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Clancy Construction is one of Ireland’s leading construction companies.
Alongside a well-earned reputation for attention to detail, the business has made significant strides towards longterm sustainable solutions. Sustainability Lead Tom O’Malley and Managing Director John O’Shaughnessy explained more to Hannah Barnett.
Having already outlined a sustainability strategy two years before, 2024 was all about turning innovation into action at Clancy Construction.
This was well-demonstrated by an investment in onsite hybrid battery power at a site in Dublin. One 200KW battery pack was introduced at the site in Stillorgan, followed by two 50KW units for smaller sites in Cork and Limerick. Rather than continuing to rely solely on diesel-fuelled generators, the company has reduced burning to approximately five hours a day, a reduction of 50%.
“We are one of the first in the industry to adopt these batteries,” Sustainability Lead Tom O’Malley explained. “In Stillorgan, where we had three generators onsite, we now have a single generator feeding a massive battery, powering the site. Plus, that generator doesn’t idle during the day, it comes on to top-up the battery only when needed. We’ve reduced our carbon footprint significantly.”
Indeed, the solution has resulted in an approximate 70% reduction in emissions. Additionally, the move was recognised with a nomination for Technology Innovation at the Property Industry Excellence Awards 2024, alongside partners Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council and JTM Energy.
Sustainable success
Clancy Construction recorded a healthy turnover of €141 million in 2024 and is on course to hit €160 million this year. This puts the company well above its earlier target of €130 million by the end of 2025.
With just under 200 employees and growing, a significant challenge remains in trying to keep carbon emissions down while revenue rises. The baseline has moved since Clancy Construction began monitoring carbon footprint at the start of 2023, despite the significant carbon-reduction measures implemented. The solution has been to measure kilograms of carbon per Euro of revenue.
“This is a great way to map where we’re at,” Mr O’Malley explained. “Because if we’d just done kilogram for kilogram of carbon, our footprint is bigger. But we’ve nearly doubled our 2023 revenue of €75 million. So, there is an increase in the number of sites and the size of the jobs are bigger. But the good news is that we’re emitting less carbon.”
In January 2023, the company emitted 29kg of carbon per Euro. By October 2024, this figure had decreased to 11.5kg, a 60.3% reduction. If Clancy Construction had continued emitting carbon at the January 2023 rate while achieving the 2024 turnover, emissions would have been 2,415 tonnes higher.
Interestingly, Clancy Construction’s sustainability programme has contributed to this increase in revenue. Specifically,
the company’s careful documentation of the measures it has taken have helped in winning contracts for public- and privately-funded work.
“We’ve noticed that private equity funds now want to know our sustainability strategy,” John O’Shaughnessy, Managing Director, said. “We’ve had several enquiries wanting to see the documents. Many funds today are highly aware of environmental concerns and prioritise working within a sustainable supply chain.
“We were among the few companies to introduce a strategy like this in 2022. Some of the largest Tier 1 contractors would have had it, but for a company of our size back then, this was quite remarkable. We were an outlier.”
A strong strategy
The sustainability strategy has always been based around three equal pillars of ‘people, planet and performance.’ It is holistic in scope, including measures focused on safety at work and partnerships with charities that are mindfully selected – ones with connections to Clancy Construction employees, for example.
More unusually, Clancy Construction also encourages staff to develop their own skills wherever possible. “If anyone approaches us who wants to improve themselves in education, if we can accommodate their studies, then we do so,” said Mr O’Malley. “We had a site engineer complete a structural engineering degree last year, which is fantastic.”
Unsurprisingly, the company enjoys an excellent reputation in the industry. Mr O’Shaughnessy shared an example from a committee meeting for the Construction Industry Federation (CIF), where he heard Clancy Construction’s sustainable policies spoken of in high regard.
“The person in question had started with the CIF a few months before,” Mr O’Shaughnessy continued. “He didn’t know who I was, but he mentioned our sustainability strategy with 34 senior executives from the construction industry present. He said Clancy Construction’s approach is an excellent example of dealing with carbon emissions and sustainability in construction.”
The company recently introduced a code of practice for suppliers that provide
services over a value of €250k. The code was reviewed several times by the supply chain team to ensure it was measurable and 98% of relevant suppliers signed up in 2024. “Our aim for 2025 is to audit a few key suppliers,” explained Mr O’Malley. “With CSRD reporting beginning in 2026, this will position us well for the transition next January.”
The company has established long-term partnerships with many of these suppliers; some stretch back over 20 years. Much of the longevity of these relationships is thanks to a winning formula of fairness, loyalty and simplicity.
“We never impose counter-charges on suppliers to cut costs,” Mr O’Shaughnessy said. “During the recession, we ensured prompt payments to our supply chain without attempting to reduce their overall fees, a practice that was common at the time. But we looked after our supply chain. Since then, we’ve had loyalty back.”
Forward focused
Always an innovative business, the next step in Clancy’s journey will explore the possibilities of AI. The company is already working
Tom O’Malley, Sustainability Lead
John O’Shaughnessy , Managing Director
with Dixon Humphreys, a company that accelerates the AI capability of individuals and organisations.
“We have formed what we call a ‘Ninja Team’,” explained Mr O’Shaughnessy. “This is roughly 30 people who have identified several construction projects that can benefit from the use of AI. Their task for the next few months is to build up the use of these different tools to make the business more efficient and effective. Everybody is talking about AI. It’s not going away, so we must embrace it.”
The company will also focus on upholding its six core values of: safety, professionalism, Teamwork/collaboration, quality, loyalty/commitment and sustainability. The way Clancy Construction does this is by first ensuring senior management are aligned and then inspiring the rest of the team.
“I now collect data each month from our sustainability champions on every site,” said Mr O’Malley. “It’s been the same people since the beginning. This means it’s not just me; they’re wanting to see a difference too. It’s all very positive. If everyone believes in the strategy and follows it, then the trajectory towards net zero should continue.”
“There are many things a business needs to make it a success,” Mr O’Shaughnessy concluded, “but I think it’s about having a clear purpose, vision, and living by our core values each and every day with a robust strategy well communicated to everybody within the organisation. And we do that. Whether you’re selling flowers or building multi-storey buildings, it’s the same principle. Our job as leaders is to run those businesses efficiently. Then I think we can make a huge difference.” n
