovery this year and a number of significant developments due to enter the construction phase shortly, it's likely the number of cranes on Dublin's skyline will increase. This is particularly the case in the south and north docklands, where large schemes are now under construction. The Irish Times will be conducting a crane survey once a month to track construction levels in the city.