South Derry construction firm Oakleaf Contracts has launched a dedicated modular manufacturing division in England specialising in the offsite production of fully fitted, custom-built bathroom pods.
It marks a major milestone for the company, which is headquartered at Creagh Road in Castledawson and has offices in Dublin and Sheffield.
Operating from a 65,000 sq. ft facility in the Lancaster area, the new division will specialise in the design and manufacture of self-contained, modular bathroom pods for the residential, student accommodation, hotel and healthcare sectors.
The pods are built in a controlled factory environment before being transported to a construction project ready for installation – complete with fixtures, fittings, plumbing, electrical components and finishes, thus reducing the amount of work required on site.
The new division will see Oakleaf Contracts, one of the UK and Ireland’s leading specialist dry wall partition and ceiling contractors, strengthen its position in the rapidly expanding offsite construction market and create new opportunities across the British Isles.
Oakleaf has already picked up a major multi-million pound contract, on the back of the launch, to supply 3,300 modular bathroom pods for a large-scale student accommodation development at a leading English university.
Director Philip McCoubrey said: “The launch of our modular division represents an exciting new chapter and enables us to combine our award-winning construction expertise with advanced and highly specialised offsite manufacturing capabilities.
“Offsite construction is playing an increasingly important role in meeting the demands of modern building projects and is an area that we’ve been looking to develop for some time.
“Our modular bathroom pods offer significant advantages in terms of reduced onsite labour, improved quality control, minimising risk and supporting sustainability objectives through reduced waste and more efficient manufacturing processes.
“The fact that we’ve been able to secure a contract for 3,300 pods so soon after our launch demonstrates both the strength of the opportunity and the confidence clients have in our approach.
“We look forward to building on this early success and developing long-term partnerships with clients across multiple sectors,” he added.
Headed up by commercial manager Nigel McCarthy from Hillsborough, the new modular division will provide immediate employment for 50 staff in the Lancaster region.
Founded in 2000, Oakleaf Contracts has a total workforce of 90 full-time and up to 200 sub-contracted staff.
Its most recent published accounts show that it had 2024 revenues of more than £18.3 million and it posted a pre-tax profit of £1.8m.
