As well as being firmly established as one of Galway’s premier electrical contractors, Kevin Keogh Electrical also offers exceptional building contracting and plant hire solutions. We headed to idyllic Clifden to find out more about this multifaceted, industry-leading operation.
Over the past 18 years and counting, Kevin Keogh Electrical has earned an enviable reputation as one of the leading electrical contractors in the Connemara region. However, in response to demand for other services, the eponymous founder / proprietor has expanded his offerings accordingly to also provide the keenest construction and plant hire solutions to an ever-increasing base of satisfied customers.
One trait that’s evident in every project undertaken – whether it be an electrical fit out, new build house or plant hire agreement – is high-quality workmanship. By invariably working to the most-exacting and – professional standards, Kevin has successfully grown the business through a combination of repeat custom and positive referrals:
“We pride ourselves on doing a very high standard of work,” the Galway contractor confirms. “Word of mouth has been a real winner for us. While I’ve advertised the plant hire business a little bit, I’ve never advertised the construction work – that has grown naturally through word of mouth.
“I’m very lucky in that I have good clients in construction, electrical and plant hire. In fact, I’m still working for clients that I’d have done nixers for as an apprentice electrician going back to 2002. Having my own team of qualified and experienced lads is a big help – if a business calls you with an unexpected problem on a Monday morning, we have the resources to solve it”
Reflecting on the genesis of the original electrical contracting business, which has since gone from strength to strength, Kevin continues: “I started out as an electrical contractor straight after finishing my apprenticeship in 2002. From the beginning, it wasn’t difficult to find work and I had two lads in with me straight away. We worked that up to nine or ten lads at the height of the boom but then went down to three when the crash happened and luckily have risen back up again. We are lucky to have a good steady supply of work locally, so for now, travel is kept to a minimum.
“In 2012, an opportunity came up to take on some building work, a local factory extension. I took that on, loved the project and it has grown naturally from there.
“We’ve enjoyed good success in both electrical and building, which subsequently expanded into plant hire. As projects arose we began increasing our plant and tool inventory as needed. A growing customer base seen us expand and we can now offer machines with or without a driver.”
Being in a position to provide in-house electrical and groundworks services to building projects confers obvious advantages in terms of reducing the number of third parties on site and also keeping costs down. Over the years, looking at things from varying perspectives, Kevin has developed a reliable intuition for how best to proceed with any building project:
“I’m a firm believer that if something is wrong at the start of a project, you need to address it immediately. There’s no point pushing problems down the line. I’d advise clients, if they are unsure of a particular requirement at the early stages, it is best to allow for the wire and keep your options open. Cable is cheap compared to the cost of redecorating if you decide to add that wire retrospectively.
“I’m lucky to have worked on holiday homes with architects and clients with unique tastes and has given me an insight into what works well. When you go into a house with only block walls, you have a feel for what is going to work, and where appliances are best suited.
“In construction, we work with subbies that we use regularly and are dependable for their high their standard of work.”
Kevin Keogh Electrical provides a complete range of electrical installation and upgrade services on new builds, extensions and refurbishments, including PAT testing and Cat 5 / Cat 6 cabling. At present, the electrical side of the business generates employment for a team of seven, including apprentices, while three more men work full-time in construction / plant hire.
“It’s important to have experienced and dependable men,” Kevin states. “I’m fortunate to have a core team who have vast experience between them, which helps as relationships and communication are vitally important.”
Although the past 18-20 months have been extremely challenging for the construction industry for obvious reasons, Kevin reports a steady flow of work.
“Given the team abilities we have the capacity to deliver projects with tight deadlines, while maintaining service to our regular business clients for example, in November we have an electrical renovation of hotel rooms which must be completed as the same time as Christmas lights fever takes over”
On the plant hire front, Kevin owns an array of machinery including diggers ranging from one tonne mini diggers up to eight tonne, a Merlo telehandler, dumpers, a roller, scissors lift, scaffolding and generators from 400kva down to 20 kva. For bulk excavations, he can call upon the assistance of his father, Liam, who has been involved in plant hire for over 40 years.
“We accumulated the machinery over time and invested prudently. I will invest in new pieces of plant if I feel the demand is there to justify the expense.”
The Galway contractor says that even though there is strong demand for his services at present, he will resist the temptation to expand operations for now. “Things are going well on all three fronts,” he concludes.
“We’re at a manageable size currently and I’d say at the right size to provide the best-possible service. I wouldn’t like to overstretch and lose the emphasis on quality workmanship. The team are excellent and they are all versatile and multi-skilled, so we are in a good place at the moment”.
Kevin Keogh Electrical Ltd.,
Church Hill,
Clifden,
County Galway.
Tel: 087 2210156
This article was published in Building Ireland Magazine, January 2022, Vol 8 No 1
