With the emphasis very much on attention to detail and outstanding workmanship, Farry Construction provides a full range of construction services to an ever-growing list of satisfied customers across counties Fermanagh and Tyrone. We travelled to Tempo and touched base with proprietor Stephen Farry to discuss the success and ethos of his highly-regarded general contracting company.
Renowned for invariably delivering quality buildings to absolute client satisfaction, Farry Construction boasts an excellent track record across a wide spectrum of project-specific construction activities including new builds, extensions, refurbishments, conservation, roofing, joinery work, kitchens and bathrooms, building repairs and upgrades, attic conversions, groundworks and much, much more.
Owner Stephen Farry has been working full time in construction for coming up on a quarter of a century and is pleased to report that business is brisk at present, with the order book looking particularly healthy, albeit in a somewhat volatile environment: “We’ve plenty of work on at the moment and more scheduled in for next year, so we can’t complain,” the amiable Fermanagh contractor notes.
“Everybody’s gripe at the moment is raw materials. We were hoping things would settle down a bit after Covid, but it’s still every bit as bad in some respects. However, it hasn’t really affected people’s desire to get work done. The demand for construction is still there, so you have to find ways to get the work done.”
Stephen inherited his love of all things construction from his late father, who was involved in the industry from the 1970s onwards. After obtaining a Degree in Construction Engineering & Management, he started working full time alongside his father in 1998 and has never looked back.
A joiner by trade, he is very much the archetypal hands-on director, skilled and competent in most facets of construction and is on site from initial groundworks through to the handing over of keys.
“I have my own joinery workshop and can take on small kitchens and outdoor frames. This works well when things are quiet as there’s always something to do. When the last recession hit, we were fitting a lot of stoves, bathrooms and kitchens. We can turn our hand to anything at all.
“General construction is back in a big way now and we’ve been lucky enough to have a very good run of larger, bespoke new builds. We’re getting a lot of those and we always seem to have one finishing, another one halfway through and a new one starting. We’ve also taken on a lot of domestic extensions and refurbs over the last couple of years, so we are being kept going.”
Stephen also does some commercial works, including retail refurbs, car park extensions, etc., and carries out insurance work for AXA covering Fermanagh and South Tyrone repairing buildings after water or fire damage. As is often the case in construction, the business is sustained largely by repeat custom and positive referrals through word of mouth.
“A lot of my work is for repeat clients and I often find myself going back doing work for my dad’s clients from 20 years ago, or their children,” confirms Stephen, whose two sons help out during the summer months. Both are currently at college and are considering careers in construction.
Elsewhere, in addition to Stephen, Farry Construction generates steady employment for a crew of five, two of whom are directly employed. At peak times, including subcontractors, there could be up to ten or twelve men on site.
Farry Construction recently completed a magnificent restoration of a listed building in Clogher including structural repairs and a new roof as well as a new home in Ballinamallard, while Stephen is currently landscaping around a striking 4,500 sq ft new build Georgian style home in Enniskillen as well as working on another Georgian style new house in Fivemiletown.
Mixing the old with the new, another current project comprises the incorporation of a two-storey modern extension onto a traditional-style home in Tamlaght, three miles from Enniskillen. “I’m also doing some work for a local architect in Enniskillen, who is building an annex onto his home for his parents to live in.”
The Tempo general contractor enjoys excellent working relationships with a number of architects, including Chris Allen Architects, Studio44 and OJQ Architecture. Wherever possible, he likes to start collaborating with the architect as early in the formative stages of the project as possible.
“I like to catch them early and negotiate the contracts with my input and way of thinking,” he states. “I’m booked up for six-twelve months now and have been dealing with a couple of architects for the past two or three years. I like to get involved early and give cost advice. I can tidy up the price once the drawings are done up and give a start date.
“It’s much better to be involved early rather than to be invited in late on for a house that is ready to start, which I simply can’t do. This way I know where my workload is going to be, I can negotiate it better and the client is getting a start date booked in with no issues or delays.”
Stephen already has three projects booked in for 2023 – two new builds and an extension, all of which will be given his full, undivided attention, as has always been the way with Farry Construction, who consistently complete high-quality buildings to budget and on time.
“When the time comes, I will look after them fully,” he concludes. “We have always looked after people and that’s how we keep getting work.”
Farry Construction,
86 Tullyreagh Road,
Tempo,
County Fermanagh.
Tel: +44 7715 147071
Email: [email protected]
Facebook: www.facebook.com/FarryConstruction
This article was published in Building Ireland Magazine, January 2023, Vol 9 No 1
