Producing high-quality bathroom pod and volumetric modular buildings for the European construction market, Castle Modular was recently honoured with a Sustainability Award at the 2022 John Sisk & Son Supply Chain Awards in The Mansion House, Dublin.
Part of the Galway-based Castle Group, which also includes Castle Ceilings & Partitions, Facilities Management and Training Academy, Castle Modular has embraced sustainability in a big way and was delighted to be among the winners at the awards which recognise excellence among Sisk’s supply chain partners across Ireland and Europe, and show appreciation for all the great work done together.
Sisk spends over €1 billion annually across its supply chain of almost 8,000 companies. Over 70 sub-contractors and suppliers were shortlisted for awards, having been nominated by each of Sisk’s business units and procurement respectively. Each business unit then selected its ‘Best Supply Chain Partner of the Year’ from the proposed shortlist following a thorough evaluation process.
“We’ve invested heavily in sustainability with time and finance over the last couple of years, and it’s great to be recognised for that by a company like Sisk who we work closely with across our four divisions. Sustainability is something we’re very passionate about,” Castle Modular General Manager Eoin Waldron says.
“While our factory was on a practical shut down due to Covid restrictions, we decided as a company to really question what we were actively doing to reduce the impact we were having on our local community and the world itself from a sustainability perspective.
“So we chose to look hard at ourselves, our operations and our products. This fresh look brought about a change in mindset and subsequently a commitment of time, resources and finances to better our workplace and business practices.”
Castle Modular set itself a target of reducing waste to landfill by 20%, material (structural steel) by 60% and electricity usage from the National Grid by 80% to become a more sustainable business. It also achieved ISO 14001 accreditation and introduced company events / challenges involving outdoor activities to promote wellbeing, and encourage a sustainable and healthy workforce.
The three R’s of Reduce, Reuse and Recycle became the mantra. The purchase of a CNC machine with associated software enabled Castle Modular to reduce the waste on plasterboards, timber and cement boards, while also speeding up its processes.
The company now redirects 100% of its glass, ceramic and concrete waste to a waste repurposing facility in the midlands. This recycling company grinds down the products to reuse them in manufacturing shot-blasting materials and green concrete.
Castle Modular also re-sequenced its manufacturing processes to ensure that all waste packaging is removed at a single location in its factory workflow. This ensures that all material sent out on the floor is ready for use. The process ensures that the packaging is filtered out by the process rather than relying on multiples or individuals.
By changing its approach to its bathroom pod frames from Hot Rolled Mild Steel to Cold Formed Light Gauge Steel, Castle Modular was able to reduce the tonnage of steel in a standard bathroom pod from 1,500kg to 450kg. This not only reduces the amount of steel, but also removes the necessity for shot-blasting and painting – both of which are not environmentally-sound activities. This change has also led to the removal of hazardous waste and dust from the process.
The purchase of a Roll Forming Machine has enabled the company to self-manufacture its own light gauge steel studs. This reduces the delivery trips by a whopping 98% – typically one pod was delivered from its frame manufacturer per trip. Now Castle Modular receives a single delivery with enough steel coils for 50 pods. The Roll Former also runs on Solar PV power, and therefore requires minimum power from the National Grid.
The results from Castle Modular’s 165kWh Solar PV investment after one year of use showed 86% power consumption coming from the PV, with 56% being fed back to the National Grid during the summer. This is the equivalent of planting 8,969 trees or a reduction in CO2 emissions of 164 tonnes. The solar panels were fitted to the roof of the company’s manufacturing facility in Gort.
ISO Accreditation was a target set during the Covid-19 lockdown which undertook to formalise the company’s standard operating procedures and achieve certification of same. Castle Modular has achieved ISO 9001:2015 Quality Management Systems, ISO 14001:2015 Environmental and ISO 45001:2018 Occupational Health & Safety accreditation.
Wellbeing events across the Castle Group for a healthy and sustainable team were also introduced. These included a steps challenge, a team cycling trip to Mallorca, Monday morning spin classes, hiking and a five-a-side soccer tournament.
Founded in 2019, Castle Modular is the newest addition to the Castle Group which was established 20 years earlier by Seamus Brady as an interior fit-out company, and has grown to employ 350 people in total. Castle Modular employs 80 people at its facility in Gort and a further 10 management personnel at its head office in Galway.
Castle Modular designs, manufactures, supplies, installs and commissions both bathroom pods and full volumetric modular buildings. Its products are designed for your specification, are sustainably sourced and produced with less waste, manufactured to the highest industry standards and are assembled on-site to align with construction timelines.
As it continues to go from strength to strength, Castle Modular would like to take this opportunity to thank its clients and suppliers for their continued support as well as its staff for their hard work, dedication and expertise.
Castle Modular
Head Office:
Unit 9G,
Racecourse Business Park,
Ballybrit,
Galway,
H91 FH10.
Modular Factory:
Raheen,
Gort,
Co. Galway,
H91 KP46.
Telephone: +353 (0)91 711 823
Email: [email protected]
Web: [email protected]
This article was published in Building Ireland Magazine, March 2023, Vol 9 No 3
