A Newry-based bathroom manufacturer is creating 50 new skilled jobs in Newry in a £4.6million investment to help it grow its business in international markets. Established in 2017, Connex Offsite specialises in the design, offsite fabrication and supply of steel framed bathroom pods for the Great Britain and Republic of Ireland construction markets. The new jobs will see the company grow its team from three employees in 2017, to 53 employees by the end of 2022.
Welcoming the company’s investment, Kevin Holland, Invest Northern Ireland’s CEO said: “For an early stage SME, Connex has achieved remarkable success over the last three years securing multi-million pound contracts in the RoI and GB markets. This is driven by the ambition and entrepreneurial flair of Connex’s Managing Director, Brendan Doherty.
“We have been working with the company since 2019 when our Southern Regional team offered it business advice and guidance on how to grow its business, support to successfully rebrand and gave it access to the right industry expertise to undertake research into its first pod prototype.”
Invest NI has offered the company £355,000 of support towards the 50 jobs and a marketing development grant to help it explore new markets and develop its brand.
28 of the jobs are in place with skilled trades, admin and designer roles still to be recruited.
Once in place, the highly skilled jobs will provide a welcome boost to the Newry, Mourne & Down District Council area and contribute over £1.3million in additional annual salaries to the Northern Ireland economy.
Managing Director of Connex, Brendan Doherty said: “We have an ambitious five year growth strategy which will position Connex as the premier UK supplier of bathroom pods. We have seen huge growth in recent months; Covid-19 has forced restrictions on the level of labour on a construction site, which has been a catalyst for a shift to modular construction.
“Our pods are completely finished in a controlled environment at our site in Newry, shrink wrapped on the factory floor and are shipped to construction sites, which helps reduce the numbers of trades required on site.”
He added: “This new investment and expansion of our team will help us build on our London success and target opportunities in the high rise residential, hotel and student accommodation sectors, particularly in the GB and Rol markets whilst also exploring opportunities in North America.”
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