It’s very much a case of onwards and upwards for Munster’s premier steel fabrication specialist Noel Noonan Fabrications (NNF), whose aggressive investment in the latest processes and machinery enables them to consistently deliver striking, bespoke, industry-leading structural steel and architectural steel solutions.
Synonymous with exceptionally high-quality products and service levels, Noel Noonan Fabrications has since its inception in 2008 firmly established itself as a leading specialist in general fabrications, providing an unrivalled service in stainless steel products and solutions throughout County Cork, Munster and sometimes further afield.
Eponymous founder and managing director Noel Noonan boasts three decades’ experience of steel fabrication and his company has completed a magnificent, broad portfolio of projects for a who’s who of main contractors, including regular work for long-term partners PJ Hegarty & Sons and Rose Construction.
CE certified – Execution Class 2, thanks to the deployment of skilled craftsmen and an ongoing process of rigorous reinvestment in its state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Ballinhassig, NNF has the capacity to fabricate custom designed stainless steel and mild steel products of varying size and structure including balconies, balustrades and handrails, stairs and access gantries, access ladders and fire escapes, gates, canopies and shelters, caging, and mezzanine floor installations.
Bearing in mind the array of high quality, value-added products provided, invariably with a rapid turnaround, it’s no surprise to learn when touching base with Noel for an update that Noel Noonan Fabrications is experiencing exponential growth year on year:
“We’re up to 32 staff now and we have a fleet of eleven vans on the road to look after our customers,” the Cork steel specialist confirms. “We have also invested in a lot of new machinery, including a high-definition plasma cutter and a 250-tonne four-metre brake press. We’re working on a lot of different project types.”
While projects are becoming more frequent and more prestigious, Noel is never too busy to take on new work, with no job ever considered too large, too small or too complex. Indeed, the challenge of delivering bespoke solutions on more unconventional jobs is something NNF thrives upon!
Noel Noonan Fabrications recently had the distinction of working with Rose Construction on handrails for the award-winning Woodland Suite Experience at The Montenotte Hotel in Cork city, while architectural balustrades and handrails were delivered on the landmark Spencer Dock apartments in Dublin 1 for PJ Hegarty.
“PJ Hegarty and Rose Construction are wonderful clients and working for them is our main bread and butter, although we are by no means limited to that,” Noel continues. “We do a lot of pharma work, including Eli Lilly in Limerick, while we also worked on the new expansion to the Irish Distillers’ plant in Midleton. We also work for MSL Engineering, doing secondary steel piple support frames, stainless steel pipe support shoes, stainless steel brackets and cabinets for them.”
Noel Noonan Fabrications design and install bespoke balconies and balustrades, purpose built using glass, stainless steel and painted steel finishes. The balconies add valuable outdoor space to new and existing buildings.
These can help to create a whole new outlook, offering a complete balcony service from a free, no obligation site survey to quotation to fully finished balcony installation including quality timber decking. All balconies and balustrades are pre-built in the factory, galvanised and powder coated to protect against the elements as standard and can be fitted on site within one week (balustrades within a few days).
NNF’s fabricators are experienced in Mig, Tig and Mag welding. They also provide welding services and welding repairs to all steel structures.
The state-of-the-art, fully-equipped stainless steel and carbon steel workshops are manned by a wonderful team of skilled and experienced craftsmen, without whom Noel concedes he’d be lost: “Everything we do is bespoke and you need good men and good machinery to achieve the precision and quality required.
“Thankfully, we have a lot of good men working for us, many of whom have been with us or a decade or more. I’m off the tools myself now but we have an office manager, general manager and site foreman etc., while I oversee quality on a daily basis. To be honest, I miss being on tools and would love to be back but just don’t have time.”
It’s very much a family business providing total transparency and a keen personal touch, with Noel’s wife Jackie on hand as financial controller while their son Jamie has joined the expanding team and currently operates a laser in the stainless steel workshop.
For 17 years and counting, Noel Noonan Fabrications has been ‘steeling’ the show and the personable proprietor is confident that the company will continue to go from strength to strength in 2025: “There’s huge demand for architectural steel and we’re doing a lot of that, alongside a steady flow of structural steel,” he concludes.
“There’s a small bit of a lull at the moment and the first three or four months of ’25 will be quiet enough but we’ve some nice work lined up from April / May and the second half of 2025 looks very good. We’ve built up good relationships with great clients, so I’m confident it’s going to be a busy and progressive year. We’ll keep moving forward to make sure we maintain the high standards we’re renowned for.”
Noel Noonan Fabrications Ltd,
Unit 15,
The Elms,
Adamstown,
Ballinhassig,
County Cork.
Tel: 021 4881098
Mobile: 087 993 8082
Email: [email protected]
Web: noelnoonanfabrications.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/NoelNoonanFabrications
This article was published in Building Ireland Magazine, June 2025, Vol 11 No 6
featured, Noel Noonan Fabrications Ltd
