Broughan Engineering Ltd. designs, engineers and manufactures a full range of high-quality, bespoke agricultural trailers. We dropped into the pioneering company’s County Carlow base to get an insight into the history and current well-being of this progressive family business – as well as the vast range of products offered – from founding directors Paul and Patrick Broughan.
Located just outside Tullow in County Carlow and owned by brothers Paul and Patrick Broughan, Broughan Engineering Limited was established 14 years ago, building upon an engineering legacy started by their father Paddy Broughan some 40 years ago.
Broughan Engineering Limited manufactures a wide range of high-quality trailers, which includes grain/silage, cattle, bale, lowloaders and dumpers. Today’s consumer requirements vary greatly, often requiring a bespoke design approach to suit each buyer, which is a highly valued attribute of the business. The company motto “where quality comes first” shines through the superior workmanship in every aspect of the finished product.
Sales currently comprise of 45% in Ireland and 55% to the UK (through their agent GRT Machinery), while nascent export markets are also currently being explored in Sweden and New Zealand.
Grain/silage trailers manufactured range from 16ft with twin axles to 24ft tri axle. These include hydraulic door, hydraulic brakes and grain sides from 4ft – 6ft high. Each trailer is manufactured to specific customer requirements and can include optional extras such as air brakes, roll over/easy cover, grain chute, beacons and extra lights if required.
Trailers come with a standard tyre, which can be upgraded. Tyres range from 400/65/22.5 to a 710/60/26.5 BKT flotation road max. All trailers are built on ten-stud commercial axles and commercial spring suspension.
The business is going extremely well at present and Paul Broughan predicts a period of concerted expansion: “Due to the demand for Broughan Trailers, we are planning to expand the size of the premises and increase the workforce over the next two years. We currently employ 13 full-time staff. A finishing shed has been added to the factory and a new lifting gantry has also recently been installed.”
Patrick Broughan adds: “Approximately 120 trailers have been manufactured and delivered in the first six months of 2014. The business has grown significantly during the past 12 months, with production forecast to double in 2015”.
At the forefront of this progressive family operation are Patrick and Paul Broughan alongside their sister Carole, all of whom are following in the footsteps of their father, Paddy. “It’s very much a proud family business and it has taken a lot of hard work to get to where we are today,” confirms Patrick.
“Our father would have done general engineering – farm gates, sheep equipment, cattle feeders etc. Myself and Paul worked at Hi Spec Engineering Ltd. in Bagenalstown for a number of years and we then got a chance to do some contract work for them. Then, about a decade-and-a-half ago, a local farmer contacted us to ask could we make a trailer for him. We took him up on that and it all started from there…”
Broughan Engineering was not an overnight sensation. If only life was so simple! “It’s about getting your name out there and that’s going to take time no matter how good you are at what you’re doing. It was very difficult for the first few years and, to be honest, it’s only in the last few years that steady orders are starting to come in. We went through some testing times but we always believed in our products so we stuck with it.”
Of course, there is still no room for complacency, even though the company is starting to gather considerable momentum: “It’s going well at the moment but, like everything else, margins are tight,” Patrick reveals. “You are always investing in newer and better equipment and you can never take your eye off the ball. We are mindful of the fact that it’s a competitive market as well and we need to maintain as many efficiencies as possible, while continuing to manufacture the highest-quality trailers on the market. Quality is at the heart of everything we do and it’s about getting the product right every time so that customers are happy with it.”
Grain and silage trailers are now being produced steadily all year round, while there is also big demand for cattle trailers at this time of year. All trailers are built using the highest-quality steel. “The market has changed and orders are now being placed in advance. This is something we have encouraged to ensure that customers always receive their trailers on time. Typically, we can deliver a trailer in between four and six weeks. April/May can be a very busy time of year for silage, which is why we’re taking orders in early to make sure that everybody has their trailers on time. You don’t want to ever have to turn anybody down.”
The Broughan Engineering reputation for quality trailers is starting to spread beyond Irish and UK shores, a development by which the directors are understandably encouraged: “Last year we sold some trailers to a customer in Sweden and they seem to be happy with them, so that’s promising. We are also starting to export to New Zealand, which is another important breakthrough.”
Even though standard trailers are still available, more and more customers are looking for a customised option, something Broughan Engineering can provide without breaking stride. “A lot of the trailers are bespoke nowadays. We’d love if everybody wanted the same trailer but that’s not how it works! There’s big demand for bale trailers in Ireland and England right now as a lot of farmers are trading up to keep up with the newest regulations. We didn’t have to do too many changes for that as we had been on top of it for the last few years.
“Everything is done to individual requirements now. One of the many reasons for this is that bigger tyres have become a big thing and customers like to choose their own tyres. Everything about the trailer must be bespoke to suit the contractor or farmer so that he can do the best and fastest job with it. Also, they want their trailers to be as versatile as possible, so that they can have more than one use – another solution we can provide.”
Are customers looking for quality or price first and foremost? “I think he is looking for both. But he definitely wants a strong trailer that will last for many years, which is what we deliver. If he wants some added extras or tweaks, we won’t turn him away. We stand over all of our products and we have never had a problem with any of our trailers.”
Looking to the future, Patrick states that, while further expansion is certainly on the cards, Broughan Engineering will proceed cautiously. “We are hoping to expand some more this year but we will keep it steady and expand slowly. We are excited about Sweden and New Zealand and we’ve also had enquiries from France, but we realise it takes time to get into new markets.
“Facebook and YouTube have proven invaluable in promoting our trailers and we are very well known throughout Ireland and the England but it’s going to take time to develop a presence in other markets.
“You have to keep moving with the times and continue to embrace the latest technology. We’re building a lot of trailers with air suspension now, which has become increasingly popular, and ball-and-spoon and swivel hitches are also very popular.
“90% of our trailers are fitted with air brakes and some of them have ABS as well. We also fit brand new commercial axles on all our trailers, rated at 105km at 12 tonne. Lorry axles are fitted as standard on all our trailers, large and small, and we have never put an agricultural axle on any of them. People want their trailers right. They want high quality and that’s what we give them.”
It’s not difficult to see why Broughan Engineering Ltd. is making such an impact in the agricultural trailer market at home and abroad!
Broughan Engineering Ltd.,
Coppenagh,
Tullow,
County Carlow.
Phone: 059 9163697
Fax: 059 9163861
E: [email protected]
www.broughanengineeringltd.com
Taken from Irish Tractor & Agri magazine Vol 2 No 6, November 2014
