A helping hand
November 30, 2009
Boyne Waste is a great benefactor of Meath GAA. The company is always prepared to do its bit to assist local clubs and competitions, as was evidenced in '09 when it sponsored the Duleek-Bellewstown club as well as the county junior 'C' football championship. 'Royal County 2009' dropped into the Beaupark depot for a chat with director Terry Kearns.
Since its inception, Boyne Waste has contributed enormously to the local community, not just financially (in terms of boosting the economy) and environmentally (through the services it provides) but also on a more personal, social level - by providing much-needed backing to local sporting bodies and events. The company is a big supporter of Royal County GAA and this was evident once more in 2009 as the name 'Boyne Waste' was synonymous with Duleek-Bellewstown GFC and also with the county 'C' JFC.
Terry Kearns, Tom Waters and Fintan McGeogh are equal partners in this successful Navan-headquartered business. The three directors have overseen the continuous development and progression of Boyne Waste since its inception in April 2006 and today head up an operation that's holding its own in treacherous economic waters.
As a leading liquid waste management company, Boyne Waste's core specialist areas include: the bulk haulage of liquid sludge from commercial and private sites; jetting sewer lines and CCTV surveying; pipe repairs; the removal of intrusions; the cleaning of oil interceptors and grease traps.
A nationwide service is provided and the founders operate a fleet of twelve trucks and four vans, providing gainful employment to a professional, fully-trained crew of 17 personnel. Terry is delighted to report that business is generally ticking over pretty well, despite the overall downturn in the economy:
"Business is still okay, thankfully," he notes. "Obviously, rates have dropped across the board, but that's the way things are. We're kept going. We always ran a tight ship and that has stood to us now. You have to be very competitive and efficient to survive in the present climate and we have always been competitive.
"We also have excellent staff and we're lucky in that regard. To be honest, I don't know where we'd be only for them. At the end of the day, it's the staff who keep the whole thing going and they do a great job. The workers are our greatest asset. We provide a 24-hour service, seven days a week, 52 weeks of the year - and the staff are a big part of that. We couldn't do it without them."
All three directors of the company are keen GAA supporters. Tom Waters is involved with the St Mary's club and is a former player. Fintan McGeogh and Terry Kearns both support Meath and all three partners are happy to provide some sponsorship to local GAA. In 2009, Boyne Waste was the official sponsor of the Meath junior 'C football championship. Fourteen teams were divided into two groups of five and two groups of four, with the top two from each section progressing to the quarter-finals. The final was played in early October and St Colmcilles beat St Peter's, Dunboyne by 2-9 to 1-3.
"The sponsorship went very well and we were delighted to do it," says Terry, whose dad Richard and uncle Larry would have played some football with Slane in the past. "We're hoping to run with it again next year. It's always nice to do something to help out and we have no problem with it."
Boyne Waste proved to have a bit of a Midas touch when the Duleek-Bellewstown team they sponsored went on to win the 2009 Meath junior 'B' football championship, beating Dunshaughlin in a thrilling replayed county final by 1-9 to 1-8. It was a lovely win for the club and, needless to say, Terry and co. were glad to be on board. They've also helped out with sponsorships of other teams and events over the years and regularly take out advertisements and banners to support Meath GAA. Last year, they also acted as official sponsor to the Seneschalstown ladies, who enjoyed tremendous success.
"We've sponsored a few teams alright," Terry concedes. "We try to help out with a bit of sponsorship any time we can. We'd all have a good interest in the GAA and sport in general, and the staff here would be big supporters too, so it's nice to have the company name involved in something like that. We like to think the bit of support makes a difference."
As a keen supporter of the Meath football team, Terry was a bit unfortunate last August when the Royals took their place against Kerry at the semi-final stage of the All-Ireland SFC. Meath had battled gallantly through the back door after losing to Dublin in Leinster and - against all odds - Eamonn O'Brien's charges squared up to the Kingdom at Croke Park for a place in the Sam Maguire decider against Cork. Terry was looking forward to the big showdown on Jones' Road, but other duties meant he was unable to make it ultimately:
"I had my tickets and everything bought for the match and then I was called out on a job at the last minute. That's the way it goes when you're in business. The work has to come first. I'd love to have been at Croke Park that day to lend my support but Boyne Waste's customers come first and I managed to get rid of my tickets. They had a good run to get that far and hopefully they will continue to improve in 2010."
With Meath football seemingly on an upward curve, the signs are encouraging that Boyne Waste is also heading in the right direction. "We're actually intending to expand both the fleet and the workforce," says Terry. "We're providing a specialist service and we're gradually creeping into more and more counties. We're growing every year and we're very busy at the moment, so fingers crossed…
"We purchased three new lorries in 2009 and we have two new ones on order for 2010. We had just two trucks and one van when we started off in 2006, but we have grown steadily since then and we feel we can build it up some more."
As for the secret of success, the Boyne Waste director concludes: "It's all based on quality service. Simple as that really. We get no complaints and we have very good relations with all our customers. Because we give such a high quality of service, we have a reputation for doing the work correctly. And your reputation is everything in our line of business."
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