Roadbridge – Building Relationships.
“The KPI for any client relationship is repeat business. Down the years we have developed excellent relationships with key longstanding clients from both the public and private sectors. We have always adopted and nurtured the partnership approach with every client. We have found that this approach yields positive results for both parties.” So says Conor Gilligan, Managing Director of Roadbridge, a company that is widely regarded as one of the leading companies within the Irish construction industry.
It has been almost fifty years since international heavy civil engineering contractor Roadbridge (then Pat Mulcair Civil Engineering) took its place in the Irish construction industry, and since its beginnings, it has stuck to its core principles of value engineering and innovation that are as true today as they were back in 1967.
Today, Roadbridge specialises in the delivery of major infrastructure such as motorways, bridges, gas pipelines, water and sewage infrastructure, reservoirs, commercial developments, sporting facilities and wind & energy projects. With headquarters in Limerick and offices in London, Glasgow, Cardiff, Muscat, Doha, Perth and Noumea, it currently employs in excess of 700 people worldwide. Having endured the recent economic downturn, 2015 saw revenues at €135m with a significant increase forecasted for 2016. Conor Gilligan is extremely proud of the company’s accolades. “Two of our more notable achievements came in 2005 when we became the first ever company from the construction industry to win the Supreme Award for Occupational Health & Safety on the island of Ireland. In 2014 we won the Q Mark Award as the best company in Ireland for quality management systems.”The Roadbridge team have a sole mission when it comes to approaching projects, and that is to not only meet client’s expectations, but to exceed them. This can be seen in the long-standing relationships with corporate giants like Shell, where it has been the main contractor on the Corrib Gas Development project, Total E&P on the Shetland Islands and delivering the majority of the national gas grid to Bord Gais Eireann. It has been responsible for delivering over 250km of the nation’s motorway infrastructure whilst working with the National Road’s Authority (TII). Their work is extremely varied, Conor explains. “We were involved with the largest on-shore wind farm in Europe at Whitelee, Scotland, the Limerick Tunnel, A477 carriageway in South Wales and a 47m cubic metre tailings pond at the Goro nickel mine in New Caledonia. We were also responsible for the delivery of four golf courses at Fota Island, Adare Manor, Dun-Laoghaire and Killeen Castle. We are currently awaiting the commencement of the new Circuit of Wales Moto-GP track at Ebbw Vale in JV with FCC of Spain.”
“Many could freely choose to be an employer rather than an employee and unfortunately some weren’t equipped to be employers. As a result we saw some very sad cases whereby employer deductions for social insurance, PAYE and pension contributions, in addition to VAT, subcontractor tax and corporation tax were not paid over to the relevant authorities. I fully acknowledge that everyone sets out in business with the best will in the world, however if they don’t have the ability nor the experience to ensure that finances are properly managed it can lead to situations as outlined above. Increased regulation will assist every member of the industry if properly implemented.”