Cavan-based construction firm P Elliott & Company's commitment to health and safety issues was recognised at the end of last year when it received two major awards. Health & Safety Manager Glynn McKenna explains more. Leading national construction and property development firm P Elliott & Company once again excelled itself in the areas of health and safety in 2007, being honoured with Safe-T-Cert and NISO/NISG awards. Both awards were fitting recognition of the work the company has put into its health and safety systems in recent years. P Elliott & Company's Health and Safety Manager Glynn McKenna was understandably delighted with the firm's success, pointing out that it has been adhering to the highest health and safety standards for nearly 20 years. "Our motto is 'Safety Starts with You', and this is something that has obviously worked well for us," he says. "Health and safety has been a big issue within the company since legislation came into effect in 1989. The legislation coincided with the start of the building boom and since then we have recognised the importance of having a good health and safety record. We have also recognised that it plays a big part in the company's ongoing success." Glynn was in Dublin last December to receive the prestigious Safe-T-Cert from Labour Affairs Minister Billy Kelleher TD. At the awards ceremony, Aidan Burke of the Construction Industry Federation (CIF) outlined the importance of occupational safety and management systems, across all segments of the economy. He noted that the construction industry has been one of the first to recognise this importance and has invested heavily in the development of the Safe-T-Cert awards. Safe-T-Cert is an independent scheme which verifies and validates a contractor's safety management system. Burke added: "Safe-T-Cert is rapidly becoming the occupational management system for the construction sector. It sets out best practice implementation procedures for the management of on-site health and safety, and its award is a sign of investment in and commitment to successful health and safety management." The Safe-T-Cert system assures the client that companies have an effective safety and health management system. They also have third party support for pre-qualifications and selection for contractors. Some insurance companies look more favourably on contractors who have taken a pro-active approach to risk management as demonstrated through the achievement of Safe-T-Cert certification. In October, P Elliott & Company received an NISO/NISG Certificate of Merit for the third year running. NISO (National Irish Safety Organisation) is a voluntary body dedicated to the promotion of health and safety in Irish workplaces. NISG (Northern Ireland Safety Group) fulfils a similar role north of the border, and the Certificate of Merit is recognition for companies who are pushing boundaries in health and safety. P Elliott & Company's commitment to health and safety procedures is highlighted by the fact that it has increased its number of health and safety officers from two to 16 in the past few years. "Our procedures are above and aboard health and safety standards," Glynn proudly says. P Elliott & Company was founded in 1942 by the late Patrick and Alice Elliott, grandparents of the current owners. The company has grown into one of the largest and most successful construction firms in Ireland. It is currently ranked as one of the Top 5 Irish construction companies and the largest in the province of Ulster. With a turnover of EUR310 million in 2006 and a directly employed staff over 470, as well as hundreds more sub-contractors, P Elliott & Company is well positioned for continued growth. The firm is involved in medium-to-large scale construction and development projects nationwide across the commercial, industrial, retail, leisure and public sectors, co-ordinated from four offices throughout Ireland. Central to the success of the organisation is the talent, vision and commitment of the highly qualified management and technical people who choose a career with P Elliott & Company. The company operated almost exclusively as a building contracting firm until the early 1980s when it successfully branched into the field of general property development, starting off with residential and industrial developments. P Elliott & Company's headquarters is a 35,000 sq ft purpose built premises at Century Business Park, Dublin Road, Cavan. The firm has regional officers in Dublin and Nenagh, Co. Tipperary, while its Northern Ireland office is located in Belfast. The company is also currently in the process of opening a Cork-based office in order to further service the southern region. Having acquired the Homemakers Builders Providers business at Dublin Road, Cavan in January 2006, P Elliott & Company's new Super Store is now open for business. The business has always had a close association with the Elliott family, and is set to benefit from the obvious synergies with the company's core business. P Elliott & Company is proud of its strong links with the GAA with Noel (junior), Mark and Darragh Elliott all immersed in the local football scene in Cavan. The company's chief executive, Donegal native Dave Mackey, is a member of the Croke Park Executive Committee, a voluntary body which was set up to deal with the day-to-day running of GAA headquarters. Dave was appointed as its first chairman in 2001 and held the position until last year when he was succeeded by his close friend and colleague, Hugh Cawley. Dave has remained a member of the Executive Committee and continues to take an active part in all of its activities. Glynn McKenna hails from Drumlish, Co. Longford and played his football with the local Fr Manning Gaels club that dominated the Longford club scene in the 1990s. He is a first cousin of former Cavan midfielder Stephen King, who famously captained the county to its most recent Ulster championship triumph in 1997 and was in charge of the Killeshandra Leaguers team that garnered junior championship and Division 3 league honours last year. Glynn is hoping both Cavan and Longford will have successful championship campaigns in 2008. "I'd love to see both counties doing well this year," he says. "They put in the same amount of work on the training pitch as the more successful counties and deserve to be rewarded for their efforts. "Cavan and Longford are very similar in that they are desperately trying to make a breakthrough in their respective provinces. I think it is crucial that Longford at least gets into a Leinster semi-final this year and I'm sure Cavan will have similar ambitions in Ulster." Tweet

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