Professional Mechanical Solutions, trading as Promec Ltd, is a leading Limerick / Tipperary-based firm which has seen rapid growth since its establishment in 2014.
Promec Ltd is a mechanical services company that provides both commercial and large-scale residential housing projects across the Mid-West. Building Ireland caught up with co-founders Limerick man Jonathan McCarthy and Tipperary native Tom Clifford to find out more. Promec has 50-plus full-time employees between their nationwide sites and head office.
Both directors focused the company on a number of areas within the mechanical industry. Their main business focuses within Commercial and Residential developments are the installation and provision of all heating and plumbing facilities, water services, ventilation, air conditioning, gas and renewable technologies.
Offering its clients such an array of services has been key to Promec’s success to date, Jonathan and Tom explained. They noted that this particular line of work is something which they both have been immersed in for some time. Before founding the company together, both men had worked in the mechanical installation sector and eventually took the decision to start up their own venture in the latter part of the economic downturn, which had hit the Irish construction sector so badly from 2008 onwards.
Tom explained; “Jonathan had been a sole trader and the two of us worked together on a few projects that both of us had been interested in setting up our own business.
“After a few successful projects between us we just decided to take the jump and to go it alone and set up this company in early 2014. It was at a time when we both felt that the construction industry had recovered in the country and we just decided to go for it.”
Fast-forward seven years and business is booming to the point where the company is now managing a handful of large and complex projects ranging from data centres, pharmaceutical plants and 600 housing units.
While most of Promec’s work is currently based in and around Munster, they’ve been branching out to Dublin, Galway and the Midlands for their work as the demand continues to increase.
“We’ve been very busy during the Covid and lockdown periods with HSE works, pharmaceutical and education works and upgrades. It seems the perseverance has paid off and thankfully we are continually expanding,” Tom said.
This past 18 months has seen Promec complete numerous different types of projects.
“We just finished a project for H Forde Construction in the Johnstown House Hotel. It’s a four-star hotel in Enfield, Co Meath. The project comprised a HVAC system, hydrotherapy room, spa and full commercial kitchen. The project was completed in 18 weeks.”
As for some of the residential projects on Promec’s books at the minute, Tom revealed that most of the housing units are for housing agencies through a main contractor, but also that Promec works on privately-owned developments for developers directly.
Currently, the company is working on primary care centres in Co Cork, data centres in Dublin, office fitouts in Limerick, sprinkler projects in Dublin and nine residential projects spread across Limerick, Clare and Tipperary and Offaly. The combined value of current projects is close to €7 million.
He continued: “A lot of our work would be for companies like Conack, BHE Electrical, Formation Homes, Nautic Construction, Co-operative Housing and most recently Retrofit Energy Ireland Ltd. We mostly deal with the contractor and we’re delighted that they’ve chosen us for their projects.”
So why have Promec clients continually chosen them? Tom feels a lot of it has to do with the service that the company provides, as well as the attractive prices they offer which makes it hard for other companies to compete.
“We offer a good service and we’re obviously competitive in our quotations as well,” he stated.
“Another reason why we’re getting repeat business from clients is because we’re very efficient on site and reliable, that counts for a lot.”
Now well into the second half of 2021, the aims remain the same for the company which hopes to grow further and looks forward to hearing from new clients.
Tom and Jonathan seem to be very much on the right path of creating a successful business and if things continue as they are, then expansion could well be down the line in years to come.
“We’re pricing work right now and negotiating a few potential jobs as well. We are constantly tendering for jobs, so the hope for now is to just keep doing what we’re doing and keep getting bigger and better,” Tom concludes.
Professional Mechanical Solutions (Promec Ltd)
Ballinagarde,
Ballyneety,
Co Limerick.
This article was published in Building Ireland Magazine, December 2021, Vol 7 No 12
