Engineering firm in red as revenue falls

One of the country’s largest engineering firms, the Roughan & O’Donovan Group, slipped into the red last year after revenues dropped by 13% to €14m.

According to accounts just filed with the Companies Office, the firm recorded a pre-tax loss of €160,084 for the 12 months to the end of October. This compared to a pre-tax profit of €358,428 the previous year.

The figures show that the group’s revenues declined from €16.3m to €14.1m.

The chief factor behind the group going into the red was an €800,000 impairment charge on goodwill. This followed a €1m impairment charge on goodwill in 2010.

A note attached to the accounts stated that the impairment in main trading subsidiary, Roughan & O’Donovan Ltd, was incurred “on foot of uncertainties about forecast economic growth and infrastructure spending in Ireland”.

“Despite challenging economic conditions the group has successfully secured a number of framework contracts in Ireland and made initial inroads into overseas markets, sufficient that only modest managed contraction has been necessary,” the directors’ report stated.

It added that the group “remains strong and well-positioned to meet the challenges ahead”.

Established in 1974, the group’s area of expertise includes transportation, bridges, building structures, environmental and energy projects. Projects the group has been involved in include the Limerick Southern Ring Road, the N7 Naas Road and the Navan Rail Line.

The numbers employed by the firm last year declined from 134 to 121.