Jones Engineering Group – a Journey Across Three Centuries
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A Journey Across Three Centuries Acknowledgments Copyright © Jones Engineering Group, 2016 Contributors Clara Cullen has asserted her moral rights Teddy Bourke, Thomas Desmond (Des) Collins, to be identified as the author of this work. James Curley Senior, Brendan Daly, Doreen Goodwin, Danny Keane, John Lavelle, Eamonn Fitzgerald, A catalogue record for this book is available Catriona Gallagher, Helen McConnell, Derry Hussey, from Trinity College Dublin Library Eddie Hendrick, Stavros Iacovou, Matt Johnston, : 978-1-906429-27-0 Chris Jones Junior, Paddy Kavanagh, John King, All rights reserved. No part of this publication Michael Maher, George McCann, may be transmitted in any form or by any means, Michael McDonagh, Tommy McIlhinney, A Journey Across Three Centuries electronic, or mechanical, including photocopy, Gerry McSherry, Paddy Moran, James O’Shea, recording or any storage and retrieval system, Tommy Purcell, Terry Tierney, Simon Watson without prior permission in writing from and John White. the publisher. Photography credits Published by Associated Editions on Teddy Bourke, Jim Curley, Brendan Daly, behalf of the Jones Engineering Group Dominican Archives, Dublin City Library and Archives, Publishing adviser: Anne Brady The Examiner, Gallery Oldham, Guinness Archives, Editor: Dermott Barrett, Irish Builder and Engineer, Irish Independent, Irish Barrett Business Communications Photo Archive, The Irish Times, Matt Johnston, Publishing co-ordination: Julieanne O’Neill Chris Jones Junior, Fionn McCann, National Library Picture editor: Eoin Murphy of Ireland, Norway Heritage Collection, OPW, Oral historian: Mary Muldowney Tommy Purcell, RTÉ, Sisk Group, Barry Steele Archive digitisation: Fionn McCann and Simon Watson. Indexer: Kate Murphy Designed and typeset by Every effort has been made to acknowledge correct copyright of images where applicable. Any errors or Jones Engineering Group book project team omissions are unintentional. Jim Curley, Sandra Guilfoyle, Eoin Murphy, Julieanne O’Neill and Barry Steele. With thanks Front cover image: A Guinness grain ship moored at to Dermott Barrett for his editorial work. Ringsend Malt Store in 1948. The adjoining building was to become our head office, Waterways House. The institutions We have been working with Guinness for over half We would like to thank and to acknowledge the help a century. and support we have received from the librarians, (Guinness archive, Diageo Ireland) archivists and staff of: The Construction Industry Federation (CIF), Dominican Archives, Dublin City Library and Archives Pearse Street, Dublin 2, Dublin Institute of Technology, the General Registration Office (GRO), Glasnevin Cemetery, National Archives of Ireland, National Library of Ireland, University College Dublin Library and the Library of Trinity College Dublin. A Journey Across Three Centuries Author’s note Researching and writing the history of H.A. O’Neil Limited, the of the Jones Engineering Group’s founders continues today. Jones Engineering Group and its predecessor the Jones Group The role of the Jones Engineering Group can be summed up has been a challenging and hugely rewarding project. It is the in the words of one of the group’s directors – ‘Architects design unique story of a company that had its beginnings 125 years buildings, builders build buildings, the Jones Engineering Group ago in a small plumbing company which, under the direction breathes life into those buildings’. of men of vision and acumen, has weathered the various The author would like to acknowledge the help, political, social and economic challenges of the Irish state encouragement and support she has received from the project to become the industry leader it is today. It is the story of a team, from the directors of the Jones Engineering Group and company with an entrepreneurial spirit and a strong work ethic from the staff, both present and retired, who have contributed and one where the core values and commitment to quality to this history. Contents Foreword Chapter 1 The story of Harry O’Neil Chapter 2 The challenging conditions of the early years Chapter 3 The second generation 1948–1960 Chapter 4 The drive towards the Jones Group: 1960–1973 Chapter 5 The public years: 1973–1993 Chapter 6 Realignment – Jones Engineering Group 1993–2008 Chapter 7 Building for a sustainable future Chapter 8 Jones Engineering – the complete group Chapter 9 Quality work through quality people Bibliography Index ¬ Foreword Very few firms remain in business long enough to celebrate development accelerated in the 1950s, when we joined the EEC their centenaries, let alone 125 years of operations, which in 1973 and became a major centre for multinational business, makes H.A. O’Neil Limited, the founding company of the Jones we had the skills and expertise available to develop and build Engineering Group, a unique firm. This book sets out the history the services infrastructure needed to accommodate the nation’s of the group, from