PM Group, the Tallaght-headquartered construction services firm that yesterday published 2014 sales of €350 million, has reported a strong pick-up in activity in the Irish market, which generates 40 per cent of its revenues.

The company, which works on construction projects for multinational firms including those in the pharmaceutical and food industries, employs 2,100 staff, with more than half of these located in Ireland.

The company’s chief financial officer, Larry Westman, said that while reported revenues booked in 2014 had fallen by €5 million, its more stable “underlying fee revenues” had risen by 15 per cent.

Operating profits rose by 24 per cent to €9 million in 2014. The group said it is on target for an 8 per cent rise in fee revenues in 2015, with strong business levels in Ireland and the UK.

Dave Murphy, its chief executive, said the company had “pulled back” from seeking projects in the oil and gas sector, which has seen a retrenchment in investment in new projects because of the fall in oil prices.

Mr Murphy said the PM Group is targeting growth in the European dairy sector, as well as further expansion in the US.