Kirby Manufacturing Facility Visit
This is an opportunity to visit Kirby Group Manufacturing Facility, founded in 1964 in Limerick, Kirby Group Engineering is a leading mechanical and electrical engineering contractor operating across Ireland, the UK and mainland Europe, and directly employing over 1,900 highly-skilled professionals.
Kirby provides full mechanical and electrical contracting services as well as specialist high voltage (HV) and medium voltage (MV) design and construction services to clients across a number of different sectors including Data Centres, Life Sciences, Industrial, and Power and Renewables.
Advanced Digital Design and Offsite Manufacturing of M&E Modules: The Kirby Group Engineering Way
The latest Skillnet MMC Accelerate Business Support Event brought attendees back to the Midlands (following the platform launch and other events in 2025), with Portlaoise, Co. Laois, home to Kirby Group Engineering’s new offsite manufacturing facility. Attendees from the building industry, the Laois County Council, and education providers nationwide attended for expert presentations, a guided facility tour, and networking with likeminded advocates for Modern Methods of Construction (MMC).
Presentations were delivered by: Kirby’s Mikey Ryan, Group Operations Director, and Mark Danaher, Digital Construction & IT Director; Adrian Furey, Vice-President of Global Supply Chain & Operations at Dexcom; and Orla Gilroy, Project Manager for Skillnet MMC Accelerate. Dr. Alan Hore, Director of CitA and Co-Lead of Skillnet MMC Accelerate, chaired the presentations and Q&A session.
Dr. Alan Hore got the event started with a short address on the importance of upskilling in MMC. Orla Gilroy later expanded on this point with details on the dual objectives of the Skillnet MMC Accelerate Initiative: to manage a national platform supporting upskilling in the construction industry, and host business support events with Irish MMC companies to showcase the potential of MMC through skills development.
Mikey Ryan delivered the first presentation with an overview of Kirby’s history and operations. He focused heavily on Kirby’s investment in people, with 2,000+ people directly employed by the mechanical and engineering (M&E) firm. He discussed the training and skills development at Kirby, which includes management development, continuous professional development, and graduate and apprenticeship programmes. He also discussed the company's M&E capabilities as a contractor on large-scale engineering projects across Europe.
“Kirby is a values-driven business. We put people first, which is why People is our primary core value, followed by Safety, Quality, Delivery, and Value.”
Group Operations Director at Kirby
Mark Danaher followed with an address on the operational processes at Kirby’s offsite manufacturing facility, and how in-house department of 100 3D Detailers, MEP Prefabrication Coordinators, and Piping Detailers enables collaboration throughout the project lifecycle. Mark also talked about the integration of digital design and coordination tools into this offsite manufacturing capability.
“We have a three-year plan for digital technologies adoption. Year One is the Digitisation of back-of-house functions and AI research. Year Two is the Digitalisation of business processes, and employee training in that area. Year Three is Digital Transformation – creating a ‘digital warehouse’ and using machine learning to corroborate data accuracy. By this point, we want to be able to use AI to actively support decisions, automate work, and predict outcomes.”
Digital Construction & IT Director at Kirby
Adrian Furey finalised the speaker lineup, covering Dexcom’s recent development Kirby supported with offsite manufacturing. The multinational healthcare company was expanding its production of continuous glucose monitoring systems in Ireland, opting for a greenfield site in Athenry, Co. Galway. With John Paul Construction as main contractor, Kirby was tasked with providing prefabricated HVAC and mechanical installations at the Athenry site. Given the number of teams onsite during the project and the tight timelines, Adrian highlighted the advantages of offsite manufacturing in reducing onsite complexity. Kirby’s efficient assembly and installation of the prefabricated units onsite also ensured the project progressed on-time and to budget.
After the close of presentations, the audience joined the speakers in a lively Q&A, discussing the operational challenges and opportunities of expanding operations from Ireland to outside markets, and the increasing importance of sustainability in tendering and completing projects involving M&E manufacturing and installation.
To conclude this stimulating Business Support Event, attendees were treated to a guided tour of Kirby’s offsite manufacturing facility and a technical demonstration of the advanced technologies used by the Kirby team within the facility and onsite.