Northern Ireland Chamber of Commerce and Industry Ambition Magazine

FEATURE

Andy Gates, Sales Director.

Chris Jarvis, Area Sales Manager for NI.

expanding businesses. “Helping clients used to traditional builds to see like-for like outcomes on faster timelines is key. We can actually deliver the same building in a much quicker time frame, much more cost-effectively and to a certain degree a lot more sustainably as well,” Andy says. Chris offers a live comparison. “We had a customer who had a traditional build quoted. The timeline was 18 months for a 700 square metre build. We would have something up in four months. It would be the same insulated value as what the traditional build would have been.” The UK and Irish markets are central to the group’s imminent plans. “Our CEO and the board see them as an extremely big part of the wider group,” Andy says. “By the end of this year, we will be in the top two for what we do in this market. Our ambition is to be number one. In Ireland and Northern Ireland, we would like to grow at least 30 to 40% in terms of sales and rentals.” The team is growing too, “which will support not only the sales team but from a marketing point of view as well”, while the wider group remains acquisitive. “We do very well at acquiring other companies, which gives us a much better foundation for the rest of the group,” Andy concludes. For Northern Ireland readers, Andy and Chris emphasise that fast, high quality space solutions can be delivered with minimal disruption and maximum flexibility.

warehouse space for the customer,” he says. “It will be insulated so that they are able to operate a chilled storage unit. That should be installed within the next six months.” A second scheme is a large indoor Padel facility, with at least nine courts, changing rooms, viewing gallery, warm-up area, gym and reception. Sustainability is a backbone of company ethos, baked in through materials and reuse. “The aluminium product that we offer is 90% recyclable,” Andy says. “We also reuse our structures. For example, we installed a building for Airbus. It was 52 metres wide and 250 metres long, and they needed that for 18 months. At the end of that 18 months we can dismantle it and we reuse that on other projects.” All Lauralu buildings are designed to last 50+ years. Innovation is ongoing too, including a new steel roof system from the group’s Finnish manufacturer. “It is guaranteed to be 100% waterproof with no issues. It will stand us apart from our competitors once again in our market,” says Andy. The administration involved in adding a new building almost always requires planning, another area that Lauralu handles. Chris says, “We will work closely with a local planner here in Belfast and architects. We would then look after everything being submitted to the planners, going through the planning application, liaising with the case officer.” Andy and Chris see Lauralu as something of an education piece for

“We are the go-to for temporary buildings,” he says. “When we say a temporary building, that is not a tent nor is it a marquee. It is something that does o er flexibility with the rental, but equally it is something that can be up for a very, very long time as well.”

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