Charleville CBS Class of 2019 is hounoured at annual awards
GUEST SPEAKER DENIS MURPHY ENCOURAGES LEAVING CERT STUDENTS TO ‘CHOOSE A JOB THAT THEY ‘LOVE DOING’
THE Charleville CBS Secondary celebrated awards day 2019, when the school’s students filled the function room of the Charleville Park Hotel for one of the highlights of the school year.
The students were addressed by guest speaker and a past pupil of both the CBS primary and secondary schools Tim Murphy, who is CEO of Flow Technology Ltd, a family-owned process engineering business based at Railway Road, which is one of the town’s five engineering companies.
In his address, Mr Murphy said that having completed his leaving certificate in 1981, he went on to study Mechanical Engineering at UCD.
On graduating he went to work at in the UK, initially for Scottish & Newcastle Breweries in Edinburgh, Manchester and Newcastle, then later on for a turnkey process engineering contracting company in Birmingham.
“These jobs involved the design and construction of production systems to make products as diverse as beer, chocolate, tomato sauce and cationic automotive paint. In 1993 I came back to Ireland to re-join the family business, working with my father – Denis Murphy senior – and my brother, also Denis Murphy, who is also a past pupil of Charleville CBS,” he said.
Mr Murphy said his business had grown and diversified since 1993 and now employs more than 70 people, and they now work for eight of the ten biggest bio-pharmaceutical companies in the world, building product processing and clean utility systems.
“Our clients include Abbott, AbbVie, Alexion, Bristol Myers Squibb, Eli Lilly, Johnson & Johnson, Merch, Sharp and Dohme and Pfizer. We work in the beverage industry with companies like Pepsi, Irish Distillers, Diageo and Heineken, and also work extensively in the dairy industry, where our company started. Dairy companies include Arrabawn in Nenagh; North Cork Creameries in Kanturk; Kerry Group, both in Charleville and Listowel; Wyeth Nutrition in Askeaton; Dairygold; and Glanbia,” he said.
Addressing the leaving students directly, Mr Murphy urged them to pursue a career that would give them the most satisfaction and to choose a job that they love doing.
“If you find a career you enjoy, you never work a day in your life. In the modern world you may go through several different careers in your working life; be flexible and adaptable. We all have to continue learning throughout our lives. It doesn’t stop when you leave school,” he said.
School Principal Ms Una Griffin told the students that the day was about celebrating their achievements, but not to forget that to reach these levels they need the support of all those around you: your parents, teachers, sports coaches, the student-support team and ancillary staff, who ensure that school each day.
“I hope that on life’s path ahead, wherever your journey takes you, that you will carry with you the valuable experiences and learning gained here at CBS Charleville,” she said. Ms Griffin thanked Mr Tim Murphy for coming along to the events, saying he represented the very strong connection CBS Charleville has with the local business community.
“These links are extremely important for our school as we ensure that we that we support growth and entrepreneurship in the North Cork/South Limerick region. Our transition years are supported in their work experience placements over the course of the full year, and for the coming year our LCA students will also engage in work experience,” she said.
“Flow Technology are leading the way in supporting this within their own company, and a number of our students have gone after leaving certificate to apprenticeships with the company and continue to excel under their guidance. They have also sponsored the introduction of our Chrome Books Trolley, a hugely successful initiative for the school which could not have been undertaken without their financial support.”
Mr Murphy then presented their awards to the winning students, while Pat Savage, chairman of the board of management, presented the gold medal for academic excellence to student of the year, Eamon O’Sullivan. all is in readiness for