Speaking at the facility, Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage of Ireland, James Browne, said, “As part of our new housing action plan ‘Delivering Homes, Building Communities’, I want to see a doubling of current construction output, and this demands strong industry leadership and innovation. We have to boost skills and embrace Modern Methods of Construction (MMC), which brings proven benefits to both public and private sector projects. MMC use includes reductions in delivery timeframes of up to 40%, greater cost certainty, and fewer changes during construction. This is essential.
“By ensuring homes are built with enhanced speed, quality, sustainability, and cost-effectiveness, MMC is the key enabler for accelerated housing building across Ireland.
“Companies like Kilsaran are vital partners in this national effort. Their new Precast facility in Arthurstown here in Kildare represents the type of strategic investment and forward-thinking required to provide housing at the scale and pace Ireland needs.”
David and Derry McKeown, Co-CEOs, Kilsaran, commented: “Kilsaran Precast has developed a unique and highly efficient system for apartment construction, focusing on speed, quality, and durability. With the Arthurstown plant, we expect to increase our output to nearly 4,000 apartment units per year – directly supporting Ireland’s housing targets.
At our Brownstown facility, we installed 2,000 solar PV panels earlier this year, cutting our grid electricity use by 21%. We plan to replicate that success in Arthurstown as part of our ongoing sustainability strategy.”
Kilsaran is a family-owned, Irish-run business celebrating 61 years in operation. It mines raw materials from its own quarries and manufactures end products at its various manufacturing plants across Ireland and the UK. The business now operates out of 30 locations in Ireland and one in the UK.
Sustainability remains at the heart of Kilsaran’s mission. For the Kilsaran Precast side of the business, a key achievement has been the reduction of embodied carbon in its precast products. The company introduced Ireland’s first electric concrete trucks in 2024 as part of its commitment to a greener future. These zero-emissions vehicles align with Kilsaran’s ESG Responsible Business Strategy, structured around four core pillars: Planet, People, Solutions, and Performance. The strategy supports the UN Sustainability Goals, the Paris Agreement, and Ireland’s Climate Action Plan.