Aronmar Plant is crushing it!
30/04/2024
Aronmar Plant Ltd is an award-winning plant hire and contract crushing company which has come a long way in the last seven years.
An old head on young shoulders, Aaron Farrell was just 21 when he set up the business in February 2017. Specialising in contract crushing, screening, drilling and blasting, the Ballybunion, Co. Kerry-based company has grown to employ a 20-strong team and run an array of plant worth over €8 million, including excavators, crushers, screeners, loading shovels, drilling rigs, dump trucks, rock breakers, trucks and low loaders.
Safety and sustainability are at the heart of everything Aronmar does. The company’s commitment to sustainability is reflected in its ongoing investment in diesel electric vehicles and equipment, and its recent venture into RAP, or Recycled Asphalt Product, which is simply old asphalt that has been planed off the road, then crushed to be reused in the mixes for new tarmac.
Aronmar has a strong reliance on Finlay Crushers and Screeners, and Liugong Excavators. Finlay J-1175 Jaw Crushers and C-1540 Cone Crushers are ideal machines for high-volume production and are built to deliver exceptional performance and efficiency, helping Aaron and his team to get the job done quickly and efficiently.
Aronmar recently took delivery of a state-of-the-art Omega J1065T diesel electric jaw crusher from Southwest Crushers, one of the standout features of the Omega J1065T is its dual power capability. With a DEUTZ power pack, this crusher gives you the flexibility to choose the power source that best meets your needs. This feature also makes it easier to comply with local noise and emission regulations, ensuring that your business can operate safely and sustainably.
“We’re switching all our plant over to diesel electric. The focus will be on that over the next three years,” Aaron reveals.
“We’re also putting a crew on the road for RAP in January 2024. They will bring it back to the quarry where we can crush it down to whatever specification the customer wants. We’re investing in a recycling impactor that can crush RAP down to any specification. It’s vital to get the right RAP. We’re all about sustainability.”
Having initially concentrated on the Irish market, Aronmar broke into the UK market in 2022 and has just started a new contract in the south of Wales which involves producing aggregates for tarmac and asphalt.
“We move from quarry-to- quarry producing high PSV aggregates and railway ballast among other things,” Aaron explains.
“Our expansion into the UK is an exciting step and opens up all sorts of possibilities for us. We’ve grown a lot quicker than expected and that is down to our quality products, constant reinvestment in our business, experience and our fantastic customers.
In addition to crushing and screening, Aronmar operates Sandvik drilling rigs and has ongoing contracts with IIE. The company also operates a haulage unit with Scania R730 and Faymonville trailer.
“Arkil Ltd, who supply railway ballast to Iarnrod Éireann, was our first client 23 years ago when my father and uncles were in the business, and they are still with us. We also enjoy an excellent working relationship with the likes of McSweeney Bros in Cork, Ardfert Quarry Products in Kerry and Roadstone, having commenced contract crushing with Roadstone in the past year. We’d be nothing without our customers and staff.”
Now 28, Aaron has had no regrets about following in his father Michael’s footsteps at such a young age.
“Contract crushing and plant hire has been in the family since 1997. My father and three uncles were all involved in the business up until 2016. I inherited a passion for it from them. It’s in the blood; I didn’t know anything else. I had no money starting out, so I just hired the machines and got going from there. I’ve made lots of mistakes along the way, but have always tried to learn from them.
“Thankfully, we’re going from strength to strength and are now running over 50 machines. I’ve got great support from the whole team who are very good at what they do and are a pleasure to work with. JP Kelly has been with me since day one and the company wouldn’t be where it is today without him or my father, who has given me great advice.”
Aronmar uses machinery from a number of different brands, from Terex Finlay and Omega crushers to LiuGong excavators and Volvo loading shovels.
Supplier support is important to Aaron. Therefore, he only chooses reliable sellers with strong support chains. If there is an issue that he may need support for at the last minute, it is good to know help is only a phone call away, and that all of his suppliers can be relied on.
The ever-burgeoning business prides itself on the longevity of its working relationships with all its suppliers and clients. Aaron would like to take this opportunity to thank them for their continued support as well as his staff for their hard work, dedication and expertise.
Aronmar Plant Ltd
Ahafona,
Ballybunion,
Co. Kerry.
Tel: 087 9399 015
Email: [email protected]
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.aronmarplantltd.com
First published in Irish Trucker magazine March/April 2024, Vol 27-1
