Time and date
CONSTRUCTION DIRECTORY
Ireland Construction News Archive for January 2011
31/01/2011
A €2.5m sewage contract to protect the environment to the south of Dublin has been approved. Éamon Ó Cuív, Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government has announced that he has approved funding to allow Dun Laoghaire/Rathdown County Council to accept the tender of Willis Bros Ltd fo
31/01/2011
Construction sector apprentices are in for a boost with the tenth annual search for Northern Ireland's Apprentice of the Year accolade just launched by the Stormont Employment and Learning Minister, Danny Kennedy. Highlighting the significance of the awards, Mr Kennedy said: "These awards recognise
31/01/2011
The Limerick building supply company, Heiton Buckley, has closed its doors as owner Grafton 'pulls the plug'. The company located on the Dock Road ceased operating after 40 years of trading although their Heiton Buckley store located on the Ballysimon Road remains unaffected by this closure and wil
31/01/2011
A world leading architect has visited Belfast to help decide the future of the former Andersonstown police barracks site The competition panel chaired by leading world architect, Daniel Libeskind, have met to select designers to develop detailed designs for the proposed EXPO Centre at the former s
31/01/2011
Work can get started soon after a 'green light' for a new €50 million wind farm near Lissycasey in west Clare by An Bord Pleanála saw the official body overruling the recommendation of its own inspector. The appeals board dismissed an appeal by An Taisce against a Clare County Council decision to g
31/01/2011
Public Services has selected one of the UK's leading airfield construction specialists as its preferred bidder for the essential maintenance and improvements at Guernsey Airport. Northern Irish based firm Lagan Construction, which has completed more 35 airfield projects worldwide in the past 10
28/01/2011
Dublin City Council has agreed to allow the construction of 178 apartments and houses and a hotel in Artane. The development will be on the site of the Stardust nightclub disaster and has been appealed to An Bord Pleanála. Next month marks the 30th anniversary of the Stardust fire, in which 48 peo
28/01/2011
Some 75 new homes at Ballymacoss in Co Antrim have just become available with this latest phase of new social housing, provided by the Department for Social Development in partnership with Ulidia Housing Association. It brings the total new homes built on the Windermere Road site in Lisburn over th
28/01/2011
Kingspan Renewables is leading the way when it comes to creating efficient and cost effective energy solutions that address the environmental concerns. Kingspan Renewables has strengthened its portfolio of leading renewable energy solutions with the launch of its new Aeromax Plus Air Source Heat
28/01/2011
A consultation with the public on a €200 million plan for developing Galway Harbour began this week. It is looking into the redevelopment and the plans to move the port southward on land reclaimed from Galway Bay. The aim is to attract cruise liners into a transformed deepwater port, developing a
28/01/2011
A natural approach to ventilation is helping a new €12million school create a better learning environment and simultaneously have a positive impact on carbon emissions and energy consumption. The new two-storey Willow Park Junior School in Blackrock, designed by Coady Partnership Architects, bring
28/01/2011
Small construction companies must not be excluded from the Green New Deal was the message from the Federation of Master Builders (FMB) Northern Ireland to the Minister for Department of Social Development (DSD) & Housing, Alex Attwood MLA, when they met this week. The FMB explained how important t
27/01/2011
Just over six months after preliminary developments took place, large-scale construction work has now started on the new Giant's Causeway World Heritage Site Visitors' Centre. About 750,000 people visit it every year and in 2008, it was nominated as one of the world's seven natural wonders as the C
27/01/2011
Local Fianna Fáil TD Margaret Conlon has welcomed confirmation that nearly €30 million is to be invested in improving the road network across Cavan and Monaghan. The Minister for Transport Pat Carey TD has announced that Cavan County Council will be granted €20.4 million to improve national primary
27/01/2011
Green Works, the free education programme for jobseekers, has announced dates for more than 50 new courses taking place across Ireland in 2011. The courses, which focus on opportunities within the emergent Green Economy, will take place in the Green Works Hubs in Dublin, Cork, Sligo and Tipperary
