Sisk is biggest building group

John Sisk and Son has been named as the biggest building group in the company in an industry-wide survey of the sector.

A Construction Industry Federation (CIF) survey to establish the country's top 150 building companies names Sisk as the biggest in the business, thanks to the net sales of €1.4 billion that it earned in 2005.

Its turnover means that the firm is head and shoulders above other key players in the sector. Publicly quoted McInerney Holdings is in second place with €489 million in sales for 2005.

The Dublin-listed housebuilder, which has operations in Ireland, the UK and Spain, recently reported sales of €630 million for 2006, with pretax profits of €58 million.

However, those figures indicate it still has some way to go before catching Sisk. Sisk is a general contractor involved in all sectors of the industry, including large infrastructure and public projects. McInerney is a specialised house builder.

Pierse Contracting is in the third slot with sales of €474.8 million. Ascon is at four with €440.1 million. The top four are unchanged from last year. Michael McNamara moved up one slot to take fifth with €393.9 million in sales.

The survey results, carried in Constructionmagazine, pinpoint some newcomers, including the Séamus Ross-controlled Menolly Properties, which is at number 18 with €157.4 million in sales.