Regional award for Fire Doors Ireland
Fire Doors Ireland, the Virginia business success story, has just won the North East Region Award at the National Enterprise Awards.
Owned and run by Declan and Amanda Sharkey, Fire Doors Ireland is a Q Mark certified manufacturer, installer and maintainer of fire doors.
The team was in Mansion House, Dublin, last week for the prestigious awards ceremony.
SPRYT, the digital healthcare company from Monaghan Town, was announced as the overall winner at this year’s awards, sharing in a €50,000 investment fund.
With its headquarters in Monaghan Town, SPRYT was founded by Daragh Donohoe and Neill Dunwoody in 2022.
Their digital systems make medical appointment booking simple for patients; while increasing appointment attendance for healthcare systems.
The awards, which are an initiative of the Local Enterprise Office and now in their 25th year, aim to celebrate the best small businesses in Ireland.
Increased production
Speaking to the Celt following the awards, Declan Sharkey, Fire Doors Ireland, said they were delighted with the recognition.
In his work as a carpenter, Declan saw first-hand the “lack of understanding” around fire door maintenance and poorly put-together certifications.
“There was no one doing proper maintenance of these important safety features in buildings,” he told the Celt.
“I saw an opening in the market for repair and maintenance and so went off to get my Q Mark accreditation in installation.”
He explained how fire doors are a “critical feature” of public buildings because they form a barrier to protect against fire and smoke.
“As such they should be regularly inspected and maintained,” Declan points out.
While the business idea was a sound one, Fire Doors Ireland grew and flourished with support and mentoring from the Cavan Local Enterprise Office.
“They’re so professional, just top class,” Declan says of the team in his LEO.
“Their expertise has helped us to break into NI and other markets.
“They have given us direction, enabled us to grow and because of the primary and extension grants available, we have increased our production; they enabled our business to go from strength to strength.”
Today, Fire Doors Ireland is preparing to open a new state-of-the-art factory in the IDA park in Killygarry.
“Thanks to Cavan County Council for giving us the opportunity to set up a new building in this site,” Declan said.
“Now we can scale up our production line in a purpose-built manufacturing plant here in Cavan. This new site will allow Fire Doors Ireland to establish an AI-powered fire door manufacturing facility of the future.”
Cherry on top
On winning the top prize in the north-east at this year’s National Enterprise Awards, Declan says “it’s only by going through this process with Cavan Local Enterprise Office and looking back on it all that I see what they have done for us and other businesses.
“To be picked on the night, given the competition in our category, it’s a big deal,” he added.
“It’s nice to be able to put that award on your website, and yes, it will raise our profile.“I cannot stress enough the expertise and support we got from Conor Craven and the rest of the staff at Cavan Local Enterprise Office. They get business and they got us.
“The award is like the cherry on the top of a period of growth and expansion for Fire Doors Ireland,” a delighted Declan Sharkey concluded.