27/01/2011
Trench Control, a piling contractor and supplier of ground support equipment for hire, has been selected to install in excess of 140 sheet piles on Merchant Quay in Waterford City. Some of the sheet piles will be in excess of 30m long and the work is part of the ongoing flood alleviation works in th
27/01/2011
Trade and other vocational qualifications were in the spotlight this week as the regulator of general and vocational qualifications in England and Northern Ireland met for a discussion with the Stormont Employment and Learning Minister, Danny Kennedy. The Ulster Unionist Minister welcomed the Board
27/01/2011
Fifty craftspeople and artists have been supported by their local Enterprise Board at this week’s Showcase event in the RDS. Artists, craftspeople and designers from eighteen County and City Enterprise Board areas meet international buyers at the balcony area at Showcase this year, representing a
26/01/2011
Sixteen key recommendations and 59 best practise recommendations have been made after an investigation into the Northern Ireland Housing Executive was undertaken. An oversight group is to ensure recommendations made by the report are implemented after the Stormont Social Development Minister Alex A
26/01/2011
About 100 people attended a public meeting in Derry on Monday night to discuss a planned radiotherapy unit at the North's Altnagelvin Hospital - which saw the Stormont Health Minister Michael McGimpsey criticised after reports that he has funds to build the centre - but not to staff it. The propose
26/01/2011
Ennis Town Council has entered into a contract with Sports Surfaces Ireland Ltd. T/A Total Play Solutions for the provision of playground facilities at Tim Smythe Park in Ennis. Work on the €209,000 project is scheduled for completion by the June Bank Holiday weekend. Welcoming the construction of
26/01/2011
Three architects from the WISH-team have spent over six months in Ireland in 2010 looking at what they came to term Shadowlands - empty spaces, half finished building sites and neighbourhoods. This exhibition is a photographic record of what they found in the greater Dublin area, in particular the e
26/01/2011
Trinity College Dublin has appointed Healy Kelly Turner & Townsend as Project Manager and Project Supervisor Design Process (PSDP) for the delivery the €50m South East Corner Development. When complete the development will provide more than 15,000m² of accommodation including an iconic building tha
26/01/2011
A new path has transformed a previously overgrown wasteland and inaccessible riverbank into an attractive link route connecting local residents to a Co Tyrone town centre. The Social Development Minister Alex Attwood today travelled to Omagh and donned his walking gear to open the new 'Riverside W
25/01/2011
Building activity and those behind commercial developments are being stymied right across NI because of delays in the planning approval stages. One public inquiry into two major retail developments planned for Newtownards is facing an indefinite delay while it has also been revealed that of five la
25/01/2011
Ireland's Transport Minister Pat Carey has announced that €866.96 million will be invested in the National Roads Programme in 2011. At the beginning of each year the Transport Department makes the figures available. The figures for the Regional and Local Roads Programme will be released later. Acc
25/01/2011
Social Development Minister Alex Attwood has announced the launch of a draft masterplan for Magherafelt town centre. The purpose of the masterplan is to provide strategic guidance for the regeneration and development of the town centre over the next 15 years. Proposals include: * new paving,
25/01/2011
Tanaiste and Education Minister Mary Coughlan has announced details of the School Building Programme for the Department of Education and Skills for 2011. The announcement also includes plans for the establishment of nine new post primary schools which will open between 2012 and 2016. According to
25/01/2011
NI's Minister for Social Development, Alex Attwood and Minister for Health, Social Services and Public Safety, Michael McGimpsey, have officially opened a new £1.3million supported housing scheme in Portadown. Locke House will provide accommodation for individuals with severe and enduring mental i
25/01/2011
