New 55,000 sq ft Grade A office block will help attract investment and jobs as revitalisation of Shannon Free Zone advances

Shannon Group delivering on its €21m redevelopment programme at Shannon Free Zone

Wednesday, 18 May 2016:  Shannon Group’s drive to provide new facilities capable of attracting major investment and jobs to the region will gain significant momentum in the autumn when the first new office block as part of its wider development programme at the 600 acre site begins.

The Group’s property wing, Shannon Commercial Properties (SCP), has lodged planning permission for the construction of an €8 million four-storey, Grade A, 55,000 sq ft contemporary, landmark office block at the Airport entrance to Shannon Free Zone West.  It is the largest investment project and the first major new office block by the company as part of its wider five-year €21 million redevelopment programme at the Shannon Free Zone. 

Construction on the state-of-the-art office centre is expected to begin in September, with a target completion date of September 2017. Demolition of three former manufacturing buildings of approximately 300,000 ft² have already taken place in Shannon Free Zone West, paving the way for the new-build and subsequent investments. The new office block will be multifunctional and adaptable to modern business requirements and can be used for large single tenancy requirements but can also be subdivided for multiple tenancies.

The project falls under SCP’s comprehensive masterplan for the re-development of the oldest areas of Shannon Free Zone designed to create new offices, warehousing and manufacturing property solutions at the business park for indigenous and international companies.

Strategically located adjacent to Shannon Airport, Shannon Free Zone is already one of Ireland’s largest multi-sectoral business parks, employing nearly 7,000 people in over 150 companies.

Said Shannon Commercial Properties CEO Ray O’Driscoll,  “Subject to planning permission, the commencement of works in September on the new facility  will create a suite of office accommodation capable of attracting major investment and jobs to the region.  This is a very competitive market and we are stepping up to the plate to make sure that the Shannon Free Zone and wider Mid-West region is equipped for the challenge. Our new and refurbished units will strengthen the hand of the development agencies to attract major investment into the region.”

Said Acting Shannon Group CEO Mary Considine, “One of our priorities on the establishment of the Shannon Group in September 2014 was to implement a major reinvestment programme in our property portfolio and the commencement of our  this new build in September is evidence of that. This type of investment is an absolute imperative as we must have cutting edge facilities in place if we are going to attract multi-national and domestic investment. ”

The procurement and tendering process for appointing the main contractor will begin next month. The design team for the LEED Gold Certified Grade A Landmark office space comprises O’Neill O’Malley Architects, Tobin Engineering, Don O’Malley & Partners M&E Consultants, Aegis Health & Safety, Lawlor Burns Meehan Associates, LEED AP and Dave Cuddy Quantity Surveyors.

Shannon Commercial Properties has a network business & technology parks and enterprise centres across the region. In addition to Shannon Free Zone other business and technology parks in the portfolio include Kerry Technology Park, Ennis Technology Park, Thurles Technology Park and National Technology Park in Limerick. The portfolio comprises over 300 building, 2.4 million sq ft of business space and over 1,600 acres of development land across in over 40 locations in counties Clare, Limerick, Kerry, Offaly and Tipperary.

The first phase of the wider redevelopment programme at the Shannon Free Zone will support more than 250 construction related jobs. Other key projects in the first development phase include:

• A 67,000 ft² technology manufacturing facility extension at Shannon Free Zone Work on this project is now complete.
• An upgrade and development of an existing 100,000 ft² warehousing unit in the Zone adjoining airport lands set to commence in June 2016.
• A 27,000 ft² advance technology manufacturing unit at Shannon Free Zone West.  A design team is expected to be appointed before the end of May.
• A refurbishment of a 56,000 ft² office and warehousing facility located at Shannon Free Zone West, which is now completed.
• A refurbishment of an existing four-storey office block In Shannon Free Zone West. Work on this project is set to commence on 16^th May and be complete by the end of September 2016.

Ends

About Shannon Group plc:

Shannon Group plc formally came into existence in September 2014. It is owned by the Irish State and has a commercial mandate. Its business spans four key areas:

• Shannon Airport is a profitable and expanding airport serving a range of short-haul and long-haul destinations. It is Ireland’s second long-haul airport and the gateway to the Wild Atlantic Way.
• Shannon Commercial Properties owns and operates a range of business, industrial and technology parks in the Shannon/Limerick area and across the Mid-West of Ireland. The flagship park, the Shannon Free Zone, was the first Customs Free Zone in the world and is home for over 150 firms.
• Shannon Heritage is one of Ireland largest operators of heritage tourism attractions among which are, Bunratty Castle and Folk Park, King John’s Castle in Limerick and a range of other leading visitor attractions across Ireland.
• The International Aviation Services Centre (IASC) is a strategic business unit within Shannon Group tasked with developing the existing cluster of aviation companies at Shannon