Providing a professional approach to mechanical engineering since 1999, Dominic O’Connor Ltd was among the winners at the recent National Irish Safety Organisation / Northern Ireland Safety Group (NISO / NISG) Annual Occupational Safety Awards for the second year-in-a-row.
The 29th edition of the prestigious awards took place on January 22 last in a special online ceremony due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Under normal circumstances, they would have been presented to the award winners at a prize-giving ceremony and gala dinner event in October 2020.
One thing that has not changed is Dominic O’Connor Ltd.’s dedication and commitment to improving health and safety performance in the workplace, and this was recognised with the awarding of a Distinction Award. This followed a Highly Commended Award for the Galway-based company in 2019.
“We were honoured to receive a Highly Commended Award as first-time entrants in 2019 and a Distinction Award is another step-up from that,” enthuses EHS Manager Oneasa McMorrow.
“We were delighted to receive this award as it validates our commitment to continually improving health and safety awareness within our company, more so than ever with the current climate. It was a real team effort. We work very hard to promote a positive health and safety culture, and the NISO / NISG awards are a valuable benchmark in setting health and safety standards for our employees and clients.”
The vast ranging submission process was led by Health and Safety Manager Oneasa, who coordinated the process with senior contracts managers, project managers and project engineers, Dominic O’Connor Ltd’s Health & Safety Management System clearly impressed the judges. The Health & Safety Management System is detailed and derived from accreditation ISO 45001.
Dominic O’Connor Ltd is dedicated to providing a safe and healthy work environment for all persons that work with, for and in close proximity to its working activities. The company operates an internal management system for all management at all levels. This internal management system provides ease of access to legislative requirements, company safety operating procedures and risk assessments. Oneasa is at hand at all times to assist contracts / project managers and site foremen with the implementation and operation of the Safety Management System.
The Safety Management System is audited on an ongoing basis, monthly by the EHS Manager on Safety Management implementation on site, on physical conditions and working practices. Regular toolbox talks and site reviews allow for the site teams to have their input in assisting site management teams in building upon and improving working environments. In addition, Dominic O’Connor Ltd is audited biannually in the ISO 45001 audit by Certification Europe, and yearly by Safe-T-Cert audit.
“We hold ISO certification for 9001 for Quality, 14001 for Environmental and 45001 for Safety thanks to a huge drive by all the senior management and commitment from all employees within the Company. Gaining these accreditations led to us entering and being successful at the NISO / NISG awards,” Oneasa explains.
The submission focused on areas such as Hazard Identification & Risk Management, Emergency Preparedness & Response, Work Related Vehicle Safety and Occupational Health Surveillance & Monitoring. It also highlighted the importance of the company’s Wellbeing Programme and the commitment required to implement it and achieve success.
Founded in Loughrea, Co. Galway in 1999 by Dominic O’Connor and trading as a limited company since 2002, Dominic O’Connor Ltd has earned an enviable reputation for providing specialist commercial and industrial engineering services to the building industry. The company has grown to employ 85 people directly and many more on a sub-contract basis. Over the years Dominic O’Connor Ltd has delivered numerous prestigious projects involving complex mechanical systems and has established an eminent maintenance division specialising in a full range of mechanical services nationwide. Our vast in-house experience covers a wide range of mechanical systems such as HVAC, processed/gas pipe installations, medical and compressed air, chilled steam and LPHW systems and also keeping up to date on the latest building management and renewable energy systems.
Across all aspects of the industry, the company has experience in both design and installation, and is able to undertake complete management of any project from initial planning and estimation through to project completion. It has become a respected and experienced provider of building services throughout the country.
As well as working on new build projects, the Galway company’s highly skilled team provide a full array of mechanical services to existing live buildings such as Health Care and Clean Room Facilities, pharmaceutical plants, hotels and commercial buildings. The maintenance division offers a 24/7 peace of mind works service which incorporates all aspects of Mechanical maintenance and servicing of equipment such as oil and gas boilers, pumps, chiller units, CHP plant and controls covering the full range of mechanical services.
Staff are continually trained and upskilled to ensure they can implement up-to-date new methods to improve plant efficiency, resulting in substantial savings on running costs to clients. Our staff perform an integral part of the Company’s development, while also making it an enjoyable workplace.
With the Global Pandemic in 2019, as an essential service, Dominic O’Connor Ltd stayed operational through the lockdowns with educational, pharmaceutical and social housing projects nationwide for clients such as John SISK & Sons, Clancy Construction, Conack Construction, BAM Building, JJ Rhatigan, Ganson, Mythen, Western Building Systems, Monami and Coolsivna.
“Since the arrival of the Pandemic in March 2020 we’ve been fortunate and extremely busy. A number of Contractors engaged with Dominic O’Connor Ltd to execute the Mechanical Services package on essential COVID projects, which led to other works and opened lots of doors for us. We started in Letterkenny General Hospital and it has been going from strength to strength ever since,” Oneasa continues.
The following is a brief overview of projects the award-winning company is currently undertaking the complete mechanical installation on: –
1. Bonham Quay, Docks Road in Galway for John SISK & Sons
2. Croom Hospital Theatre Fitout for Clancy Construction
3. Naas Community College for Ganson
4. Sweeney’s Terrace student accommodation in Dublin 8 for BAM Building
5. 102 social housing units in Skibbereen and Clonakilty for JJ Rhatigan
Bonham Quay is a mixed-use development comprising 26,000m2 of Grade A office space, 2,000m2 of retail and restaurant space, and student accommodation offering 345 beds.
The St Nessan’s Orthopaedic Hospital Theatre Fit Out project in Croom, Co. Limerick consists of complete mechanical services associated with the establishment of four new state-of-the-art operating theatres, a first stage recovery room, a reception area, a new modern HSSD (High Sterile Service Department) and other ancillary support spaces with an overall floor area of 1,700m2 on the first floor of a new 24-bed block.
The Naas Community College project involves the construction of a 10,450m2 two- and three-storey 1,000 pupil post-primary school.
Sweeney’s Terrace consists of one block of student accommodation spanning 4,200m2 with varying number of floors overground. The building includes study area and amenity spaces, including a laundry service facility at ground level.
Dominic O’Connor Ltd would like to take this opportunity to thank its Clients, Consultant Engineers and Suppliers for their continued support, and its staff for their hard work, dedication and expertise.
Dominic O’Connor Ltd
East Point Business Park,
Dublin Road,
Loughrea,
Co. Galway.
Telephone: 091 880340
Fax: 091 880341
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.doconnor.ie
This article was published in Building Ireland Magazine, June, Vol 7 No 6
