Based outside of Rathmore, Co Kerry, Pat Cronin & Sons is an agricultural contracting firm which has generations of experience under its belt. Irish Tractor Agri & Plant recently caught up with Paudie Cronin to hear more about the state of business at the moment for the family-run company, its machinery and overall hopes heading into another year.
Business is good these days at Pat Cronin & Sons and the plan for the Cronin clan down in Gattabawn, Gneeveguilla, Rathmore, Co Kerry is to try and keep things that way.
Operating more than five decades now, the family business provides a wide range of services to its customers which has seen it becoming a one-stop shop for all of their agri and plant needs down through the years.
Indeed, Pat Cronin & Sons is a tried and trusted name around the Kingdom, with Pat Cronin himself heading up the company alongside his wife Kathleen, who looks after the books, while their sons Paudie, Shane, Alan, Kieran and Conor also help to backbone the family venture.
Irish Tractor Agri & Plant touched base with Paudie to learn more about the ins and outs of the business, its excellent machinery fleet as well as its plans going forward.
“Business here has been very good the last year or two,” said Paudie.
“We are busy at the minute. We’re constantly pricing construction jobs and are very focused on that side of things. The agricultural side has been fairly steady in recent years.”
He added: “When it comes to numbers we have working here, it goes well up to 30 or 40 during the summer but this time of year (autumn) it’s usually around 15 to 20.
“It depends on how much construction work we have on at the time. It varies a good bit.”
While agricultural contracting has been at the forefront of the services that Pat Cronin & Sons carry out for its customers, groundwork and plant hire are also part of its repertoire, with mulching also a popular service.
As well as this, the Cronins specialise in forestry work and have been contracted by Coillte since the late 1990s.
The company is also contracted by numerous construction and forestry companies, supplying excavators, bulldozers and dumpers of all sizes to housing estates, roads, reforestation sites and others, which is another way it manages to keep busy all year round.
At the moment, the tractor count in the yard in Gattabawn stands at 17 and the fleet itself is a mix of Claas, John Deere, New Holland, Case and Massey Ferguson.
2022 saw two new Massey Fergusons (a 180 and a 160) added to the fleet at Pat Cronin & Sons, along with a new 870 harvester.
Paudie outlined that 2023 may see a few more additions with regards to machinery, but nothing is set in stone just yet.
“It’s hard to know at the moment if we’ll add. We’ll maybe get a new baler,” he stated.
“At the moment, we have two Fusion 3s and a Fusion 1, so we might go for a new baler. I’m just not sure yet on that and it just depends on what jobs come up.
“We bought several GPS systems this year for our excavators and the dozer, they are becoming a big selling point when it comes to getting new work. We also bought some new tree shears recently, it’s always last minute when it comes to buying new stuff.”
The machinery that Pat Cronin & Sons purchases generally comes from tried and trusted customers, while most of the maintenance work they carry out themselves.
With customers in Kerry and Cork, the company covers a 50-mile radius from Rathmore and has built up an excellent reputation for its work down through the decades.
So, the burning question is, what has been the secret behind Pat Cronin & Sons’ continued success over the years.
For Paudie, much of it comes down to the fact that they back up their word with work which is second to none time and time again.
“I’d say it’s our work ethic here,” he said when asked why customers choose the company first ahead of other competitors.
“We get in and get the work done quickly and properly. We get in, get out and get it done. There’s no messing and that’s a lot of it I’d say – the ability to get it done quickly and right for them.”
Along with the aforementioned services provided, the Cronins are also farming around 60 acres where they rear dry stock, which is just another way they keep busy year-round.
This time of the year, there is a particular focus put on forestry work as Paudie explained.
“It’s a big part of our business and it’s great work for the winter in bad weather. It keeps us going through bad phases of weather,” he said.
“It’s off-season work and, in recent times, it has been tough with licensing and that but it’s good work to have at the same time and helps keep us busy this time of year.”
He continued: “A lot of the forestry work would be from late September on, which is handy for us, I suppose. It keeps us ticking over.
“We’re doing it since 1988 and we’re probably with Coillte since 1998 and had been with private forestry companies before that.”
Looking towards the months ahead for this family-run firm, Paudie is hoping that they can continue to come through the challenging times brought on by continually rising costs.
As well as that, Pat Cronin & Sons are looking at expanding one area of the business in particular going forward.
“We just want to continue doing what we’re doing,” he stated.
“We’re looking to go into the civils side of the business a bit more now and develop that side of things.
“It’s hard to keep up with it now the way fuel is going and everything. The costs are gone astronomical now between fuel and machinery and it’s just trying to stay on top of that.
“We just want to keep going though and continue to provide our customers with a good service.
“We would like to take this opportunity to thank all our seasonal and full-time staff members and all the suppliers for their continued support.”
Pat Cronin & Sons
Gattabawn,
Gneeveguilla,
Rathmore,
Co Kerry
Mobile: 087 267 9998
Email: [email protected]
First published in Irish Tractor & Agri magazine Vol 11 No 1, January/February 2023
