Laois jobs boost as €8 million factory opens in Portlaoise

The latest investment of public money by Laois County Council in helping with job creation in the county has come to fruition in Portlaoise where the Kirby Group Engineering has officially opened a manufacturing facility at Junction 17 National Enterprise Park.

Making the announcement the company said the €8m development is set to create 50 jobs and will be key to the continuing growth of the company in producing components for projects across Ireland, the UK and mainland Europe.

Kirby says it employs over 1800 people and has developed a reputation in the life sciences, data centre, industrial, power and renewables sectors. The Limerick-headquartered firm also claims to be on track to record revenue of more than €700m in 2024.

The company says over 20 people are already working at the Portlaoise facility and Kirby expects that figure to reach 50 by the end of 2024. The team there provides fabrication, welding, engineering and BIM (Building Information Modelling) services. It also features a dedicated cleanroom to facilitate high purity pipework, as required by many of Kirby’s clients. Components built at the Portlaoise plant will be transported to sites across all markets where Kirby operates.

In addition to the main operation in Portlaoise services, the new building houses office space and a dedicated apprentice training facility, which will allow for classroom-based and practical education. Apprenticeships have been an integral part of Kirby’s talent pipeline for many years and the company is currently supporting more than 200 apprentices through their four years of training.

The factory opens on an Enterprise Park located off the M7 motorway in Portlaoise which has been developed by Laois County Council and advanced in recent years. Other firms to set up there are the major Laois-based company Midlands Steel, mozzarella maker Leprino, Aubren and Alpha Drives.

Kirby says the job creation at the off-site manufacturing facility has come about with the support of Enterprise Ireland. 

CEO of Kirby Group Engineering Mark Flanagan says off-site manufacturing is in high demand among its customers, including a number of global IT leaders. MORE BELOW PICTURE OF THE PLANT.

“OSM provides incredible savings when it comes to hours on site, equipment on site, scheduling control, quality control and of course health and safety. We now aim to complete 25% of our projects through prefabricated methods and this facility is central to that target. I’d like to congratulate our Operations Director Mikey Ryan on his vision and leadership in bringing this project to life and I’m truly excited to see the possibilities this Portlaoise site can help create for Kirby and our customer offering,” he said.

Leo Clancy, Chief Executive Officer, Enterprise Ireland said: “Enterprise Ireland is delighted to support this new development by Kirby Group. It supports a move to more modular construction in the building out of advanced manufacturing facilities thereby capturing more value and increasing sustainable employment for the region. I would like to congratulate Mark and all the team at Kirby on today’s opening and we look forward to continuing to work with the team to support the company’s operations and growth both in Ireland and in overseas markets providing high value services for global customers across multiple sectors.”

The outgoing Minister for Enterprise, Peter Burke, welcomed the company’s approach to its business: “Kirby has demonstrated remarkably strong growth in their 60 years in business, providing them with a strong sense of where the technology and their customers are going. This incredible facility will be integral to projects underway all over Europe and I’d like to wish the team the very best for the future”.

CEO of Kirby Group Engineering Mark Flanagan (left) with Chief Executive of Enterprise Ireland Leo Clancy at the official opening of Kirby’s Off-site Manufacturing facility at Portlaoise in Co Laois. The €8m development is set to create 50 jobs and will be key to the continuing growth of the company as it manufactures a range of components for projects across Ireland, the UK and mainland Europe. Photo: Philip Leonard

The company was granted planning permission for the Portlaoise plant in 2022 but decided to seek approval to extend before the work was completed. 

Laois County Council produced its vision for the J17 National Enterprise Park in a masterplan in 2018. The plan aimed to set out a detailed vision for the lands at Togher to deliver a viable economic zone focused particularly on heavy, light and ICT industry, distribution, logistics and other uses associated with the transport industry.

WATCH: Vision for a national business park in Portlaoise to bring jobs to Laois

Laois County Council plan for Portlaoise site

A key element was a new road linking J17 M7 motorway Togher roundabout and Clonminam and Fr Brown Avenue. Costing €3.4 million it provided access to the J17 business park.