Although he previously stepped aside temporarily from his post as the NI Policing Board Chairman - as police investigated allegations of wrongful practice - Big Picture Developments Ltd director Barry Gilligan has been given the go-ahead to build apartments at a controversial Nelson Street site in t
24/01/2011
A new politician has been put in charge of the Irish Department of the Environment - which regulates environmental protection and conserves the natural heritage. The Irish Taoiseach has assigned Environment and also Communications after multiple resignations from his Cabinet and in the wake of the
24/01/2011
NI's construction sector is being urged to participate in a forthcoming waste study Stormont Environment Minister Edwin Poots today urged businesses to participate in a study to improve the sustainability of the construction sector in Northern Ireland. The aim of the study, commissioned by the Dep
24/01/2011
A multi-million pound investment by leading supermarket chain, Tesco has created their largest store in Northern Ireland employing a total of 377 people - and offering a 'greener' construction plan that will reduce energy consumption. The Stormont First Minister Peter Robinson MLA, was at the openi
24/01/2011
Those who have invested in property have been handed good news with an apparent reprieve in the forthcoming Finance Bill. It said that the restriction of section 23-type tax relief is being postponed until at least 2012. Landlords have been lobbying hard since the phased abolition of property-base
24/01/2011
'Villagers' in part of west Belfast are to have a say on how their area is developed through a special consultation process to draft up a Village Plan. Residents and stakeholders in Hannahstown will soon be able to contribute to upcoming 'workshop' sessions to develop a plan for Hannahstown Under
24/01/2011
Innovative used plant and equipment auction website
21/01/2011
A decision on the contentious Corrib gas pipeline is to be made within weeks - with the possibility of a huge fillip for the building trade if approved. The Minister for Energy Eamon Ryan is expected to issue a decision shortly on Shell E&P Ireland's application to construct the last section of the
21/01/2011
A new catering facility is on the way for Co Mayo with a restaurant development planned for Ballina. Builders will enjoy a modest fillip when the expanded development is approved as it consists of the construction of a mixed-use building, which will form an extension to a building previously grante
21/01/2011
Further investment in Northern Ireland's schools' estate is vital to the future. The Stormont Education Minister, Caitríona Ruane, has cut the first sod to commence the new-build project for St Joseph's Primary School, Madden, Armagh and she used the opportunity to explain cutbacks to the Stromont
21/01/2011
Northern Ireland's Social Development Minister, Alex Attwood has officially launched the start of building work at a £2m housing scheme in the nationalist Markets area of south Belfast. The development of 16 two bedroom apartments at Stewart Street, on the site of the former NI Housing Executive di
21/01/2011
A major school re-construction scheme on the outskirts of east Belfast has received a political shot-in-the-arm. DUP Leader and First Minister Peter Robinson visited Lagan College to meet with staff and pupils at the school and to receive an update on their progress towards a new school building.
21/01/2011
March this year has been pencilled in as a start date for a £3m social housing development in Co Tyrone. Detailed plans were formally submitted to Dungannon Council by Apex Housing Association in the early part of January. This is a bid for the construction of a housing development at Granville Ro
20/01/2011
The amount of reconstruction work needed to assure the provision of water supplies and to repair damaged Irish roads after the Christmas and New Year 'Big Freeze' are being investigated by Oireachtas Committee. The impact and response of both city and county councils to the effects of the recent ex
20/01/2011
Ireland's Enterprise Minister Batt O'Keeffe has announced that 150 permanent jobs are to be created by the setting up of an international shared services centre in Cork city. Leading US firm Quest Software will build the centre creating the new jobs in the cosntruction sector and then the 150 jobs
20/01/2011
The Irish Environment Minister John Gormley has this week carried out the stone laying ceremony to make the latest Co-operative Housing development at Gloucester Street, Dublin 2. The corner stone ceremony also involved Niall O'Keeffe Chief Executive NABCo, Declan Hudson, Chairman and Joe O' Flynn,
