MHI redundancy programme has now completed

A redundancy programme for staff attached to beleaguered Ballyjamesduff firm Modern Homes Ireland (MHI) has now concluded, a company spokesperson has confirmed.

Workers at the local facility were informed on October 16 that production at the modular housing manufacturer would cease.

Founded in 2015, MHI had positioned itself as a leading innovator in off-site housing construction, boasting the ability to complete up to 80 percent of a home within its factory before final assembly on-site. Over the past decade, the company claims to have delivered around 950 homes and 15,000 modular components, contributing to housing projects in Wexford, Dublin, and Meath.

Despite this, MHI’s fortunes declined amid what the company describes as “sustained low levels of activity” in the Irish residential property market and a lack of future orders.

Dutch construction giant BAM - the main contractor for the National Children’s Hospital - first acquired a non-controlling stake in MHI in 2019 before later taking full ownership of the Cavan company.

At its peak, MHI employed about 120 people, but staffing levels had since fallen sharply to around 20 full-time employees, alongside roughly 50 subcontractors.

The Celt understands that no final decision has been taken about the company’s operations, including the Oldcastle Road site.

At the time of the closure announcement, MHI said: “While no final decision has been made regarding the company’s operations overall, the closure of the production plant is due to sustained low levels of activity in the Irish residential property market and the resulting lack of forward order book.”

Subsequently in the Dáil, local Fianna Fáil TD Brendan Smith called on the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, Peter Burke, to ensure that the employment rights of employees at MHI were protected.

In response, Minister Burke expressed sympathy for workers affected, and affirmed the Government’s commitment to helping affected workers find new employment through Social Protection services.