Irish company Jones Engineering has reported a near doubling in profit amid a strong pick-up in the group’s overseas business.
The mechanical contractor, which specialises in building large-scale data centres and facilities for the life sciences sector, saw its profit after tax jump by 81 per cent to €70.8 million last year, up from €39 million the previous year.
According to its most recently filed accounts, the company, which employs more than 4,000 staff across 19 countries, generated revenues of €1.02 billion in 2023.
While this was marginally down on the previous year, the accounts show the company’s profit margin increased to 8 per cent (up from 4.9 per cent previously), delivering a higher level of profitability.
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The company also said it expected turnover to exceed €1.2 billion this year on the back of a strong pipeline of new work. It said it had hired an additional 500 staff in 2023 to deal with the increased workload. More than half the company’s revenue is generated overseas.
“Our strong turnover in 2023 builds on the momentum of the previous year and highlights Jones Engineering’s growth trajectory and ambitious vision. We project further gains in 2024, with turnover expected to exceed €1.2 billion,” chief executive Stephen McCabe said.
“In response to this growth, we have welcomed over 500 new employees to our team this year, strengthening our capabilities to meet increasing client demands and expand our project pipeline well into 2025 and beyond. While Jones Engineering continues to lead domestically, the primary growth driver has been our international markets, which saw significant expansion in 2023.”
Founded in the 1890s, Jones Engineering was acquired by US group Cathexis Holdings in 2022 for an undisclosed sum. The deal saw the group’s longstanding chairman and majority shareholder Eric Kinsella exit the business.
Cathexis is a multi-strategy holding company based in Houston, Texas, with investments ranging from property and energy to private equity. Cathexis is the family office of the firm’s billionaire chief executive, William Harrison.
The latest accounts for Jones show the company had net assets minus liabilities worth €114 million at the end of 2023. In the accounts, directors – under the principal risks faced by the business – said the company faced ongoing competition and “downward pressure on prices in its various markets” while noting it continued “to explore overseas options”.
They also noted that the company may be affected by government regulations including possible increases in costs associated with increased direct and indirect taxation.
The company was also subject to stringent environmental, health and safety laws and regulations which could result “in increased compliance and remediation costs adversely affecting profitability”.
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