20/01/2011
The shelving of a proposed new Lagan Valley sports centre in Lisburn and the dropping of a project to build an Elite Basketball facility at the Laurelhill Sports Zone and the elite Tennis centre at Hillsborough have been slammed. The two projects are among five state-of-the-art sports centres that
20/01/2011
The Irish Republic's Oireachtas Transport Committee is to hold public hearings next month into a contentious cross-border road construction project. The route would be Ireland's longest new road, replacing much of the N2 in the Irish Republic and the A5 in Northern Ireland and would be part-finance
20/01/2011
A new association is being formed today aimed at expanding the use of renewable energy sources, such as wind power. The Northern Ireland Renewable Industry Group (NIRIG), which represents the collective voices of Irish Wind Energy Association (IWEA) and RenewableUK in Northern Ireland, was official
19/01/2011
The solution to chaotic water problems such as those suffered over the Christmas and New Year period lies within the gift of the NI Executive. According to the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) NI's beleaguered water infrastructure could be upgraded by using the £1bn being spent on NI
19/01/2011
Detailed plans were submitted in early January to Donegal County Council by German food retailer Lidl Ireland for the construction of a single storey extension to the existing licensed retail discount food store at Forquar, Milford, Letterkenny, Co Donegal. The works will measure approximately 133.
19/01/2011
The long road towards an upgraded route from Belfast to the port of Larne via Newtownabbey is finally progressing. The Stormont Regional Development Minister Conor Murphy has announced the publication of the draft Statutory Orders and Environmental Statement for the 14.4km A8 Belfast to Larne Duall
19/01/2011
Almost 100 new homes are to be built in Waterford - bucking the recessionary trend. Although a third party appeal was submitted against the plans by Dermot Fitzpatrick Building Contractors for the construction of a mixed use development at Prospect Lodge and Grounds, Gracedieu Road, Waterford, An B
19/01/2011
Expanding industrial services group Pyeroy has acquired the Cork-based electrical instrumentation and data communications engineering contractors, CEI, for an undisclosed sum. The move will see Pyeroy integrate CEI’s expertise and team of skilled industrial contractors into its own operations, enab
19/01/2011
Sufferers of some asbestos-related conditions are a step closer to accessing compensation following a debate in the Assembly yesterday evening. The NI Finance Minister Sammy Wilson believes the proposed legislation is vital in providing assistance to those who have suffered wrong, mostly those who
18/01/2011
Brian Cowen has described the decision by the Intel Corporation to invest $500 million at its Leixlip facility as a "great vote of confidence in both the Republic of Ireland's economy and in the quality of its Irish workforce". According to the Taoiseach, the investment will create 850 construction
18/01/2011
There's to be two new emergency services bases in Co Tipperary with news of the construction of a single-storey ambulance base adjacent to the Community Hospital of the Assumption, Leugh Road, Thurles, Co. Tipperary and another in Nenagh. Detail plans were approved by Thurles Town Council for the H
18/01/2011
Country areas of NI are to benefit with news of a further £2m investment in rural broadband through the Next Generation Broadband Network. Agriculture & Rural Development Minister Michelle Gildernew announced that the project involves the introduction of new technology to increase broadband speeds
18/01/2011
The main contractor has been appointed for the works involved in the construction of car parking alterations at Causeway Hospital and Antrim Area Hospital, Antrim. The contractor is FP McCann Ltd, of Magherafelt, Co Londonderry who will work on the Paid Car Parking Schemes & Alterations scheme. A
18/01/2011
A local building sector company has secured its first business in the Netherlands for a highly innovative PVC flooring system. Unicorn Mouldings, which has manufacturing plants in Lisburn and Markethill, was assisted by Invest Northern Ireland to take part in an export development initiative in the
18/01/2011
A former top executive in the steel industry has been appointed to Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland as its new Chairman. NI Enterprise Minister Arlene Foster has announced the appointment of George Lucas as Chairman to the Board for three years, effective from 1 April 2011. Comment
