Coral Plant & Agri (Coral Quarries Ltd) has evolved from a small agricultural contracting business in Co. Cavan to become a leading supplier of skilled labour to the construction sector in Dublin.
At a time when the construction industry is experiencing a major skills shortage, Coral Plant & Agri is providing an invaluable service. The family-run business supplies fully-trained and licensed crane drivers, crane supervisors, track machine drivers, telehandler operators and banksmen to crane hire companies and main contractors. Its client list is a who’s who of the Irish construction sector, including the likes of John Sisk & Son, Walls Construction, Rathcaled Developments, M&P Construction, Felix O’Hare & Co, Stewart Construction, Townmore Construction, B&C Contracts, BM Durkan, Gunn Lennon Fabrications, Urban Life, Ballygorman Contracts, Ballymore Group, Glenveagh Construction, GEM Construction, McNamara Construction and Elliott Group.
“We’re supplying over 100 men to crane hire companies and main contractors across Dublin,” Coral Plant & Agri director Cormac McBreen explains.
“About 50% of them are tower crane drivers with banksmen, teleporter and track machine drivers making up the other 50%. There’s an unprecedented demand for skilled labour on sites in Dublin at the moment and we’re happy to oblige.”
Coral Plant & Agri was established in 2007 by Cormac and his brother Alden in Shercock, Co. Cavan as an agri contracting firm. Their father and uncle were agri contractors before them and they had worked for them as well as for a couple of other local contractors when they were growing up before heading to Dublin and learning all about cranes.
“We have a background in tower cranes, but when the recession hit, we went back to agri contracting and that sustained us until about 2015 and ’16 when the building trade began to pick up again in Dublin. We started taking on crane drivers and supplying them to crane hire companies and main contractors. We got bigger as word spread that we were supplying good drivers.
“Our drivers undergo rigorous training and that’s why they are so good at their job. We train them up and get them their tickets. We show them the ropes before they go on site. We enjoy an excellent working relationship with all of our clients.”
In addition, Coral Plant & Agri has a contract with GLF (Gunn Lennon Fabrications) to transport glazed façade by tractor and trailer from their facility in Swords to sites in the city centre for Walls Construction, John Paul Construction and McNamara Construction.
The rest of the brothers’ time is divided between running their agri contracting business and tending to their pedigree Charolais herd back in Shercock. Cormac and Alden are joined in the operation by their wives Louise and Mary, who are involved in the administration side of things. The McBreens’ also have a second office in Derrylavan near Carrickmacross.
Cormac attributes Coral Plant & Agri’s growth and success to the quality and versatility of its team.
“Our people are our greatest asset,” he stresses.
“We have a number of ‘floaters’ whose flexibility and versatility allow them to work between the agri contracting and construction businesses. They are equally comfortable driving a tractor as a 360-degrees Rota telehandler.”
Committed to providing superior service and complete customer satisfaction, Coral Plant & Agri has an array of machinery to carry out agricultural work quickly and efficiently, providing farmers with value-for-money and an alternative to investing in their own expensive equipment. The contracting firm’s success is down to the knowledge, experience, skill and expertise of its staff as well as the quality of its machinery. Coral Plant & Agri delivers the value and quality farmers expect from their agricultural contracting partner.
Specialising in baling, the company offers exceptional mowing, baling, wrapping, stacking and transport services. Its other agri services include slurry spreading, dung spreading, fertiliser spreading, lime spreading, reseeding, stitching, hedge-cutting, mulching, fencing, rock breaking and dump trailer hire work.
“We’re running nine tractors and four track machines,” Cormac continues.
“Seven of the tractors, which are a mix of Massey Ferguson, Valtra and CLAAS, are dedicated to agri contracting. We also have two McHale Fusion balers, three sets of mowers, four slurry tankers with umbilical systems and dump trailers for stone and site clearance among other machinery. Furthermore, we have two JCB 18m teleporters out on hire.
“We’re probably best known for baling and have customers across Cavan, Meath and Monaghan. But we provide a complete agri contracting service.”
All machines are maintained and serviced on a regular basis to avoid downtime, with most of this being carried out in-house. Machines under warranty are sent to the main dealer.
“We’re fortunate to have some great, long-time customers who have stuck with us through thick and thin,” Cormac says of his agri clients.
“We’ll always go the extra mile for them. We pride ourselves on our efficient, reliable and value-for-money service. We get a lot of repeat business which is a sign that our customers are happy with us.”
As Coral Plant & Agri continues to go from strength to strength, Cormac and Alden would like to take this opportunity to thank their customers and suppliers for their continued support as well as their team for their hard work, dedication and skill.
Coral Plant & Agri
Taghart,
Shercock,
Co. Cavan.
Telephone: 087 9981474
Email: [email protected]
This article was published in Building Ireland Magazine, June 2024, Vol 10 No 6
