In an increasingly competitive and demanding industry, Clankee Construction has quickly built a stellar reputation for consistently delivering high-quality projects that invariably exceed client expectations. Building Ireland sat down with founder Ray O’Reilly to learn more about this industry-leading Cavan / Monaghan based contractor.
Every Clankee Construction project is completed on time, within budget and to the highest standard of excellence, with speed of delivery and exceptional workmanship being the hallmarks of this meticulous contracting company, which is a relative newcomer by name but backed by decades of experience by nature!
Operating out of Clankee, Shercock, County Cavan and with its registered address in nearby Carrickmacross, County Monahan, Clankee Construction Building and Development Ltd. was formed in March, 2021 and is certainly built on solid and steady foundations.
The company is fronted by Ray O’Reilly, who has accumulated decades of experience and a wealth of knowledge across all spectrums of the construction industry covering residential new builds, home renovations and extensions, shop fit outs and housing developments.
Ray has worked in construction for more than three decades. As well as running his own building company prior to the last economic crash, he has also worked as a project manager for both Elliott Group and mac-group.
Reflecting on the genesis of Clankee Construction just over three years ago, he notes: “I’m still working with Elliotts but decided to start up my own company to see if I could make a go of it and I have to say it’s been a case of so far, so good. We began doing groundworks and residential buildings but have also have the experience and knowledge to confidently complete commercial projects.”
At the time of writing, Ray had just handed over a pair of superb turnkey-finish residential units to Cavan County Council, located at Clankee Court, Lisdrumskea. Construction started on these three-bedroom semi-detached social and affordable homes in June of last year and, true to form, Clankee Construction delivered them to the highest standards in double-quick time.
“The client is very happy with them and that’s always the most important thing,” states Ray. “Hopefully, there will be more similar projects down the line.”
Other ongoing projects include the renovation and extension of an existing property in Virginia, County Cavan and a 2,200 sq ft private house in Lough Egish, Castleblayney, County Monaghan and a 3,700 sq ft family home in Kells, County Meath, both of which are being brought from greenfield sites to a builder’s finish by the trusty team at Clankee Construction.
Speaking of the crew, Clankee Construction has three direct employees and additionally use the skills and craft of some of the finest tradesmen in the business. “We have a good chain of subcontractors and we use the same lads over and over again,” Ray confirms. “They have been with me a long time and I know I can rely on them to provide brilliant workmanship every time.”
As for the Clankee Construction calling card and the ethos that sets this progressive company apart from the competition, the personable Cavan contractor adds: “We try to be as commercially astute as we possibly can be. Cost is everything in construction these days, so you try to keep the cost down and give the client value for money. If you can hand over a good finished product and keep the price down, then everybody will be happy.
“As well as value, it’s also important to turn the project around as quickly as possible and meet all your deadlines. Good employees are also very important. You need good men on site who have the experience and know-how to produce excellent workmanship. When you achieve a quality finish, that counts for a lot as the building itself is going to be your best advertisement.”
As for the catchment covered, Ray continues: “We’re based in Shercock and we do a lot of work locally in counties Cavan and Monaghan. I’ve had phone calls to work in Dublin but for now we didn’t have to travel too far as we had enough work close to home. There are architects in Dublin who are prepared to give us work so it’s good to have that option going forward. In the medium term, we’re busy covering Cavan, Monaghan and Meath.”
Of course, working in construction – and especially running a contracting company – is not for the faint hearted as there are always challenges to be overcome. Not least of these is the constant pressure being placed on margins by soaring inflation.
“The cost of materials is a big problem,” says Ray. “On May 1st we had another 8 per cent rise in the price of insulation and these increases are constant. You have to keep going back to your suppliers to get new prices. It obviously increases the cost of building and for many private clients at the moment it’s a matter of ‘do we build now or wait and see what happens?’ But personally I’ve never seen anything go up and then come back down again by the same amount. It’s hard to imagine these prices coming back down by much.”
Backed by decades of building expertise and a determination to provide absolute client satisfaction on every project large or small through unrivalled workmanship and the keenest attention to detail, Clankee Construction has come a long way in a short space of time and the outlook for the future is encouraging, with further growth forecast:
“The plan would be to develop and grow the company further and to increase our turnover,” Ray concludes. “We’d be hoping to take on more and more work, especially in the area of social and affordable housing. The government is committed to building 50,000 new homes per year and a lot of that is going to be driven by social and affordable housing.
“That’s a very appealing market at the moment. We showed what we can do with those two new builds in Shercock and I’d be hoping to get some repeat work with Cavan County Council on the back of that.”
Clankee Construction – a new name with a big future!
Clankee Construction Ltd.,
Amatino,
1st Floor,
Market Square,
Carrickmacross,
County Monaghan.
Tel: 086 7967109
Email: [email protected]
This article was published in Building Ireland Magazine, August 2024, Vol 10 No 8