17/01/2011
Homeowners across Ireland are facing a hike in mortgage rates. Permanent TSB is planning to increase its variable rate by ½% to 4%, according to reports. Karl Deeiter, operations manager with Irish Mortgage Brokers, said: "In the past it has tended that one institutional move, and then all of the
17/01/2011
Last month's record low temperatures served to 'freeze' much of Ireland's construction activity as it decreased at its fastest rate in almost two years. Last month, according to the Ulster Bank Construction Purchasing Managers' Index, civil engineering across the whole of Ireland - north and south
17/01/2011
Tenders are now being invited for the demolition of part of the existing school comprising a 1920s building and link corridor at St Patricks National School, Corranagh, Letterkenny, Co. Donegal. The approved plans include the construction of a new two-storey extension to comprise five classrooms, a
17/01/2011
The only certified employers organisation for the construction industry based in Northern Ireland has revealed worrying news on the state of the regional industry as the New Year progresses. The Construction Employers Federation (CEF) has this week published its State of Trade results for the third
17/01/2011
A public meeting is being held in west Belfast, to discuss plans for the landmark sculpture being erected on the Broadway roundabout. RISE will be the biggest public art work in Belfast - a globe-shaped white and silver aluminium sculpture, standing at 123 feet (37.5 metres) high by 98.4 feet (30 m
17/01/2011
A Co Tyrone Company was fined £12,500 plus £37 court costs at Omagh Magistrates' Court last week. McAnenly Quarries Ltd, of Spring Road, Drumnakilly, Carrickmore, Co Tyrone was fined for making a polluting discharge to a waterway. On 30 January 2009, following a report of pollution, a Water Qualit
14/01/2011
Building work on the contentious Poolbeg incinerator is set to restart by the end of April, almost one year since work on the facility was stopped. However, legislation setting heavy levies on incineration is planned for publication by the Irish Department of the Environment and could threaten the
14/01/2011
Despite some of the most austere financial circumstances yet endured in NI, the construction industry is to get a substantial fillip with news of a new Agriculture and Rural Development HQ. The Minister for Agriculture and Rural Development, (DARD) Michelle Gildernew has announced her Department's
14/01/2011
The Stormont Education Minister has revealed that new school builds will be the main casualty in a bid to save hundreds of millions of pounds. Sinn Fein's Caitriona Ruane intends to shift £41m from the school building "capital" budget to pay instead for services and staffing. The plans are outline
14/01/2011
Plans for the rebuilding of an existing petrol forecourt have been submitted to Cork County Council for the construction of a mixed-use development at Tullyneasky West, Knockaphonery and Tulligee, Lisavaird, Clonakilty, Co Cork. The imaginative scheme involves an element of Irish heritage too as
14/01/2011
The once world-famous Gobbins Path - a partly suspended Victorian era sea walkway - is to be restored to its former glory - with a boost for both the beleaguered building sector and for more long-term employment when completed. The NI Enterprise Minister Arlene Foster has confirmed support for a mu
14/01/2011
Galway City Council has been considering a fresh bid for the construction of a new guesthouse building at Kingshill, Salthill Road Upper, Galway. The new development will consist of a 1,571 square metres of guesthouse building accommodation and will be composed of three-storeys over basement with a
13/01/2011
An appeal against a planned supermarket project in Co Galway has been dismissed by the Irish planning body, which has now given the green light for construction. Joyces Supermarket Ltd has successfully bid for the building of a mixed use development at Headford, Co Galway, now that An Bord Pleanal
13/01/2011
Detailed plans were submitted recently to Ennis Town Council for the demolition of all structures on a site in the town to allow for the construction of a public plaza facing onto the Limerick Road. Once built, this will include both soft and hard landscaping, a retail development including a food
13/01/2011
The Stormont Environment Minister Edwin Poots has this week chaired the first meeting of a new Planning Forum as he continues to press forward with his programme for planning reform. Speaking at the launch of the forum in Parliament Buildings, Mr Poots said: "I committed to setting up and chairing
