Delivering quality concrete and stone products to construction since 2007, Coshla Quarries have earned a stellar reputation across the industry for quality, efficiency and service. As the business continues to improve and move with the times, we spoke to general manager Martin Collins to get an update.
Operating from a 72-acre limestone quarry close to Athenry in County Galway, Coshla Quarries has forged an outstanding reputation by consistently delivering high-quality concrete and stone products since opening for business a decade and a half ago. Offering customers bespoke products and solutions tailored to their precise requirement, Coshla Quarries boasts an exemplary track record partnering with a who’s who of main contractors on key construction, civil and infrastructure projects in the West of Ireland.
Under the direction of owners John Flaherty and John Morris, Coshla Quarries has consistently raised standards, maintained premium customer service and placed an emphasis on excellence through generating specialist solutions. Their team of concrete experts is dedicated to helping customers achieve their desired goals by offering outstanding products, expert advice and value for money.
By consistently tweaking and improving the business model, Coshla Quarries constantly taps into new efficiencies, resulting in better solutions for clients. Recent changes include an even greater focus than hitherto on low-carbon, environmentally-friendly concrete as well as the subcontracting of all crushing and haulage activities, which enables Coshla to focus all their attention on quality, efficiency, sales and aftersales.
“Our blocks for construction are becoming more and more eco-friendly,” confirms general manager Martin Collins. “To reduce our carbon footprint, we have replaced 50% of the cement in the concrete for these blocks with GGBS (Ground Granulated Blastfurnace Slag), supplied by Ecocem. We always have and still do try to use as much GGBS in our concrete as possible and this is an area that will remain very important to us going forward.”
Manufacturing low-carbon concrete blocks using 50% GGBS ensures that all building materials coming from the quarry are not only environmentally-friendly but also strong and extremely long lasting. Some of the blocks supplied by Coshla Quarries include 4” and 6” blocks and soap bars as well as stock bricks, while they also produce a comprehensive range of stone products as well as block-laying sand and plastering sand.
Regarding the strategic move towards subcontracted crushing and haulage, Martin continues: “We now have a subcontractor coming in to crush our rock while 90% of our deliveries are done by hauliers. We subcontract the block trucks and tippers. We still have three concrete bottles of our own, but have up to seven concrete bottles on the road.”
Direct employment is generated for a skilled, experienced and flexible crew of ten full-time (plus one part-time worker) but Martin estimates that including deliveries of cement and sand, concrete going out, on-site crushing, etc., up to 50 people are employed across the entire operation on any given day.
“We find that subcontracting works best for us,” the amiable general manager continues. “We know our margins and it helps make our own lads more efficient time-wise as they are not running around looking for parts or fixing machinery. It leaves us with fewer headaches and we don’t have to worry about breakdowns.
“Hauliers know how to haul and the fleet of crushers are there to do their thing. It’s all specialised work and each party is focussed on what they do best. When you are doing it all yourself you need to invest in the machinery and you need in-house Transport Managers and foremen, etc., whereas now we can concentrate on producing a quality product, Health & Safety, sales, purchasing and customer service.”
Supplying and manufacturing fully-certified, high quality concrete, blocks, stone and aggregates, Coshla Quarries operate two concrete batching plants to ensure reliable delivery of all products. Their blocks carry the CE mark and are manufactured on site by dedicated concrete experts. Offering a wide range of readymix concrete, Coshla can produce specific concrete mix requirements to suit niche demands. All products are NSAI certified.
“We’ve brought in a safety consultant to make sure we are fully compliant and that we don’t overlook anything. We are totally focussed on the quality, safety and efficiency of our products and also on providing optimal service levels,” notes Martin, who is himself an authority in concrete quality, having completed a diploma course in advanced concrete technology at Leeds University.
“It’s our job to produce a quality product as efficiently as possible and then to supply it quickly and safely to the industry to the highest quality that can be achieved. By subcontracting the crushing and haulage aspects of the business, we can focus 100% on achieving this.”
Down through the years, Coshla Quarries have worked on countless largescale projects such as the N6 Galway-Dublin dual carriageway and the M17 / M18 Gort-Tuam motorway. They also supplied materials to many key healthcare projects in Galway, including University College Hospital, Medtronic and Boston Scientific. They have vast experience in education projects (including Coláiste na Coiribe, Knocknacarra; Presentation College, Athenry; and Coláiste An Chlairín, Athenry) and also supplied materials for the construction of the Garda HQ in Renmore and the Dean Hotel in Bohermore, Galway.
Meanwhile, for John Sisk & Son, Bonham Quay in Galway docks is a major ongoing commercial project that commenced in 2019 and for which Coshla is supplying concrete, blocks and stone. Coshla Quarries are also currently working on a massive residential development of 80 houses and are supplying stone and crushed aggregates to JJ Rhatigan’s mixed-used development at Crown Square on the east side of the city. Generally, they tend to play some part in all of the larger and smaller developments in Galway, including everything from one-off houses and farms to major civil, construction and infrastructure developments.
While the products produced by Coshla Quarries may not be the most expensive raw materials going into a building, they are certainly the most important: “As the price of steel, insulation and timber have gone through the roof, a lot of people are holding off on their building projects at the moment,” Martin concludes. “As the world starts to produce more in order to meet the strong demand, the price of those materials will fall again.
“I do find it ironic that stone, concrete and blocks are still the cheapest part of the house as they are also the most important. Here at Coshla Quarries, we appreciate the importance of these products and that’s why we will continue to place a major emphasis on producing to the very highest standards possible.”
Coshla Quarries Ltd.,
Coshla,
Athenry,
County Galway.
Tel: 091 389020
Fax: 091 389021
Email: [email protected]
Web: coshlaquarries.ie
This article was published in Building Ireland Magazine, February 2022, Vol 8 No 2
