Exhibition design group Event Communications has been appointed to develop the interpretive design for the planned £18.5m visitor centre at the Giant's Causeway tourist attraction in Northern Ireland.

Event will work closely with The National Trust - which manages the world heritage site - on the project which will include scoping, shaping and implementing the interpretative plan for the Giant's Causeway and Causeway Coast World Heritage Site.

Steve Simons, executive creative director of Event said: "The Giant's Causeway is one of the great natural wonders of the world. I am thrilled that Event has been awarded the task of immersing visitors in its splendours.

"The new Visitor Centre and interpretation across the entire site, will encourage appreciation, enable understanding and contribute to the vital protection of Northern Ireland's only World Heritage site."

Plans for the new centre, which was designed by Dublin-based architects, heneghan.peng, were submitted by the National Trust in June last year to replace a previous facility destroyed by fire eight years ago.

The scheme was approved by the Northern Ireland Executive's environment minister, Sammy Wilson in January 2009.

Work is expected to get underway on the new visitor centre in early 2010 with a scheduled public opening in 2011.

The National Trust is leading the delivery of the new facilities and has already committed £4m towards the works. It has also submitted funding applications to the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment for £9.25m, and to the Heritage Lottery Fund for £3m.