“We’re very proud of how we’ve grown and developed over the years, while hold true to our standards as employers and our team’s workmanship.”
Established in 1987 Kavanagh Engineering has decades of experience in the design, manufacture, fabrication and site installation of with stainless steel. The company continues to invest in the automation of the fabrication processes to enable it to complete projects in Ireland to a high specification as well as in export markets.
In order to facilitate its traditional clients, it has a range of skilled welders and fabricators, trained to produce to CE marked standards for export markets with full traceability throughout the manufacturing process. It has a variety of cutting, drilling and coating equipment including Voortman, FMB, GEKA machinery.
Shane Kavanagh explains the product range, “We have three main product categories within Kavanagh Engineering, structural steel, stainless steel, and roofing and cladding. Our skilled welders and fabricators are trained to produce accurate CE marked steel members, traceable throughout the manufacturing process.
“Our stainless steel service offers clients design, manufacture, fabrication and site installation, while we’ve been approved installers for leading cladding manufacturers in steel and synthetic products. Our unique feature is the team competency in offering bespoke architectural and ancillary steelwork.
“The proof of our work is the return of so many high profile and large companies, returning to us, year after year. We’re very proud of how we’ve grown and developed over the years, while hold true to our standards as employers and our team’s workmanship.
“Staff retention has been a challenge over the years, and it’s the loyalty of our staff that keeps our service levels consistently high. This focus on good working relationships is true both internally and externally. Any growth we’ve enjoyed has been down to the strength of our relationships with customers. We view them more a colleagues.”
Kavanagh Engineering has always had a good relationship with the Local Enterprise Office Waterford. In 2025 it successfully applied for a Business Expansion Grant in order to purchase a ‘state of the art' CNC cutting machine with the necessary software interface.
This investment enabled the business to make a significant leap forward in the service levels for its customers. This continual investment is a priority for Shane and the management team. The Business Expansion grant is designed to assist businesses like Kavanagh Engineering in its growth phase after the initial 18 month start-up period.
The maximum Business Expansion Grant payable shall be 50% of the investment or €150,000 whichever is the lesser. Grants over €80,000 and up to €150,000 shall be the exception and shall only apply in the case of projects that clearly demonstrate a potential to graduate to Enterprise Ireland and/or to export internationally. In all other cases, the maximum grant shall be 50% of the investment or €80,000 whichever is the lesser. Subject to the 50% limit, a maximum grant of €15,000 per full time job created shall apply in respect of any employment support granted.
These investments fuel Shane’s plans for the future, “ We see our growth remaining within the Pharma and the Tech industries. But the growth will be geographical, probably within Europe. That’s the plan anyway. But I’ll stick by my own advice to anyone starting up, never turn down an opportunity.”
Local Enterprise Office Waterford is here to help you start a business, expand an existing business or reach new markets. It provides advice, information and supports in starting up or growing your business as part of a network of 31 Local Enterprise Offices across Ireland.
Contact your Local Enterprise Office Waterford for their latest training programmes, grants and events schedule on www.localenterprise.ie/Waterford or email info@leo.waterfordcouncil.ie for access to all their training support information.
To find out more about Kavanagh Engineering see, www.kaveng.ie
