MANUFACTURING
HICKEY FABRICATION SERVICES, Kilmacthomas,
Co Waterford. Tel: 051 295030. www.hickeyfab.com
Made to
order
Diversifyingitsmanufacturing
processintunewiththetimes,
HickeyFabricationServices
isfocusedoninvestingin
equipmentandprocedures
tocapturenewmarkets
‘Our engineers are now using
new computer packages,
whichmaketheirjobsmuch
quicker and more efficient’
Ger Hickey
N
ESTLED between the two industrial hubs of mouthalone,butHickeyrecentlyrecruitedadevelopment Hickeydoesn’texempthimselffromupskillingeither–he
Cork and Waterford, Hickey Fabrication managerandmarketingmanagertopushthingsforward. recently did a strategic management course and attended
Services’ (HFS) speciality is that every job is “We want to expand to the Dublin area and are looking at aninnovationseminarheldbyEnterpriseIrelandatCroke
bespoke, and changing times have led to a the UK market,” he says. Park last September.
diversification into the domestic market, according to In order to facilitate this expansion, he has been keep- In terms of innovation, Hickey spotted an opportunity
its founder and managing director Ger Hickey. ingacloseeyeoncosts.Inthepastfewmonths,Hickeyhas afewmonthsago,whichheexpectstobepromisinggoing
After17years’experienceinthemetalfabricationindus- found ways to reduce the company’s ESB bill by 10pc and forward: bespoke furniture manufacture blending steel
try,Hickeystartedthefirmfromasmallgarageattheback taken50pcoffitsphonebill.Healsocarriedoutanaudit and wood.
ofhishousein2001.Today,HFSoperatesfromapurpose- of his suppliers. “I went to all of our suppliers seeking the “Iworkcloselywithajoinerwhoisbasedahalfhourup
builtmanufacturingplantatKilmacthomas,CoWaterford best-possible price and changed one supplier. Familiarity the road from me. On one occasion, someone came in for
withover15,000sqftinitscutting-edgeworkshopandfab- breeds contempt and, if you find new suppliers, there’s a smallamountofsteelfor¤50,thenboughtwoodfromthe
rication space, as well as 62,000 sq feet of lay-down area. strong chance you’ll get a better deal,” he says. joiner for around the same price and put a piece of furni-
Specialisinginthedesign,manufactureandinstallation “I also invested in new polishing and rolling machines turetogether,charging¤2,500forit.So,Idecidedtoteam
of stainless steel and mild steel products, it has manufac- — I used to have sub-contract out those functions, but we up with the joiner,” he says.
tured a wide range of items over the years, including trainedupourqualifiedfabricatorsandpolisherstocarry Carryingtheideafurther,Hickeyiscurrentlyworkingwith
pressurevessels;stainlesssteel/carbonsteelatmospheric them out. This is more cost-effective.” a young graduate in furniture design from Galway-Mayo
tanks for the chemical industry; platforms, ladders and TheotherequipmentatHFSincludesaguillotine,press InstituteofTechnology,whichinvolves¤10,000infunding
handrails for clean-room and office environments; and brake, punch machine and plasma-cutting machine. from the Enterprise Ireland Innovation Voucher Scheme.
architectural fabrications. HFS employs 40 people, with a strong emphasis placed HebelievesoneofthesecretstoHFS’ssuccessisitsstrong
“We still do a lot for the construction industry, but it’s on upskilling. There is a mixture of tradespeople, for customer-serviceethos.“Everycustomerwehavefeelshe
not as busy as it was. We’ve gone more into the domestic examplequalifiedwelders,polishersandfitters,aswellas or she is my only customer. I make sure to meet everyone
area,makinghigh-endstaircasesandbalconiesforexam- engineers,designers,administrationstaffandthreeappren- on aone-to-one basis andam always the first initial point
ple, as stainless steel has become fashionable with archi- tices.“Weensureeveryoneontheproductionfloorcanuse of contact. After this, the drawings are done and an engi-
tects,” he says. all the machines, so that there is backup if someone is off neer is assigned to the client. My mobile is on 24 hours a
“Weexperiencedyear-on-yeargrowthforsixyears.Our sick.Ourengineersarenowusingnewcomputerpackages, dayandwealsohavea24-hourbreakdownassistanceserv-
turnover was maintained at the ¤4.5m level in 2008 and whichmaketheirjobsmuchquickerandmoreefficient— ice in the factory.”
our client base increased.” it used to take 10 hours to process a drawing, it now only Finally, HFS’s motto is: “To meet or exceed customer
The firm used to generate business through word of takes one hour.” expectations with regard to quality, price and service.”
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SFA NATIONAL SMALL BUSINESS AWARDS 09
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