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Lockdown Dates for Construction in Ireland 2020-2021

First Wave: February – August 2020

Shutdown in construction activity from 28th March until 17th May 2020 (inclusive)

Total: 7 weeks

References:


Second Wave: August – December 2020

No shutdown.

Construction (and schools) remained open under Level 5 restrictions between 21st October 2020 and 1st December.


Third Wave: December 2020 – Present

Shutdown in construction activity from 6pm on Friday 8th January until 11th April 2021 (inclusive). Includes the phased reopening of schools and childcare.

From 12 April, all RESIDENTIAL construction can restart as well as early-learning and childcare projects.

Total: 13 weeks

From 4 May – Full reopening of construction activity.

References:


Measures (as per 6th April 2021) available here: https://www.gov.ie/en/publication/2dc71-level-5/

Current measures (as per 2nd June 2021) available here: https://www.gov.ie/en/press-release/7894b-post-cabinet-statement-resilience-and-recovery-the-path-ahead/


During shutdown construction was closed, with the following exceptions:

  • essential health and related projects including those relevant to preventing, limiting, minimising or slowing the spread of COVID-19
  • social housing projects, including voids, designated as essential sites by Local Authorities based on set criteria
  • housing adaptation grants where the homeowner is agreeable to adaptions being undertaken in their home
  • repair, maintenance and construction of critical transport and utility infrastructure
  • education facilities sites designated as essential by Department of Education
  • supply and delivery of essential or emergency maintenance and repair services to businesses and places of residence (including electrical, gas, oil, plumbing, glazing and roofing services) on an emergency call-out basis
  • certain large construction projects in the exporting / FDI sector based on set criteria
  • in relation to private homes that are practically complete and scheduled for habitation by 31 January 2021, including where snagging, and essential remediation work, such as pyrite works is nearing completion, works should continue to enable homeowners access their homes. Heating, water, broadband and electricity installation should also continue to enable homes be occupied
  • existing tenancy protections mean that a tenant cannot be evicted from their home during the period of the 5km travel restrictions. To enable a limited functioning of the housing and residential tenancy market during this time it has also been agreed that online viewings will be the default approach to viewing property for rental or sale, with a physical viewing only permissible at the point where a tenancy agreement is being entered into or where a contract for sale has been drawn up. This approach balances the need to avoid social interaction with the need to provide a pathway to tenancy and home ownership for those who need it

This page was last edited on 2nd June 2021.

This document was prepared by Isabel Barros Architects.

Image: Construction Vectors by Vecteezy

Irish Construction Costs in 2020

COVID-19 has had a significant effect on the outlook for the Irish construction industry which has been experiencing reduced productivity, increased lead times and considerable disruptions to the supply chain.

Calculating the construction costs for your project is not an easy task. Every year since 2009 we publish some guidelines and average prices to help you getting an approximate figure.

You can check our other articles in this series here.

Construction costs have continued to rise in 2020, but at a dramatically slower pace than in recent years. This is fuelled by the introduction of near zero energy buildings (NZEB) regulations, shortage of skilled trades, supply chain pressures, and additional costs associated with increased welfare/cleaning regimes on-site. 

Linesight’s reported that while COVID-19 has resulted in additional costs, it should be noted that the fall in construction output has potentially created
a more competitive tendering environment, putting downward pressure on contractor margins.

Linesight’s research indicates that the uplift in tender costs associated with COVID-19 has been more than offset by an increasingly competitive
tendering approach by contractors. This is due to concern around the impact of the current economic uncertainty on the quantum of work available for
tendering in the short to medium term, as reflected in the drop in construction output.

Linesight’s projection is that tender inflation for 2020 is likely to fall in the range of 3% to 3.5% (accounting for the impact of COVID).

The Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland Tender Price index reveals that national construction tender prices increased by just 0.9% in the first half of 2020. The results indicate a continued slowing of Tender price growth in the construction sector.

Average Irish Construction Prices 2020

The table below shows the average construction costs as generated by Linesight’s Cost Database and sets out typical building construction costs:

(Click image to enlarge)

Average Irish Construction Costs 2020. Source: Linesight

Buildcost‘s construction cost guide also provides an overview of construction costs in Ireland in the second half of 2020:

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Construction cost guide 2020. Source: Buildcost

Buildcost‘s construction costs exclude FF&E, siteworks, VAT, professional fees, future inflation and other developer costs etc.

Labour Rates and Construction Materials Prices

The hourly rate pay has seen a 3% increase from last year.

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Hourly rate pay for workers in the construction sector. Source: Registered Agreement for the Construction Industry/Sectoral Employment Order 2020

 

The latest monthly data from CSO recorded that building and construction materials prices showed an increase of 0.4% in October 2020 since last year.

The most notable yearly changes were increases in cement (+5.1%), concrete products (+4.7%), Paints, oils and varnishes (+2.5%); while there were decreases in Bituminous emulsions (-10.3%), Glass (-5.2%), and Sand and gravel (-2.8%).

Guide to Rebuilding Costs in Ireland

The Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland (SCSI) provides a House Rebuilding Cost Calculator here. This calculator can be used as a guide to give you a minimum base cost for your construction project.

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Table of Rebuilding Costs September 2019. Source: Society of Chartered Surveyors.

Typical Exclusions

There are a number of other expenses that you should also consider when estimating your project. See some of the exclusions that may apply to your project here.

Architect’s fees will vary based on a number of factors ranging from size and complexity to level of the service required. These two articles provide some guidelines:

Additionally, you may also need to allow for:

  • Design Certifier Fees
  • Assigned Certifier fees

Check out our other articles in this series

10 Interesting Facts About Our 10 Years in Business

1 – Our first client was a Priest. We must have been blessed since then.

2 – The longest project we ever had is still on site after starting 8 years ago. And we don’t regret it for one second.

3 – We tend to attract clients with a sense of spirituality. Maybe it’s because we take a holistic approach to every project. This normally leads to great projects and great relationships.

4 – We have had clients crying when we were presenting our ideas. And one that even wanted to frame our drawings to hang them on the wall.

5 – Our small (social media) logo was created during a “Start your own business” class.

6 – The two most unusual requests we had were: to integrate a collection of 10,000 music CDs in our design; and to completely sound proof a Master Bedroom. These two requests were not related!

7 – We have refused a number of requests to issue “Opinion on Compliance with Building Regulations” for jobs that we did not design or inspect on site. And we will continue to do it.

8 – We have 100% success rate in Planning Applications for New Dwelling Houses.

9 – The highest number of photos taken for one job was 2,747 (Conservation Works at Brandon House Hotel in Wexford).

10 – The most unusual thing we have done to a client was to lock him in the bathroom of our office! And this was done intentionally! There is a reason for everything, and no, it wasn’t because he didn’t want to pay us 😀 !

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