Kells jobs 'secure" despite takeover

The jobs of over 80 staff at Kells customised medical trays manufacturer DeRoyal Europe Ltd are not expected to be affected by the takeover of the Cavan road plant by Arcroyal Ltd, owned by long-serving plant senior manager Tony O"Shea. The Waterford man has been involved in the American-owned subsidiary since it began operations at the former Zenith plant in 1992 and more recently served as executive director of DeRoyal Europe. He is owner and chief executive of Arcroyal Ltd which he confirmed had acquired ownership of DeRoyal Europe from its US parent company, DeRoyal Industries from 18th June last. Mr O"Shea was a founder member and director of Kells and District Chamber of Commerce, which warmly welcomed the takeover by the Irish firm this week. Area councillor Bryan Reilly also commended the takeover, noting that Mr O"Shea had been there from the beginning of the DeRoyal operation. Mr O"Shea stated the business would continue as usual, focused on customer service, product innovation and 'unusual process flexibility' required by the complex and rapidly changing character of the European markets it currently served. 'The business has been built through the hard work and dedication of all DeRoyal Europe"s employees since its inception,' he added. It would continue to trade under that established name for the immediate future. The president and chief operating office of DeRoyal Industries in the USA, Steve Ward, also welcomed the takeover. 'We"re pleased to have sold our Irish operations to Tony and we look forward to working closely with his complany in the years to come,' he said. The firm began operations in the former Zenith plant in the early 1990s when town councillors warmly welcomed the jobs prospects in those more difficult times. The build-up of staff numbers proved slower than expected at first but in more recent years employment has expanded considerably at the plant.