ADCO Contracting & Civil Engineering Ltd is a leading building and fitout company which was established in 2009 by Mick Foran. Based in Dublin, it has since grown to employ 35-40 people and was recently honoured with the ‘Excellence in Health & Safety Award’ for its ‘Mind Your Mental Health’ initiative at the 2022 Irish Construction Industry Awards.
The coveted award recognised ADCO’s commitment to Health & Safety and, in particular, to mental health, which is a major issue in the construction industry. It is quite common for construction workers to struggle with mental health. Hours are long, days are stressful and pressure is constant. As a male-dominated industry, there has historically not been a culture of opening up about mental or emotional challenges.
The people in ADCO feel an unwavering responsibility to each other, their clients, subcontractors, families and friends to make sure everyone returns home safely every day. Mental health is critical to being able to perform your job well, but unfortunately mental and emotional issues are much easier to hide than physical problems.
With research showing that mental wellbeing, psychosocial risks and work-related stress are among the most challenging occupational safety and health concerns for construction workers, ADCO was acutely aware of the need for its initiative to be both comprehensive and impactful. With this in mind, ADCO launched a campaign comprising various presentations, workshops and communication to generate awareness of the underlying problems for people on construction projects. These included:
· Implementing an Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to help employees who may be suffering from mental health issues
· Partnering up with the Lighthouse Charity Club, which is the only charity that provides emotional, physical and financial wellbeing support to construction workers
· Arranging site visits and talks with celebrity speakers on mental health issues
· Actively helping to establish and promote project mental health champions’ programme
· Placing mental health and wellbeing signage and literature across the site and in its canteens
· Organising fundraising for charities
The Irish Construction Excellence Awards are the original and premier recognition of performance excellence for the contracting sector in Ireland, and provide an opportunity for the industry to showcase and reward best practice across the full range of construction disciplines and project categories. Needless to say, ADCO CEO Mick Foran was delighted to be honoured with such a prestigious accolade.
“I’m thrilled for our EHS Lead Robert O’Reilly and his safety team,” he says.
“There is a huge emphasis on Health & Safety within our workplace and that is reflected in us winning this award. We have safety policies in place that are administered and delivered onsite. It’s a joint-effort between our safety and operations teams. Robert is central to our Health & Safety procedures and steered us through the Covid-19 pandemic as well.”
Predominantly involved in the pharmaceutical and life science sectors, ADCO’s mantra is to “always deliver the client’s objective”. As Mick Foran explains: “Starting in a recession was tough, but we came through it. Our business has grown organically. Our people have been and always will be our greatest asset. ADCO Senior Managers Joe Doorley (Contracts Manager), Brian Nolan (Estimating & Procurement), Francis Kavanagh (Project Manager) and Mairead Luttrell (Pharma Division Manager) have soldiered with us since the early days, helping to build a reputation that we could deliver for our clients.
“Many other outstanding people have come on board over the years across all departments who have contributed greatly to our growth.
“Our motto is ‘be yourself and the door is always open for a chat’.”
ADCO employs a top-class team who are involved in safety, operations, estimating, surveying, procurement, accounts, PMO, marketing and HR. A further 15-20 people are employed in its sister company. ADCO provides a wide range of building and construction-related services to the pharmaceutical, commercial, industrial, hospitality, medical and automotive sectors. It specialises in new builds, design and build, fitouts, project management, waste management and cleanroom.
“We mainly work in controlled environments where safety and our clients’ core business come first,” Mick adds.
“Pharmaceutical, medical device and food sector companies make up the majority of our clients, along with some long-standing commercial clients we have built up relationships with over the years. Our ambition is to increase each year the percentage of business we secure ‘without competition’. That is with clients who consider no other company to build their project.
“That currently stands at 20-25%, a striking figure in an industry where competitive bids are as routine as coffee breaks.”
ADCO is working on a number of pharma sites at present, including Amgen, MSD, Alexion, Mallinckrodt, West Pharma and Mondelez as well as a sizeable project for the Gowan Group and other commercial works.
“We are proud of our prestigious client-base and delighted with everything we have achieved to date. But this is only a fraction of what we plan to achieve. Going forward, we will continue to grow the pharma and life science side of the business. We see these sectors as being safe and secure.”
The affable Kilkenny man cannot stress enough the importance of having a good team around him.
“As I’ve already said, our people are key. They are the lifeblood and pulse of any business. We came together even stronger during the Covid period and grew significantly over the past few years. We take great pride in what we do and through understanding our client needs from the outset, we ensure we deliver every time.
“Construction requires discipline, determination, commitment and hard work. Businesses are built by facing challenges and surpassing them – obstacles are simply a cause to reflect, reconsider and move forward. With positivity, discipline and transparency, any challenge can be overcome.”
As ADCO continues to go from strength to strength, Mick would like to take this opportunity to thank his clients and suppliers for their continued support.
ADCO Contracting & Civil Engineering Ltd
Unit 2A,
Nangor Road Business Park,
Dublin 12.
Telephone: +353 (0)1 620 4578
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.adco.ie
This article was published in Building Ireland Magazine, April 2023, Vol 9 No 4
