Irish formwork supplier Gael Form secures €4m in funding

A Co Meath company that specialises in creating moulds for construction projects has secured €4 million in equity funding through the Employment & Investment Incentive Scheme (EIIS), which offers tax relief to investors in qualifying small companies.

Construction formwork supplier Gael Form said it intended to use the investment to expand its operations in Ireland, Britain and mainland Europe, by increasing inventory levels to meet demand from customers.

Services offered by the company, which was established by Colm Griffin and Charlie McCarron in 2011, include formwork refurbishment, formwork and scaffolding hire, and design engineering.

“This deal marks a milestone for our company as we begin to execute our growth strategy. This initial investment will allow us to add significant capacity and build out our existing customer network,” said Mr Griffin, the firm’s chief executive.

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Joint venture

Duff & Phelps Ireland brokered the deal on behalf of Gael Form, attracting investment for growth capital from the Goodbody EIIS Funds, a joint venture between Goodbody and Baker Tilly Hughes Blake.

Investment manager BVp recently estimated that more than €50 million was invested in at least 100 Irish businesses through EIIS in 2017.

The programme, a successor to the business expansion scheme, which is due to run until 2020, is typically for new companies or firms that have been trading for no more than seven years.

The tax relief, most of which investors earn upfront, is an attractive incentive while the average investment is estimated at €20,000.