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ontacts, community and perseverance are key to overcoming any set-back, as Eoin Ryan of the Galtee Group knows only too well; they were unlucky enough to suffer a fire in July 2018. The company is now almost back to pre-fire levels of production; we spoke to Eoin to find out how they did it. The Galtee Group is a family business based in Ballylanders, Co. Limerick founded in the 1980’s by Sean and Marie Ryan. Originally established to produce kitchen doors and components, the business has changed over the years and the group now offer decorative sheet material, surface lamination and internal fire rated doors through Galtee Panels and Pronto Doors. The irony of suffering a fire in a warehouse that stocks fire rated doors is not lost on current owner Eoin Ryan. Sadly, there wasn’t much to be done in this instance; 2018 had a very hot summer with days of 30C+ temperatures; this, combined with stock predominantly made up of dry wood, resulted in a fire that destroyed 30% of their buildings. Eoin is pragmatic about what happened and is focused on protecting the business moving forward; “You never know what is going to happen; a lot of business I’ve spoken to don’t even have a fire assessment, let alone one that is up to date. They’re so important, I’d recommend that anyone reading this checks their paperwork to see what they have in place.” Eoin took over the business from his parents and runs it now with his brother-inlaw Pat Meade, and his sister Elaine works in the accounting department. In 2018 the company employed 90 staff and was working on expansion until the 8th July: the fire destroying the offices, finishing line and some wood machining areas. Believing that the insurance would soon step right in, Eoin set about hiring additional staff to help him
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NETWORKS
optimise performance and get the business back on track. Sadly, after about three months it became clear that the insurance wasn’t going to be resolved quickly and the company had to let around 40 people go.
policy as this will affect coverage.” This is good advice for any policy or contract being signed, but in the case of insurance it was a few very small clauses, one of which Galtee weren’t aware of, that caused the problem. Eoin recommends
ONWARDS AND UPWARDS BITA MEMBERS GALTEE GROUP, OVERCOMING ADVERSITY
WE HAVE ALWAYS FOUND BITA TO BE A VERY POSITIVE ENVIRONMENT AND A VERY FRIENDLY NETWORK.
“We lost around 45% of our turnover at this time; to hear that we were now going to have problems with the insurance was another blow.” The insurance has recently been settled, and Eoin is keen to move on. He would recommend that you always read your policy and any warranties and endorsements that exist on it. “Make sure that you know if you have an insurance company or underwriter holding your
that everyone use a knowledgeable insurer and use experienced assessors should you need to make a claim. BITA was able to assist Galtee Group by helping them make new connections. To adapt and survive they had to change the business back to a simpler, more trade focused model. “Paul helped us create new connections to expand the customer base.” Eoin goes on; “We have always found BITA to be a very positive environment and a very friendly network where everybody has the same motivation. It’s not a pushy network and was so helpful to us when finding new clients.” The Galtee Group are now back to 75% of what they used to do and are planning in the next one or two years to be back at pre-fire levels. They have created new capacity with some of the new facilities they put in place, and they have lots of opportunity for growth.
BITA has a wide and deep pool of experts across many different areas, and many will offer favourable rates to BITA members. If any member does need help in an emergency, call head office and we’ll do our best to connect you with someone that can help.
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