From Dunkettle to diversity: Sinéad Timoney on attracting talent and building the future of Irish infrastructure

Irish Examiner

5 hours ago

MY JOB
Name: Sinéad Timoney
Occupation: Managing director, Fehily Timoney & Company
Background: Lead consultant for the €215m Dunkettle Interchange upgrade scheme, the firm has won the Association of Consulting Engineers of Ireland Engineering Excellence Awards Project of the Year 2025
Fehily Timoney is focused on providing client solutions in a number of diverse areas, including sustainable infrastructure, renewable energy and circular economy. Working with both the public and private sectors, it operates across highways, water, rail, greenways, wind farms and peat land restoration, in addition to wind energy, landfill restoration and strategic environmental assessment.
'The opportunities are huge for Ireland and for our industry,' says Sinéad Timoney. 'I'm very fortunate to have been a member of the executive board of the Association of Consulting Engineers of Ireland over the past two years, which has provided us with the platforms to network and tease out solutions with industry and those leading the sectors in Government.'
She adds Ireland has the resources many other countries would greatly envy: 'As an industry, we have the skills and knowledge to deal with the housing crisis, energy crisis and climate crisis. We need Government to accelerate investment and processes so that we can lead by example as a nation, maximise our resources and do what is best for future generations.'
In a job as demanding as it is diverse, Sinéad thrives on the variety of work encountered on a weekly basis: 'One of the great things about our industry is the variety of work we are involved in and its importance to society. This ensures that you are never bored, as the solutions that we provide to our clients are individual to their needs and important to the lives of the Irish people.'
An average week involves overseeing daily operations, reviewing financial performance, meeting with senior management to discuss current performance, motivating teams and staying informed about market trends.
Sinéad Timoney: 'Winning the 2024 British Geotechnical Association Fleming Award for our work on the Dunkettle Interchange upgrade is particularly special as it recognises excellence in geotechnical engineering across Ireland and the UK.'
Having recently won the ACEI Engineering Excellence Awards Project of the Year 2025 in addition to the International Project of the Year at the Ground Engineering Awards in London, 2025 is already a red letter year for Fehily Timoney & Co.
'The ACEI Engineering Excellence Awards are the most prestigious awards nationally for engineering consultancies in Ireland, and are incredibly important to us. Projects of this scale and strategic significance drive innovation and technically challenge us, and sadly there aren't many of them these days.
"The Dunkettle Interchange upgrade project consumed the working lives for many of the team for a number of years, with most of the office having worked on it as some point — so it really was a team effort and wonderful that they got the recognition they deserved.'
The past five years have been remarkable for the firm, having grown by 35% and leading in many of the markets it services, such as sustainable infrastructure, energy and circular economy.
'Awards seasons are great because they recognise and acknowledge work done, but years of focus and teamwork goes into building reputation and delivering for our clients. We take huge pride in what we do and endeavour to deliver excellence in all we do.
"Winning the 2024 British Geotechnical Association Fleming Award for our work on the Dunkettle Interchange upgrade is particularly special as it recognises excellence in geotechnical engineering across Ireland and the UK.'
Only three companies were shortlisted, with Fehily Timoney the only Irish consultancy. 'To win it, following an onerous submission, interview and presentation process, was outstanding — especially as this award has only been won by an Irish consultancy twice ever in its history.'
As the company continues to grow, so too does its workforce.
We are growing and are excited about the kind of projects that we are involved in and what we've achieved. We're really fortunate in Ireland to have a top-tier education system, and that includes primary and secondary levels, as well as excellent third-level institutions.
The issue is not with the standard of graduates, she says, rather it is the number of graduates.: 'One of the constraints to growing quicker is the availability of graduates. For civil engineering in particular, we need to be doing more to attract students into these courses. From a career path perspective, it's an incredibly resilient and diverse industry to work in.
"The world needs engineers. We literally design it all — from water, wastewater, reservoirs, coastal protection, to land restoration and biodiversity, to housing, buildings, roads, bridges, and active travel solutions — naming but a few.'
Civil engineering graduate numbers are less than half of what they were during the boom, added to by a soaring cost of living.
'We really need to see reform in the forms of the contracts used, and pricing structures, so that the profession is appreciated for the critical role we have in the delivery of infrastructure.
We want to attract the talent coming up through the system into engineering — and we want them to know that engineering is one of the few professions that genuinely can sustain and protect our planet, is hugely rewarding, and that they will be appropriately compensated.
The importance of equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) in the growth of the company remains a priority for Fehily Timoney.
'EDI has always has been a priority and strength of ours. For example, we provided paid leave for fathers and adoptive parents on our staff when there were no statutory payments associated with them. We've always believed in hiring the best and were never influenced by gender or race or culture. We embraced it all and have recruited from overseas over the past 35 years to ensure we had the skills and knowledge to service our clients.'
At present, 47% of the team is female: 'This is an exceptional statistic when one thinks of how male-dominated the civil engineering sector was traditionally. We consistently lead in this area with approximately 25 to 35% of staff being female over the years.
"A quarter of the team are non-national and 13 nationalities are represented — statistics that demonstrate our commitment and openness to ensuring a equal, diverse and inclusive workplace.'
The firm recently received bronze status accreditation with the Irish Centre of Diversity, and is actively progressing the silver accreditation which it hopes to achieve by year end.
In terms of potential markets, Fehily Timoney is not exclusively focused on Ireland. With a team of 110 people, it services more than 100 clients and works on over 300 projects at any given time.
'We've very proud to be one of the largest indigenous civil engineering consultancies in Ireland. We want to continue to service our public and private clients and we're very fortunate that we have great strategic relationships, partners and clients and we support them with projects in the UK and are more than happy and willing to support them further.'