Laois steel business opens €16m automated factory to create 62 skilled jobs

A Laois steel company has officially opened a €16 million state of the art automated factory, expanding its workforce by 62 over the coming three years.

Midland Steel, Ireland’s leading steel reinforcement business, officially opened its fully automated SMART steel fabrication facility in J17 National Enterprise Park, Portlaoise on Friday, March 6.

The ribbon was cut by Minister for Enterprise, Tourism & Employment, Peter Burke TD.

The Mountmellick company founded in 1990 by Tony Woods, is expanding on its factory at Bay View Business Park. It also has plants in Norway and the UK. 

“The official opening of our Portlaoise SMART facility marks a pivotal and proud moment for our family-owned business. The FasterFix modular rebar technology, which we have developed, offers significant benefits for construction projects by reducing installation times and lowering capital costs. FasterFix represents our commitment to pushing the boundaries of innovation in the construction sector. This state-of-the-art advanced fabrication facility in Portlaoise enables us to offer exceptional service, increased capacity and even greater speed and savings to our clients worldwide.

“I am particularly proud that our HQ remains in Mountmellick, where our business was founded in 1990, and our Portlaoise facility marks a significant step forward in the company’s expansion. We are delighted to make this investment in the midlands
region,” Mr Woods said.

The promised 62 jobs includes top-quality engineering positions, robotic technicians, estimators, BIM modellers, mechanical and electrical technicians, and steel fixers all functioning in a fully automated environment.

The staff in Midland Steel in Mountmellick. Photo: Midland Steel

The Midland Steel manufacturing facility is the first of its kind in Ireland. The SMART facility can carry out fully automated rebar cutting and bending, providing off-site manufacturing of a finished product ready for concrete placement, at a lower cost.

Their technology has been employed by leading building contractors, John Paul Construction, who experienced a 75% reduction in steel fixing programme on their new landmark development, Harcourt Plaza in Dublin 2, resulting in a significant capital cost saving thanks to off-site manufacturing of modular rebar with Midland Steel’s FasterFix solution.

The company bought the enterprise site from Laois County Council for some €600,000. The council stepped in to fill the IDA's failing to entice big enterprises to open in Laois and create local jobs. The council invested millions to buy land from Supermacs beside the M7 motorway and build serviced sites to create and run J19 Portlaoise Enterprise Park. Read more.

Neighbours already in the park include Leprino Foods, Kirby Engineering who recently opened an €8m plant, Aubren and Alpha Drives.

Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, Peter Burke TD praised the company.

“I am delighted to officially open the Midland Steel, state-of-the-art fully automated steel fabrication facility, here in Portlaoise. Midland Steel’s innovative FasterFix technology is already transforming efficiency in the construction industry at home and abroad, and it is fantastic to see an Irish company making such impressive inroads across Europe and beyond.

"The significant investment by Midland Steel in Laois not only reinforces Ireland’s leadership in Modern Methods of Construction but also creates highly skilled jobs in engineering, robotics, and BIM modelling —securing the future of our construction industry. I congratulate Tony Woods and his team on this milestone and look forward to seeing Midland Steel continue to push the boundaries of innovation in construction,” the Minister said ahead of the opening.

Unique in its approach, Midland Steel’s FasterFix technology offers a modern method of construction (MMC) for both housing foundations and concrete substructure and superstructure units. This cutting-edge solution they say enables developers to achieve a remarkable 75% reduction in total build time, requiring 80% less onsite labour and providing 30% reduction in prelim costs for clients.

The company says that its new facility at Portlaoise represents a significant milestone, reinforcing its position as a pioneer in construction innovation. Traditional manual steel fixing operations, involving loose bar cutting and bending to steel fixing on-site, have now been replaced with pre-assembled FasterFix modules, designed and detailed by Midland Steel.

They say that this approach brings to industry the leanest, greenest, and most sustainable solutions from this facility, with substantial improvements in health and safety.

"With the Irish Government’s commitment to building 300,000 homes by 2030 as outlined in the Programme for Government document, Midland Steel’s innovative modern methods of construction, including FasterFix and Ready Mesh technology, are ideally positioned to support these targets. By enabling faster, more efficient building processes, Midland Steel’s solutions will help meet these ambitious goals without requiring an increase in workforce numbers from outside of Ireland," Midland Steel says.

The SMART facility enables seamless integration from 3D digital modelling to a finished product without any manual intervention, improving manufacturing capacity by 60% and making Midland Steel more competitive in the market. The facility
achieves 0% waste and has reduced emissions, positioning Midland Steel as the most sustainable offsite rebar provider in Europe.

The new Midland Steel facility is part of an ambitious growth strategy, with plans to expand both its operational capacity and its global footprint. The company projects strong revenue growth over the next three years, with an expected €35million
increase driven by innovation and expansion. With established plants in the UK and Norway, Midland Steel is poised for further overseas expansion, delivering cutting-edge solutions to new international markets.

Kevin Sherry is the Interim CEO of Enterprise Ireland.

“Enterprise Ireland’s ambition and focus is to support Irish-owned companies become the prime driver in our economy. Midland Steel’s investment in an innovative automated manufacturing facility enabling off site manufacturing of construction solutions in Portlaoise is a major milestone in the company’s plans to scale and achieve their global ambition.

“This project will also have an important impact in the local economy by creating more than 60 new jobs, which have been supported Enterprise Ireland. Enterprise Ireland congratulates the company on this announcement and looks forward to working with Tony and all the team in supporting them on their scaling journey as they continue to grow and deliver, not just in Ireland but across the world.“