13/01/2011
A group of students from St Patrick's College, Ballymena have been the first to be involved in an integrated pilot programme for vocational education and communication sponsored by CITB-ConstructionSkills Northern Ireland and delivered by Northern Regional College (NRC). The students have been stud
13/01/2011
The Stormont Social Development Minister, Alex Attwood has launched new family homes at Cedar Avenue in North Belfast. The former crèche, with the addition of new building to the rear, has been transformed into five modern apartments by Ulidia Housing Association, with grant assistance from the Dep
13/01/2011
Ballymena builders, the Patton Group, Belfast's Grosvenor Grammar School and the Ulster Orchestra have teamed up for a creative music project to mark Patton Group's recently completed new building project at the east Belfast school. Foundation was a music composition project made possible by the Ar
12/01/2011
There's good news after a modest jobs fillip for Co Galway with news that the recent re-branding of the former Marriott Courtyard Hotel in Galway to become the Pillo Hotel & Spa has secured the employment for all the 55 staff at the four star hotel The hotel's development has given a major vote of
12/01/2011
Construction work on a long-awaited police training college will finally begin next year, the NI Department of Justice has said. It emerged yesterday that the £140m college - that was one of the police reforms recommended in the Patten report almost ten years ago - is to be built on a 210-acre site
12/01/2011
Students will soon be 'falling-in' if detailed plans for a former Irish Army barracks just approved by Monaghan County Council come to fruition. County Monaghan councillors approved the plans in mid December for the development of an educational facility at the former barracks, Armagh Road, Knockac
12/01/2011
Primary schools across NI are being invited to test their creative skills with the chance to win a professionally designed and installed outside space for their school worth up to £10,000. One of NI's leading concrete products manufacturer Acheson & Glover has joined together with the Landscape Cen
12/01/2011
A popular residential area of Co Antrim is to get a housing boost as a proposed housing scheme and associated relief road for Ballyclare are approved. Stormont Environment Minister Edwin Poots has announced planning approval for a £20m relief road and housing scheme for the town of Ballyclare. The
12/01/2011
Action has been taken against the owners of Holywood's "ugliest building". North Down Alliance Councillor Andrew Muir has commended the local Council for implementing a notice in relation to the Old Moffett's building on Downshire Road which most people now regard as Holywood's greatest eyesore. C
11/01/2011
Australian renewables developer Carnegie Wave Energy has agreed a deal with the Irish government to explore potential sites for marine energy installations around the country's coastline. Carnegie's Irish subsidiary, CETO Wave Energy Ireland, signed a formal funding agreement for the €150,000 (£125
11/01/2011
Ards town is to get a new retailing boost with the construction industry enjoying a fillip along the way. A proposal for a multi-million pound mixed-use retail scheme in Newtownards, Co Down was submitted to the Planning Service in late December 2010. If approved, the planned development will enc
11/01/2011
The Tánaiste and Minister for Education and Skills, Mary Coughlan, has approved funding to Letterkenny Institute of Technology (LYIT) to purchase two separate parcels of land to allow for the future growth and expansion of the Institute. Announcing the move on a visit to the Institute, the Tánaiste
11/01/2011
The Craigavon area of Co Armagh is set to benefit from a new 'one stop shop' which will assist members of the public with rating, valuation, land registration and mapping related services. Land & Property Services (LPS) is developing the Craigavon Customer Information Centre, which will be based at
11/01/2011
A £1.3m scheme to halt flooding in Coleraine's town centre is to get under way in late January, 2011. The Rivers Agency scheme, which will involve new flood alleviation works as well as upgrading existing drainage infrastructure. Environmental and fishery works will also be included and the scheme
11/01/2011
