CO Tyrone company Mallaghan Engineering has secured a multimillion pound contract to build a fleet of airport buses for Ryanair.
The manufacturer, based between Dungannon and Edendork, said the deal will create 60 jobs.
Last year the company, which specialises in ground support equipment for the aviation industry, announced plans to hire 210 people to support the growth of its sales around the world.
Among its new products is the ‘Mallaghan 50W’, the largest capacity airport bus in the world.
Longstanding customer Ryanair has ordered 32 of the buses, which can carry up to 125 passengers.
Mallaghan said the order will be delivered over the next 12 months. The keys to the first bus were handed over at last week’s Inter Airport Europe trade show in Munich.
Last month Mallaghan Holdings Ltd published its latest company report, which showed the group’s turnover grew to £55.5 million in 2018.
As well as Dungannon, the company has a manufacturing operation in Atlanta, Georgia. It also has offices in London, Berlin, Dubai, Singapore and Shanghai.
Established as a civil engineering firm by Terry Mallaghan in the mid 1960s, the company has grown into a world leader in ground support equipment for aircraft, from cabin cleaning and catering lifts to baggage conveyors and passenger stairs.
Managing director Ronan Mallaghan said: “Traditionally our product portfolio has focused on passenger stairs and a range of high lift trucks for catering, cabin cleaning and more specialist ground support equipment including water trucks, toilet trucks and de-icers.
“But with increasing passenger numbers in the global market and to meet customer demands, we’ve developed and begun manufacturing the ‘Mallaghan 50W’ airport bus which broadens our range and heralds a new dawn for the Mallaghan team.
“We are currently recruiting for a range of roles included skilled mechanics, coach-builders, fitters, welders, joiners, spray painters and vehicle upholsters.”
He said the vehicle, which will ferry passengers between terminals and aircraft, is the only airport bus with rear wheel steering, reducing its turning circle.
“The Airport Bus is the result of a significant investment announced last year and was researched and designed by our talented team in Dungannon.
“Since Mallaghan’s entered the GSE market in 1990, innovation for aviation has been at the core of our business.
“We expect to announce further investment in the weeks ahead, not only in research and development, but our facilities and our people, enabling us to expand our innovative product range and to significantly boost export sales.”
Ryanair’s relationship with Mallaghan dates back over the last two decades.
Director of operations, Adrian Dunne, said: “Ryanair is delighted to be the launch customer for the new Mallaghan bus, who we have worked closely with in the design, specification and delivery of.
“As we expand the Ryanair Group operations, we expect this to be the first of many orders and look forward to working with Mallaghan – one of our key suppliers of ground equipment."
