Healy Partners Architects is an award-winning, high-quality practise that delivers professional, imaginative design projects across all building types including residential, retail, education, healthcare, offices,
leisure and tourism. We touched base with director Richard Rice to get an insight into this exceptional Limerick-based operation.
With three decades of experience, Healy Partners Architects has extensive expertise in the design of a wide variety of building types including: Public & Private Residential; Private Houses; Local Government Offices; Urban Infill; Schools and Education; Health Centres and Hospitals; Bio-Technology; Office Buildings; Hi Tech R&D Facilities; Hotels and Tourism; Sports & Leisure Facilities; Golf Clubhouses; Retail Parks; Commercial Centres; Industrial Facilities; Logistics Facilities; Churches & Cathedrals; Corporate Office Fit-Outs; and Conservation
The practice provides a full architectural design and project management service, with a proven reputation for high quality design across the full range of project types, whilst constantly striving to improve standards and services to clients.
Healy Partners Architects have won numerous architecture awards, including six Irish Architecture Awards, while many other projects have also been selected for exhibition.
Award-winning projects include King John’s Castle, Limerick; The Milk Market, Limerick City; Burren Housing Development, Ballyvaughan; Cusack Centre, Carron, Co. Clare; House at Castlequarter, Cratloe, Co Clare; Barrington’s Hospital, George’s Quay, Limerick; Car Showrooms, Dublin Road, Limerick; Corporate R&D Facility, Shannon, Co Clare; Kilrush Community School, Co Clare; Steamboat Quay, Limerick; Greyhound Stadium, Tralee, Co Kerry; Burren College of Art, Ballyvaughan, Co Clare; Limerick Golf & Country Club, Ballyneety, Co Limerick; The Mill, Glentworth Street, Limerick; Burren Coast Hotel and Holiday Village, Ballyvaughan, Co Clare; and ParkPoint, Limerick.
All work is based upon a commitment to design excellence and its delivery under budget and to programme, maintaining high standards and architectural quality. Delivering projects of varying scales and complexity, the Healy team works to establish a strong collaboration with clients and design team members. Consequently, the building designs created are intimately connected to their context and function.
Healy Partners Architects utilise the most advanced technology and have invested a substantial amount in the latest systems including BIM (Revit). Today, they have a fully integrated IT platform from which all staff operate.
HPA work to the standards as set down by the Architects Institute, the RIAI. The procedures of the ‘RIAI Good Practice Guide’ have been adopted by the practice as they are clearly structured to comply with the maintenance and operation of an architectural office.
It is the policy of Healy Partners Architects to provide services which consistently meet or exceed the requirements and reasonable expectations of clients. Through awareness of clients’ needs and teamwork in every function of Healy Partners, they meet this objective on all projects.
In discussion with Richard Rice, practice director, on the history of the practice, “It was initially set up in 1989 and started as Michael Healy & Associates before becoming Healy Partners Architects in 2000. Coming from an initial small practice size of two-three-man operation, it grew into a substantial practice with a staff 35 people by 2008. Then the recession hit and numbers dropped but we have re-emerged from that and we’re enjoying a period of growth again.”
While the economic downturn was wreaking havoc with the construction industry and all companies associated with it, Healy Partners Architects developed a strategy to focus on regional projects, particularly in the areas of education and healthcare. “Our main focus during the recession was to stay focussed on Department of Education work and to competitively deliver projects within the Munster region,” Richard confirms.
“While We looked at options like going to Dublin or abroad, but we felt it would suit us better to focus on local education, residential and social housing projects etc. The Milk Market and King John’s Castle were two very important and high profile public project during this period and that kind of work that maintained our profile during the period of 2009 to 2014. .
“Generally we tendered for design team services within a 70-mile radius of Limerick city and secured enough projects to allow the practice retain it team and allow for continued investment in the practice. Traditionally, North Munster had been our catchment area but we’re currently working on projects in Galway and Wexford, so we are now working within an hour to an-hour-and-a-half of Limerick, really.”
Ongoing projects at the time of writing included new office block developments at City East and Bishops Quay in Limerick city.
As for the key to the practice’s continuing success, sustainability and viability, Richard continues: “Being located outside of Dublin, you’re not going to be a firm that specialises in just one area. You have to focus on everything – residential, hospitality, education – and you develop top-quality services in all of these areas. Our spread of work goes across all of those headings and you have to keep your skillset up in each of those areas. We’ve done that and we’ve made a big investment in BIM, which is a big asset to the practice and to our clients.
“We critically analyse what a client is looking for – appraise the brief and the cost and the timeline – and deliver it to a standard that is viable to everyone.”
Regarding the goals of the firm moving forward, Richard concludes: “Given what we experienced during the bad times, we want to make sure that when we take on new staff and new work that it’s sustainable and that we are working to deliver a quality service for our clients, whilst continue to invest in quality management and practices.
“Also, to keep enjoying it. We tend to take on a lot of quirky projects to keep it fun and will continue to do that.
“New regulations have made design more admin-based and that applies to everybody in the sector. Regulations can be excessive and over the top – you want to end up with buildings that are inspired rather than regulated and that’s something we all have to be mindful of.”
Healy Partners Architects,
The Mill,
Glentworth Street,
Limerick.
Tel: 061 410966
Fax: 061 413679
Email: [email protected]
Taken from Building Ireland Magazine, July 2017, Vol 3 No 6
