Since its inception in 2007, Coshla Quarries has been supplying a comprehensive range of premium-quality concrete, block and aggregate products to the construction industry across County Galway. As the company’s milestone 20th-anniversary celebrations loom ever larger on the horizon, Building Ireland touched base with manager Martin Collins to discuss the proud past, busy present and bright future of this progressive operation.
Supplying customers with quality building materials for coming up on a score of years, Coshla Quarries plays a central role in the construction industry in the west of Ireland.
Synonymous with the consistent delivery of quality concrete and stone products since first opening for business back in 2007, Coshla Quarries has moved with the times and guaranteed its customers the best building materials and service through constant investment in the bountiful 72-acre limestone quarry located at Cashla, Athenry, County Galway.
Coshla Quarries has consistently raised standards, maintained premium customer service and put an emphasis on excellence when generating specialist solutions for clients. Their experienced and knowledgeable team of concrete experts are dedicated to helping customers achieve their desired results by offering premium products, expert advice and value for money.
Recent major investments in the concrete plant have helped make Coshla Quarries even more efficient than hitherto, with the capacity to produce large quantities with short notice, helping them futureproof the business and ready themselves for the upturn in activity that hopefully lies ahead as they head into their 20th-anniversary year in 2027.
“We’re very proud to be closing in on such a major milestone and confident that there will be many more years to celebrate in the future,” notes manager Martin Collins, who has himself been a key part of the Coshla Quarries success story since the very beginning.
“Reaching 20 years is a big deal. We’ve always strived to offer our customers the best products and service but at the same time we want to share this celebration with them as the loyalty of our customers means the world to us. You won’t stay in business for 20 years without great staff and great customers.
“The years go by quickly and it’s been an interesting journey, especially when you think back to the very beginning … this was just a greenfield site when I first went in there. From there, the business has grown literally out of the ground – or has opened into it, to be more precise. The quarry was a hill and now it’s a hole.
“We’re planning to mark our 20th anniversary in style and there are plans in the pipeline for more as-of-now-undisclosed upgrades and some other changes next year to go hand in hand with that. Watch this space for further updates on that!”
Focused on sustainability and customer / project satisfaction, Coshla Quarries has always been renowned for a winning combination of quality products and unbeatable service. Supplying and manufacturing only fully certified, high quality concrete and stone, Coshla Quarries operate two modern concrete batching plants to ensure reliable delivery of all products.
A substantial investment in upgrading and increasing the efficiency, capacity and productivity of the concrete plant in 2024 represented more than a statement of intent. This complete overhaul of the facility has improved quality and also allows Coshla to supply greater volumes of concrete more quickly if and when needed.
“The upgrade of the older plant has been a big success and we also put in a new plant the year before,” notes Martin, “With the upgrade of the older plant, the volume of blocks has increased and, with that, we are also confident that we are producing a more eco-friendly block, which is important today.”
Each and every block carries the CE mark and is manufactured on site by their hard working and experienced team of concrete experts, who are dedicated to helping customers meet their targets by offering expert advice and value for money.
Using GGBS from Ecocem, Coshla Quarries take every measure to reduce their carbon footprint while increasing the strength and durability of their products. Always keen to meet the ever-evolving needs of customers and their projects, Coshla can produce specific concrete mix requirements to suit more niche demands.
From footpath and pump mix to floor screed, Coshla Quarries offers a wide range of ready-mix concrete to suit the needs of every customer. All concrete comes fully certified and tailored to specified requirements and Coshla Quarries’ range of concrete products also includes air-entrained, dyed concrete and exposed concrete.
Be it for a new build, renovation or refurbishment, Coshla Quarries has a concrete block to suit all needs. Manufacturing low-carbon concrete blocks using 50% GGBS, all building materials from the quarry are environmentally friendly, strong and long-lasting. Block types supplied by Coshla Quarries include 4” blocks, 6” blocks, 4” soap bars, 6” soap bars and stock bricks.
Since opening for business, Coshla Quarries has delivered a vast range of products to contractors working on a complete array of project types not just in and around Galway city but across the county and far afield as the most western tips of Connemara.
While business is reasonably brisk at Coshla Quarries, unsurprisingly the cost-of-living crisis, spiralling inflation in construction and also the maddening impact of events far from Ireland’s shores on the local lie of the land have all impacted detrimentally and things are consequently much quieter than they otherwise might have been…
“Things have picked up a little since we last spoke and we’re tipping away but there have been significant price increases across all building materials … although quarry products wouldn’t be the most dramatic increase. The rise in the cost of materials could cause a lot of jobs to be stalled until contractors have a chance to renegotiate their prices to allow for these increases. There’s still a lot of uncertainty out there.
“But all in all, we’re kept going and you have to ride it out. There’s enough work on our books and there’s also talk of a lot of potential new projects starting at the back end of the year, which would be welcome. You’d be hoping he winter will be better than the summer.” Martin concludes.
“We have the quality product and the complete range of concrete and stone building materials as well as the capability to produce large volumes at short notice. We have all the raw materials here, our crushing contractor has invested in new equipment, and with the new plant we can produce large volumes of blocks at short notice and large volumes of concrete at the push of a button.
“Having a smaller in-house crew and operating a subcontractor model for crushing and haulage means that when things quieten down we can adapt to that and we can then dip into that pool and crank things up when the orders come in and we have to increase productivity.”
Coshla Quarries,
Cashla,
Athenry,
County Galway.
Tel: 091 389020
Mobile: 087 9663781
Email: [email protected]
Web: coshlaquarries.ie
This article was published in Building Ireland Magazine, November 2026, Vol 12 No 12
