P.K. & Son Ltd is a leading building contractor with a broad range of experience, gained across a variety of sectors over the past 50 years. Building Ireland spoke with third generation builder Barry Kieran (director) to learn all about the company, its current projects and hopes for the future.
These are busy times at P.K. & Son Ltd from Meath Hill in Co. Meath and the plan for Pat, Ann and Barry Kieran and the rest of the company’s team is to try and keep things that way right through to next year.
Set-up as a limited venture in 1980, the original roots of the business date back more than half a century to a time when Pat Kieran first started out in the building industry.
Today, P.K. & Son Ltd employ direct staff and subcontractors from its base in Kellystown and operates with a reputation which is second to none in the sector.
Building Ireland touched base with Pat’s son Barry Kieran recently to hear about this thriving family business ideally situated along the Meath/Monaghan border.
“We’re located about 100 metres from the Monaghan border but we’re in Meath,” Barry outlined.
“My father Pat is working full-time since he was 16 and he started with his own father Terry.
“I’m 43 now and I’m a third-generation builder. I got my degree in Quantity Surveying in Bolton Street and officially came back to work with the company full-time in 2008.
“What we do here is mostly residential private one-off houses and we would be directly employed by the client.
“We work with several architects and engineers.”
As for what P.K. & Son Ltd can offer with regards to its list of services, Barry explained that the broad range on offer has been key to its success and growth over the years.
“We would start off in a green field site and do everything from the site works to the finishing touches. It’s a turnkey service that we provide,” said the director.
“We also do schools and have also done some sports projects in the past, including astro pitches, training pitches
“On the industrial end, we’ve done a fuel depot in Ardee, a factory in Carrickmacross, church restoration projects in Drumcondrath and Nobber, and we’ve also done a couple of design and builds for houses as well.”
Right now, the focus for P.K. & Son Ltd is largely on private one-off house and business is thriving.
The company covers counties Meath, Louth, Monaghan and Cavan and currently has its books full with projects.
“We’re busy but, at the same time, we’re also very conscious of rising material costs all the time,” said Barry.
“We try and keep on the price agreed here and we’d be fairly conscious too of not taking on too many projects in the long-term.”
Indeed, the Covid-19 pandemic, and the government lockdowns which followed in order to combat the spread of the virus, impacted businesses throughout Ireland.
While P.K. & Son Ltd certainly felt the effects to some extent, the company was able to put their focus on one particular exciting project during the lockdown months as it was deemed essential and therefore allowed to proceed under government guidelines.
“When the lockdown hit, we were still able to complete our projects that were deemed essential,” Barry explained.
“We’d a project just outside of Kells, Co Meath that was deemed essential.
“So, we were able to keep on that project and it was a very large project which spanned 11 to 12 months for us.
“At the moment, we’re on Phase 2 of the school in Meath Hill after finishing Phase 1 on St Patrick’s Day of this year.
“We’re also at another project in Ardee, one in Dunleer, which is a private house, another in Hunterstown and just started a new project there in Nobber. So, we’re kept busy.”
So, the burning question is, what has been the secret to the continued success of this family-run business throughout the decades?
How has a small start-up grown into a thriving and trusted building contractor, which has a glowing reputation amongst its clients?
For Barry, it’s down to a combination of different factors but, above all, he says the company approaching each project like it’s their own home goes a long way in this line of work.
“I think it’s our attention to detail in each project that we undertake here,” he stated.
“We always have great interest in the project and treat it as if it’s our own house and it’s something which the client definitely appreciates.
“We always keep it very tidy and very clean and, the way we look at it, you’re only as good as your last project.
“We generally get our work through word of mouth and, even in the leaner times in 2009, we had a good reputation around and were able to keep going through the recession.”
Looking at the months ahead for the business, the Co Meath native is (like everyone else) eager for material costs in the industry to level off.
After that, it’ll be about more of the same for the company hopefully and continuing to meet the demand of and satisfying clientele.
“We’re hoping that the material prices will level off a bit, first and foremost.
“After that, we hope that the prices at the moment aren’t the cause of a slowdown down the line. Hopefully, things steady off on the material prices, so don’t get out of control and, after that, we’ll just be hoping we can continue to have the same rate of work going forward,” Barry concluded.
P.K. & Son Ltd
Kellystown,
Coolderry
Carrickmacross,
Co MEATH
Tel: 041 6854 153
Mob: 086 3822 509
Email: [email protected]
This article was published in Building Ireland Magazine, September 2022, Vol 8 No 9
