Established since 2007, Clarke Construction Ltd is renowned for delivering the highest-quality bespoke residential new builds and renovations for its clients. Building Ireland touched base with Managing Director Colin Clarke to hear more about the projects the company’s immersed in at the moment and its success at the recent Irish Construction Industry Awards 2025.
Business is flourishing these days at Clarke Construction and the plan for its founder Colin Clarke and the team in Abbey Business Park, Baldoyle is to keep things that way for the foreseeable future.
Operating with 21 full-time staff, the company has built its reputation through honesty, integrity, quality work and verifiable customer satisfaction over these past 18 years.
A leading builder and property developer in its region, Clarke Construction specialises in project planning, commercial, residential and refurbishment work and it continues to grow its workforce year on year.
Building Ireland caught up with Colin Clarke recently to discuss the ins and outs of this business and what he feels separates it from the competition out there.
“Right now, it’s probably the busiest it’s been since we set up in 2007,” the Managing Director outlined.
“We just received an unprecedented amount of tenders coming through from great architects such as Brennan/Furlong Architects, Wilson Hill Architects, Gap Architects, Graham Mc Nevin Design whom we do a lot of high spec, challenging work for on a regular basis. Along with of course many other great architects who we have been recommended too which is great to be honest.
“We have a lot of past clients coming back to us now, it would be the second or third property with which we have worked on for them, they’ve moved again and we’re doing their next house. So, yeah, it’s really, really busy which is great.”
At the time of writing, Clarke Construction were immersed in seven separate live projects across the north Dublin region.
Through the years, Colin and his team have worked on many houses in the areas of Raheny, Clontarf, Sutton, Howth, Malahide and Portmarnock, and it goes without saying that this is a professionally run business that takes a huge amount of pride in its home building and renovation work.
“Right now, we have a new build out in Malahide for Dermot Bannon which we’re working on and nearing completion and we have two large extension/renovation projects in Sutton next door to each other for two different architects,” said Colin.
“We have two large extension refurb projects on the Howth Road, one in Killester and one in Raheny. Of those two projects, one is for McNevin Design and the other for Studio Red Architects.
“Then we have a couple of slightly smaller projects, one in Baldoyle and one in Raheny, which we’re working on as well.
“It’s a heavy workload and it’s just a bit crazy at the moment but we’re well used to it and always rise to the challenge.”
So, all of that considered, the clear question is what has been the secret behind this construction venture’s success to date?
How has what began as a modest start-up grow into what is now a thriving company with projects to last well into next year and an excellent reputation amongst clientele?
For Colin, the continued success of Clarke Construction comes down to a combination of different factors.
“I’m not sure what we do that others don’t do, but I think we run our business with integrity and with our clients in mind at every stage of the project,” said the Dubliner.
“I think we’re personable, we’re honest and we’re good at what we do. I think we do what we say we’re going to do first and foremost, which I think is really, really important, and, needless to say, we’ve built our company over the last 18 years based on a good reputation.
“We do good work and do what we say we’re going to do. I think this reliability and consistency is where the repeat business comes from.”
“The architects we work for continue to send tenders to us because we always get the projects done and leave a smile on the clients faces when we’re done.
“Clients who we’ve worked for before also come back to us which speaks volumes about the standard of our work, and, not just the standard of our work, but also how we approach the projects and how we are to deal with as individuals and as a company too.
“We’re very open, honest and transparent in what we do and we certainly try to make sure that every project that we do is up to high standards.”
Those high standards have been recognised once more on a national scale with Clarke Construction taking home the ‘Contractor Residential Project of the Year – Under €5m’ Award at the recent Irish Construction Industry Awards 2025.
The company was also nominated for ‘Project Manager of the Year’ and ‘Contractor of the Year’ at the awards which took place on October 10th at The Convention Centre Dublin.
Being announced as finalists in three categories in August was a proud moment for Colin and the Clarke Construction team which he values tremendously.
“Being up for three awards was brilliant and to take home the ‘Contractor Residential Project of the Year – Under €5m’ Award was a great honour,” said the MD.
He added: “As a company owner, I’m exceptionally proud of the work that we do. I take a serious amount of pride in it. I think it’s great as a company and also for the architects that we’re working for that our work and their great designs are being recognised.
“I think it’s great to have the projects showcased and not just to show how good our work is, but for every member of our team that is involved in the build, including our amazing subcontractors.
“Construction sites can be a tough place to be at various times of the year. It can be a hard slog and it’s great for our staff to see their quality work being recognised.”
Looking at the coming months for the business and towards 2026, Colin says that continued expansion of the company remains one of his top priorities.
“It’s our busiest year yet and it’s certainly on course to be our most successful year yet,” he said.
“We would be certainly looking to grow that now and also grow our workforce in the next 12 months and, hopefully this time 12 months, we’re having the same conversation.
“If we can do that and manage the volatility of the construction sector between now and then, we’d be very, very happy with that.”
Clarke Construction Ltd,
Unit 7 Abbey Business Park,
Grange Drive,
Baldoyle Industrial Estate,
Dublin 13,
D13 R1W1
Tel: 01 839 7907
Web: clarkeconstruction.ie
This article was published in Building Ireland Magazine, January 2026, Vol 12 No 1
