There was a time when trainee civil and structural engineers in the State's institutes of technology were encouraged to do their designing and building in concrete because it was "locally" produced, unlike steel, which had to be imported.

Andrew Mannion of Andrew Mannion Structural Engineers (AMSE) says there's been a sea change in recent years, as the realisation dawned that concrete included a number of imported components, while the actual import costs of steel amounted to just 40 per cent of the overall value of finished components. The other 60 per cent of value was added here by the process that prepared steel sections for use in building.

Steel now plays a huge part in the Irish construction industry, particularly in large-scale projects. And the chances are that, as planners in our cities wake up to the need to allow buildings to become taller, it will be even more important because its flexibility makes it ideal for these structures.

Westmeath-based AMSE is the biggest player in terms of output in the Republic's structural steel market, which is made up of about 20 companies. It has worked on projects like the redevelopment of Croke Park, Athlone town centre and the port tunnel. Since Mannion went out on his own 18 years ago, the company has worked on more than 1,100 completed projects and he says the business is growing at 30 per cent a year.

The group certainly has some influence. Last month, the Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern, opened the latest phase of its expansion.

Mannion says the business turned over €28 million last year. Company records show that AMSE had profits in excess of €500,000 during the same period.

Mannion has been running a business supplying steel components to the building industry since the mid-1980s. The group's parent company is Andrew Mannion Holdings and its key trading companies are Andrew Mannion Engineering and AMSE, as well as a property vehicle.

The group launched AMSE two-and-a-half years ago to facilitate three of the directors taking a 7.5 per cent stake in the business; the rest is owned by the holding company. The directors are Brian Looney, its operations director and essentially its general manager; Gerry Dunican, its finance director; and Denis McNelis, who has a background in consulting engineering, and whose expertise lies in design. "Those are the three legs of the stool," Mannion says.

Broadly speaking, AMSE takes steel sections and cut and shape them for use in building, generally as the skeleton or frame of a given structure, what Mannion calls the "Meccano". It will then erect them on site. The types and sizes of steel employed are determined by consulting engineers or designed by AMSE itself.

It's in that area that Mannion says the company stands apart from its fellows. Normally businesses such as his provide the steel and the "Meccano", but do not offer design as part of the service. Company management consciously decided to move it in this direction as a way of offering extra value to clients.

"Part of our development has been an increased emphasis on design and construct work," he explains. "In other words, rather than the consulting engineers telling us what to use and we just act as a contractor, Denis joining our team enabled us to offer engineering solutions."

He says the fact that the company is offering both a design and a steel fabrication services makes it unique in its sector in the Republic.

The company employs 108 people, the majority of them highly skilled. A large number are "coded" welders, steel workers who have to renew and update their skills every two years. Another group are fabricators, another highly-rated and currently in-demand qualification.

Mannion sets a lot of store by health and safety and the company has earned the ISO rating that covers this. Health and safety is a buzzword in most modern workplaces, particularly in construction, which came under the spotlight several years ago for all the wrong reasons.

But Mannion says it has always been a personal issue with him. "When someone starts working for us, I meet them and tell them that I don't want to have to tell their wives or partners that they've been injured or worse," he says.

AMSE is currently working with SIAC, one of the biggest operators in the Republic's building and civil engineering sector, on the Athlone town centre, a large retail and commercial development in the Midlands town.

Originally from Dublin, Mannion has spent a fair share of his career in Westmeath and elsewhere outside the capital. He worked for a subsidiary of the Abbey Group, Kelly's, in Portlaoise up until 1984, when he was made redundant. Working for that business taught him a lot, he says.

He moved to a smaller operation in Athlone and launched on his own in 1988. The area itself, he says, did not suffer that badly during the 1980s, partly thanks to pharmaceutical company Elan and a strong tourist trade.

Mannion's firm has extended its activities well beyond the midlands since then and is currently establishing a base in Britain. Several years ago it established an office in Middlesbrough to act as a technical support centre for its Irish operations. "It seemed then to make sense for that to act as a springboard for working in the UK."

Other construction-related companies have been spreading their wings lately, as parts of the sector here are clearly reaching capacity. That is not the key driver of AMSE's decision to take soundings across the Irish Sea, particularly because the company has little exposure to the housing market, the sector of the construction industry commentators believe is most vulnerable to a downturn. However, he does say he is "mindful" of the impact that a downturn could have on his company.

Competition is actually growing in the structural steel business and overseas operators are looking seriously at this market.

At the same time, Mannion sees potential for expansion here. Surveys the company has carried out indicate that structural steel operators like AMSE can expect to get about 15 per cent of a given construction market. "We have about 10 per cent, so there is still some growth left in the Republic of Ireland."