Enterprise Minister Arlene Foster has officially opened Label One’s new state-of-the-art premises in Belfast. The new factory, based in Invest Northern Ireland's Ballygomartin Industrial Estate, is the result of a £1.6million investment supported by Invest NI and the European Regional Development F
10/01/2011
Ambitious plans have been lodged with Limerick County Council to construct a 50-bedroom hotel at the Unicorn bar in Dooradoyle, Co. Limerick. According to detailed proposals, permission for a hotel development with underground is being sought for the €4 million proposals will see two houses curren
10/01/2011
The Irish Department of the Environment has allocated €540,000 for realignment and widening of First Sea Road in Sligo. The announcement was made at the December monthly meeting of Sligo Borough Council, but it is not yet known when work will commence. Also in the news is the controversial Easter
10/01/2011
There has been a fresh call for an independent investigation into how official housing bodies dealt with the recent adverse weather conditions. The Sinn Fein Housing Spokesperson Fra McCann MLA has called on the Stormont Social Development Minister, Alex Attwood to undertake a probe. Speaking from
10/01/2011
NI Water (NIW) was fined £750 plus court costs of £31 at Craigavon Magistrates' Court this week for making a polluting discharge to a waterway. As if the beleaguered quango hasn't enough problems with the fall-out from the Big Freeze and thaw 'shambles' it emerged in court that on 22 April 2009, wa
10/01/2011
The Lakeland County is to get a funding boost with news that the NI Social Development Minister Alex Attwood has just announced a £19,000 funding boost for environmental improvements in Enniskillen. The funding, from his Department's Neighbourhood Renewal Investment fund, will help upgrade boundary
07/01/2011
Ireland's planning board is expected to rule shortly on a bid by chemist businesses in Killarney, Co Kerry to overturn acceptance of a major medical centre project as unfair competition. They are asking An Bord Pleanála to rule on whether the town council's decision to allow a major medical centre
07/01/2011
The NI Housing Executive (NIHE) has some serious questions to answer about the impact of the recent thaw on the properties it owns. That's according to Strangford DUP MLA Simon Hamilton who is Chair of the Assembly's Social Development Committee who said that the fact that nearly one quarter of all
07/01/2011
As the Stormont Regional Development Minister claimed last night that he has been assured measures are in place to ensure there is no repeat of the water crisis fiasco, the NI Executive has agreed to appoint two people to scrutinise the role of the Department of Regional Development in the recent wa
07/01/2011
The Minister for Housing has become the second Fianna Fail TD to announce this week that he will not stand for election. Minister of State at the Department of the Environment Michael Finneran said that he made his decision after a long consultation and deliberation with his family over the Chris
07/01/2011
Grafton Group, the builders merchants and DIY group with operations in the UK and Ireland, announced an increase in sales for the year ended 31 December 2010. After a reduction in sales in the first quarter the following three quarters each showed modest growth. Group turnover to the end of Decembe
07/01/2011
For the seventh time TROLLULL/Oscar Weil will be exhibiting at the TotallyDIY Show. TROLLULL/Oscar Weil has been a manufacturer of steel wool products for more than 100 years. The history of the company is marked by a long series of new products that have shaped the steel wool market. Due to unsu
06/01/2011
An application by Endesa Ireland, part of the Spanish energy company, to build a combined-cycle gas turbine power plant on the former ESB station at Tarbert, Co Kerry has been given the go-ahead. An Bord Pleanála has approved the power plant, which will generate up to 450 megawatts by 2016, is to b
06/01/2011
Most of the newly unemployed people in the Irish Republic this New Year had held occupations in 'craft and related' and 'plant and machine operatives', and the vast majority were men, all factors indicating that the construction industry was badly affected by the job losses. Fresh Government stat
06/01/2011
The predicted return of wintry weather has seen increased activity from NI's Road Service. Stormont Regional Development Minister, Conor Murphy said: "With a forecast for another cold period with a high probability of snow on Friday, motorists are advised to plan their journeys and check the lates
06/01/2011
