Limerick-based PBC Builders came up trumps at the 2026 Irish Construction Excellence Awards, taking home the prestigious Residential Social & Affordable Up to €5m award for their fantastic delivery of the complex, challenging and community-transforming Mirth Housing Development. Building Ireland touched base with Project Manager Kevin Madden to convey our heartiest congratulations!
Officially opened by Limerick Mayor John Moran in June, 2025, Mirth Housing Development stunningly transformed a once-derelict riverside site at Thomondgate in Limerick city into a development of 18 one-bedroom apartments offering magnificent views of the River Shannon and King John’s Castle.
Developed by the Associated Charities Trust, this one-of-a-kind social housing complex provides secure, independent forever homes to individuals over the age of 50 on the council housing waiting list or have experienced homelessness.
The project has successfully delivered on so many levels, most pertinently in turning a site that was an eyesore into a striking modern building of immeasurable value to the local community. Thus, it was apt to see main contractor PBC Builders’ magnificent delivery of Mirth Housing Development recognised at this year’s ICE Awards, where it triumphed in the Residential Social & Affordable Up to €5m category.
Project Manager Kevin Madden, who has been part of the PBC Builders team since September, 2018, was understandably delighted that the leading Limerick contractor was invited into the winners’ enclosure at the Convention Centre on May 28th, 2026:
“It’s the first ICE Award we’ve won and it was great to win it – especially the residential one. One of the most rewarding aspects of this project from our perspective was how much social and community value it brought to the area. To see the site before we started work on the development and then look at it now, that is extremely satisfying and we’re very proud to have played a part in that transformation.
“Although Mirth Housing Development is located in a very scenic area by the river, the site was overgrown and dilapidated – a real eyesore that’s been given a complete facelift. The building is well-designed and makes full use of the size and potential of the site. It’s not straight lines … the site boundaries are fully used to maximise space.
“This unique social housing development also has one of the best views in Limerick city. From the top floors you can look over at King John’s Castle across the River Shannon and the view is breath-taking.”
To be fair, everything that has been achieved in making Mirth Housing Development a reality is breath-taking!
The project entailed the construction of an 18-unit apartment building on a detached stepped site within the heart
of Limerick city. The completed development achieved a high-quality finish consistent with PBC Builders’ long-established reputation for delivering projects on time, within budget and to the highest standards.
The building was constructed using durable, robust materials, reinforced concrete foundations, precast hollow-core slabs, block inner leaf / brick outer leaf walls and a PVC membrane roof system, ensuring long-term structural integrity and low maintenance requirements. The integration of precast elements improved consistency and precision in the structural frame, while the brick outer leaf provided strong visual appeal and weather resistance suitable for the Limerick climate.
Mirth Housing Development stands out as an example of construction excellence thanks to the way the team delivered a high-quality residential development on a constrained urban site while managing environmental, logistical and community challenges in a professional and client-focused manner.
The project required building on a stepped site, immediately adjacent to the River Shannon and within a live residential estate. These conditions introduced risk, complexity and heightened sensitivity, yet the team delivered a robust, structurally sound building using high-quality materials; a safe, clean and well-managed site despite the tight access and active community environment; and full completion of external reinstatement works (boundary walls, footpaths, walkways, landscaping) to a high standard.
The extended team demonstrated PBC’s core values of professionalism, integrity and high-quality workmanship through every stage of the project.
For a complex, 18-unit apartment block on a detached, stepped site in a tight urban location (close to a heritage
landmark like King John’s Castle), careful planning and sequencing was critical. PBC managed the full lifecycle from asbestos removal and site clearance, through foundations, structural works, finishes, landscaping and public-footpath reinstatement with clear project phasing to avoid conflicts between trades and ensure safety and efficiency.
By coordinating all the different scope elements (asbestos remediation, RC foundations, waterproofing, precast
slabs & stairs, walling, roofing, lift installation, boundary walls, public footpath repair, landscaping), they avoided fragmentation and delays. This holistic approach, together with PBC’s quality controls, translated into added value delivery for the client of a fully completed, high-standard asset, ready for handover with minimal risk of rework or defects.
Even though the core of the project was masonry / concrete-based (rather than fully modular or offsite volumetric modules), the strategic blending of traditional construction with precast concrete elements represented a pragmatic, hybrid-approach using modern methods where they deliver real advantage (precast hollow core slabs, stairs), while preserving the robustness of conventional RC, block and brick for walls and foundations.
“One of the stated objectives was to stay in line with the red-brick Georgian style of buildings in Limerick city as a way of paying homage to the traditional buildings in the area but obviously at the same time it’s a modern building, so you are mixing the old and the new,” continues the Project Manager. “We were onsite for around two years from start to finish, with completion in November, 2024. After fit out works were carried out thereafter, the official opening ceremony took place last summer.”
Kevin’s first project as PM with PBC was the fit out of Lidl in Wellpark, Galway, during the summer of 2020. With regard to some of the myriad challenges faced at Mirth Housing Development, he relates: “It was a very tight site, with space restricted and you were also building beside a river, which posed obvious flood and moisture risks, with a lot of waterproofing detail needed to mitigate against this.
“The site was stepped, so sequencing of the structure was challenging. We had to start at the highest point and work down, and walls had to be built out of sequence. This meant there was a lot of propping, with significant temporary works.
“Existing services, such as the electricity supply, weren’t sufficient, so we had to go to the nearest substation. Also, even by Irish standards, the weather was very wet and we had eight weeks rained off which wasn’t ideal as there were a lot of concrete works and the outer leaf was all brick.”
PBC Builders responded to the threats posed by the Irish weather by ensuring robust waterproofing on RC foundations and walls and selecting a suitable PVC-membrane roofing system laid on screed to falls (as per project scope) to provide durable protection against rain and water ingress. They also scheduled critical weather-sensitive phases (foundations, waterproofing, roofing) with flexibility to adjust for inclement weather and maintained tight quality-control under the company’s documented quality-management system.
On behalf of PBC Builders, Kevin Madden is currently project-managing the €5.45m development of 13 apartments, along with a retail and community unit, at 33 and 34 Thomas Street, Limerick. Programmed for completion in Q3 2027, this development represents a significant step forward in the renewal of vacant and underutilised buildings within the historic Georgian core of the city.
Aiming to promote increased residential use in the city centre, contributing to sustainable, compact urban growth, the Thomas Street project forms part of the Living Georgian City Programme, supported under the Urban Regeneration and Development Fund and by Limerick City and County Council. The initiative focuses on redeveloping two Council-owned properties to provide modern residential accommodation while preserving the architectural heritage of the area.
PBC Builders is an industry-leading, family-owned construction and building maintenance firm that has since its inception in 1979 forged a reputation for carrying out high-quality work on time and within budget across a wide range of commercial, healthcare, residential and industrial projects. With extensive experience and expertise in all aspects of construction, they consistently deliver award-wining building excellence to local authorities, universities, retailers, housing associations, factories, hospitals and homeowners, Mirth Housing Development being a perfect example.
PBC Builders Ltd.,
Unit E5,
Eastway Business Park,
Limerick.
Tel: 061 417 474
Email: [email protected]
Web: pbcbuilders.ie
This article was published in Building Ireland Magazine, November 2026, Vol 12 No 12
