NI - Local Company Profiles - Northstone

Working in the industry

The extractives industry has a big impact on the built, economic, social and natural environment of local communities. The aggregates we extract and the water we consume to do this come from the local area. The people who live in the vicinity often work for the extractive companies operating in their areas. Customers tend to be local too; stones and aggregates are heavy and costly to transport therefore they are only used in projects within a viable travelling distance from the quarries.

The industry affects our daily lives, even for those who don’t live anywhere near a quarry. Stones and aggregates are essential for building the hospitals we are treated in, the schools we study in and the roads that take us there. It may not be obvious, but these materials also contribute to road safety. Some extractive companies supply special products that help to reduce skidding, increase road visibility or slow down speed of traffic.

Despite of having such an important influence in our daily lives, many misconceptions about the industry still exist. People often think that aggregate extraction is carried out by men whose faces are covered in dirt, toiling away with their shovels and pickaxes! Although this may have been true many years ago, the industry has come a long way since those early days. Processes are now well regimented and supported by high-tech equipment and machinery. Operations are also much cleaner to benefit workers, the environment and the local population. Regulations dictate that when we decommission a site, we have to restore it back to its pre-quarry state before leaving.

The use of hand tools to carry out tasks is now rare because most processes in our industry are automated, mechanised and computerised. This of course has improved efficiency but it has also given workers the opportunity to carry out a variety of tasks and become multi-skilled. Their employers can subsequently deploy human resources in different ways to cover absent staff and make continuous production possible. Some roles have evolved from being hands-on labour to diagnosing and solving problems when they occur during an
automated process.

The increase in civil, electrical and mechanical engineering technology has also led to ‘upskilling’ in the extractives labour market. We are now employing more graduates. Lots more training is now available for those who already work in extractives. Historically, our industry attracted people from farming who have experience in handling machinery. Although this remains the case today, increasing numbers of people from other backgrounds are joining the industry.

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About Northstone Ltd

The company was formed in 2005 when three of the biggest names within the construction industry in Northern Ireland, Maxwell, Ready Use and Scott Operations, combined to become Northstone Ltd. Prior to this merger, they had been working closely together for over 60 years.

Northstone Ltd has two divisions. The Concrete Division supplies concrete, sand, decorative gravels, mortar, renders and plasters products, and fit concrete roof tiles. The Quarry and Asphalt Division supplies aggregates and asphalts, as well as lay them for road surfacing, civil engineering projects, runway construction and artificial sports pitches.

Our two other subsidiaries complete Northstone’s range of services and products. Beckett Construction Solutions offers interior fit out and roofing services to the construction industry, as well as a wide range of construction accessories. Salmor Industries supplies recess covers and frames, preformed modular access chambers, manhole security covers and cable management systems to the
utilities market.

We supply to and work on many projects across Ireland, such as the series of improvement works on the M1 Westlink. Many of our employees in our Quarry and Asphalt Division helped Northstone to win the Energy Efficiency Trophy at the Sustainable Ireland Energy, Environmental & Waste Management Awards in 2008. This accolade recognised their effort in energy management which had returned significant cost savings.

At Northstone, we take our responsibility towards the environment a bit further than required by legislation. We actively encourage wildlife groups to monitor and track animal activity on our sites. We recycle water in our quarries, minimise energy usage and maximise its efficiency, have dust-suppression systems that reduce the amount of dust going into the air and wash the wheels on our lorries before they go on the road.

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Working for Northstone

As explained earlier, the nature of operating in the extractives industry means that we have very close ties with the local area and its people. That’s why we take our corporate social responsibility very seriously. This ranges from looking after our staff to caring for the local environment.

We are always searching for ways to improve benefits for our employees. For example, we appreciate that sometimes, staff at the quarries have to work in bad weather. To help them maintain their wellbeing, we offer free annual medical checks. Recently, we invited a chest, heart and stroke organisation to do just this. These sessions also provide an opportunity for employees to obtain advice on how to lead a healthy lifestyle. Sometimes, we invite specialists to give talks about men’s health.

Our salaries are highly competitive. We also recognise that people want opportunities for career progression and development in addition to financial incentives. To help our staff build on their experience and increase their promotion prospects, we actively encourage and provide financial support for our staff to attend night classes if they are relevant to the business. We also help and encourage employees to obtain NVQ qualifications, and cater for those who attend university courses during daytime. Although we often recruit externally, we also like to promote staff within the company. Lots of people here joined Northstone with very little qualifications or skills, but had since trained on the job and worked their way up to become contract managers.

The skills required to join our team at Nosthstone depends on the role. Qualifications are not essential for quarry operatives but applicants who thrive on variety, can work both indoors and outdoors, show an aptitude for operating machinery and possess basic technical knowledge would have an advantage. We invest a lot into making our workplaces safe for our employees and conduct industry-recognised training for them therefore we like to see a conscientious approach to health and safety amongst all our workers.

Office-based jobs involving despatch, accounts and administration would appeal to those who enjoy organising. Positions that require higher levels of technical knowledge and training tend to attract graduates with mechanical or civil engineering backgrounds.

Changes in environmental legislation, planning consent, technology and energy costs will all alter the industry’s labour requirements in the future. We have already seen this in the recruitment of quarry managers. In the past, these positions were filled by foremen but advances in technology mean that they now require people who have completed tertiary education in electrical, civil or mechanical engineering. In the medium to long term, we expect to see a rise in demand for more graduates with experience and training in environmental protection. Increases in the cost of energy will continue therefore opportunities will open up for specialists who can help us reduce our costs, raise awareness of energy usage amongst our staff and lower our carbon footprint.

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