WindowMaster is supplying an automated window control system for six new motorway service stations in the Republic of Ireland. The control system is based on WindowMaster's MotorLink technology and includes actuators and controls. It is designed to control the façade windows in each of the new serv
06/01/2011
As the man at the helm of Northern Ireland Water (NIW) resigned his post last night, attention has focused on the former Chief Executive's severance package - and the Minister responsible's own future. Laurence MacKenzie resigned on Wednesday following criticism of the handling of the water crisis
06/01/2011
It's 'waste not, want not' as two leading recycling companies have joined forces in a deal they claim will ease pressure on Ireland's landfill sites - and potentially save companies £10,000 a year in waste charges. Tyrone-based Envirogreen Recycling claims its new partnership with Dublin-based Anco
05/01/2011
The Irish planning authority, An Bord Pleanála has controversially deferred its decision on one of the last stages of the huge Corrib gas project. A final decision on the third pipeline route, submitted by Shell under the Strategic Infrastructure Act, was anticapated but has now been delayed after
05/01/2011
Over 1,500 companies were declared insolvent during 2010 according to the statistics complied by insolvencyjournal.ie. As the recession continues to hit Irish companies hard the increase of over 8% on the 2009 figure is very much in line with insolvencyjournal.ie predictions at the start of the ye
05/01/2011
As Belfast City Council continued to make small quantities of bottled water available to residents who may still not have been reconnected to their mains supply, speculation mounted over the future of the NI Water boss today - as calls continued for the resignation of the Stormont Minister himself.
05/01/2011
Residents in Co Londonderry have slammed likely approval of an already controversial plan for a 'super dump' in Macosquin. The Stormont Environment Minister Edwin Poots has indicated he will approve the plans without a public inquiry despite almost 2,000 objections to the Cam Road scheme on foot of
05/01/2011
Cork South Central Fianna Fáil T.D. Michael McGrath has encouraged schools in Cork City and County to apply now for funding under the Summer Works Scheme 2011. The purpose of the scheme is to devolve funding from the Department of Education & Skills to individual schools to undertake small-scale bu
05/01/2011
The value of Irish Exports were the highest ever recorded last year, reaching an unprecedented €161 billion. The Irish Exporters Association's (IEA) end of year review for 2010 said that overall exports of goods and services grew by 6.7% during the year, with the largest increase in the manufactur
04/01/2011
Property prices fell 3.2% in the fourth quarter of 2010, bringing the fall for the year to 13.1%, according to the latest Property Barometer issued by leading property website, MyHome.ie. The latest fall brings the total decline from the peak of the market in late 2006 to 34.6%. Based on average m
04/01/2011
A €60 million regeneration of Dublin City Council flat complexes at O'Devaney Gardens and Dominick Street have been lodged with An Bord Pleanála. The dilapidated estates were two of five schemes in the city, which were to have been redeveloped under a public-private partnership (PPP) deal between a
04/01/2011
Building Magazine has listed Mivan as eighth in the UK's top Fit-out Specialists category, a jump of four places from last year. In an article published by Building on 19 November, the County Antrim based firm's success in the luxury residential sector was highlighted. The publication paid partic
04/01/2011
Sinn Fein MLA and Housing Spokesperson Fra McCann has called for an urgent meeting with the Social Development Minister Alex Atwood to deal with NI Housing Executive repairs. Mr McCann stated: "Over the past ten days we have seen a complete inability of the Housing Executive to deal with repairs to
04/01/2011
Dublin's water supply will continue to affected by cut offs and rotations over the next few days as the council tries to bring the situation under control. In a statement issued yesterday, the council said restrictions will have to continue to ensure that drinking water storage levels return to no
04/01/2011
North Down Alliance Councillor Andrew Muir is concerned after learning that demolition of the flats at West Green, Holywood has been put back until March 2011. Commenting on the issue of the Co Down complex, Cllr Muir stated: "After making enquiries to ascertain the definite timescale for demolitio