its founding by Harry O’Neil in 1890, through extensive industrial, social and commercial development. the modest scale of its operations in those early days to the Over its long history, the group has been led by just three present era in which the group operates not only in Ireland but people. Harry O’Neil guided the company from its founding in around Europe and the Middle East. 1890 to 1947, steering the business through the turbulent times As a young man, Harry O’Neil emigrated to the United of the first half of the twentieth century. In 1948 his apprentice, States, learned his trade there and returned to Ireland imbued Chris Jones, took charge and led the company until 1993. During with a vision of how the plumbing and mechanical services that time, Chris built the firm into one of Ireland’s leading and industry could develop. He appreciated from the outset that most respected group of companies. Since 1993, Eric Kinsella has education, training and innovation would be key elements of led the group and while maintaining the legacies of Harry and future success, combined with a desire to share his experience Chris, has grown the group into a truly international business with the construction industry in particular and the wider with a reputation second to none for delivering complex community in general. projects. Today a team led by Jim Curley, with Stephen McCabe, Based on this vision, the core values of recruiting, nurturing Shane Gillece and John King are taking the business and the and developing the best people have been a cornerstone of our group into the future. group’s development from those earliest days. We are very much Were Harry O’Neil to return to the group today, no doubt a people business in which opportunities are realised, challenges he would be surprised to see that it has developed from a are met and success is driven by teams of the best people available. small plumbing business in Rathmines Dublin into a leading When we pause for a moment to look over our past, we realise international engineering services contractor that operates in that the history of the group has in many ways mirrored the Ireland, Europe and the Middle East and is the contractor of history of Ireland, and at the same time, has made an important choice for clients ranging from the public sector to leading edge contribution to our nation. H.A. O’Neil played a significant role in multinational companies in the pharmaceutical, food, data and the development of our national infrastructure in the early days semiconductor industries. There is also no doubt that at the of our country’s independence. Despite difficult periods such same time he would be delighted to see that his commitment to as the ‘economic war’ of the 1930s and the Second World War education, training and innovation has been retained, together in the 1940s, the group maintained its commitment to training, with the ethos of a family business. education and innovation. Thus, when industrial and social What follows is our story. Opposite: Pictured at Waterways House with the historic Boland’s Mills in the background following the announcement of senior management appointments effective from 1 January 2016 were, from left: Eric Kinsella, executive chairman of the group, John King, group financial controller and group director, Shane Gillece, group director mechanical, Jim Curley, group chief executive and Stephen McCabe, group director electrical. ® Jones Engineering Group – a journey across three centuries ° 1 The story of Harry O’Neil There are few Irish companies in existence today that can trace their origins back to the end of the nineteenth century. This is particularly true of companies operating in the highly competitive engineering and construction sectors. Jones Engineering Group is an enterprise that started from humble beginnings in 1890. After an initial period of growth it then faced into all the challenges put in its way as a newly independent Ireland forged its identity, often under difficult economic conditions. The evolution and growth of the company was down to timely and wise decisions at critical moments in the development of the business, coupled with the vision and tenaciousness of a number of outstanding individuals who shaped the group into the success it is today. The story of Jones Engineering Group starts with a young plumber, a person of exceptional vision and ambition, called Harry Austin O’Neil. Like so many Irish people before and after him, he left Ireland to seek work in the United States. However, instead of putting down permanent roots in America, Harry brought his enormous experience back home to Dublin and set up his own successful plumbing and heating business in 1890, towards the dawn of the twentieth century, when the plumbing and heating industry was being transformed. His business in time became a limited company, being registered with the Companies Office in 1942 as H.A. O’Neil Limited. This modest family-controlled company was to become the centre of Jones Group plc in 1973 and in turn the core of the Jones Engineering Group.