County Mayo-based Wood Systems was one of Ireland’s largest timber pallet producers until it was hit by financial problems in late summer and went into liquidation.
CJ Sheeran acquired the assets on August 22 and has re-hired 10 Wood Systems staff plus former Wood Systems co-owner Fergal Moran to re-start operations at the Ballinrobe production site.
Mark Sheeran, managing director of CJ Sheeran, told TTJ that Wood Systems’ excellent high volume and high speed Corali production technology and being located in an area (west of Ireland) which Sheeran wanted to expand into were big reasons for acquiring the assets from liquidators.
“We intend to re-ignite the business and it gives us a presence in the west of Ireland,” said Mr Sheeran. Sheeran is also looking to add a depot in the north and in the south at Cork to add to its existing depots in Limerick and Dublin and its main Mountrath (County Laois) manufacturing site.
Mr Sheeran said Cork had intended to be the next target for a new depot but the opportunity of acquiring the former Wood Systems site had changed its immediate plans. Cork will now be the next target.
“We have a regionalisation strategy to get closer to our customers to reduce both our costs and their costs,” said Mr Sheeran.
CJ Sheeran has an annual turnover of about £6m-7m. “We will aim to double that through this acquisition within a couple of years.”
“We have had a good response to the acquisition and it’s good news for the sawmills that are supplying the timber,” he added.
Despite Ireland seeing tough economic times, Mr Sheeran said many of the company’s exporting customers had seen a rise in sales in the last few years in sectors including pharmaceutical, technology and food industries.
CJ Sheeran also operates a wood packaging waste recycling division and a garden and farm timber products division.
