Northern Ireland outfitting firm MJM Marine is at the heart of the global cruise ship industry with $150 million of new work secured for 2023/24.

The increase in business across a range of global clients, including the world’s largest cruise companies, will see the Newry headquartered business create more than 100 new jobs. This job announcement poses an exciting opportunity for apprentices at Southern Regional College. One which Training and Apprenticeship Manager Denise Cornett and Building Technology and Engineering Curriculum Area Manager Patrick Mulholland were 'on board' to hear about.

The announcement was made Friday 8th September on board the stunning ‘Celebrity Apex’ which was docked in Belfast. ‘Celebrity Cruises’ is a brand in the Royal Caribbean Group, and one of MJM Marine’s trade partners.

The strong order book reaches across seven of the world’s leading brands, with delivery taking place in locations across the world including Singapore, stretching across Europe, and into The Bahamas.

Gary Annett, CEO MJM Marine said, “We are delighted to be here this morning on Celebrity Apex with a number of our team to make this announcement. We have a really exciting growth trajectory and new opportunities right across the business. The new roles are predominantly based at our headquarters in Newry and range from operations and project management to commercial and other business support roles. This represents a multi-million-pound GVA (Gross Value Add) to the local economy in salary contribution and significantly more in value to the local and national supply chain.

“There are more than 500 cruise ships active at the moment with regular refit and upgrade schedules. We have visibility of the future requirements, so we are confident of a buoyant long term project pipeline.”

Naoimh McConville, Group Managing Director, Rathbane Group (MJM Marine parent company) added, “We are thrilled to announce the next phase of growth for MJM Marine. We are committed to strengthening our operations by investing for the future to make a positive impact for our people and planet.

“To achieve this, we are launching an extensive recruitment drive aimed at attracting top talent, to complement our dynamic team. Our people are the force behind driving innovation and delivering industry firsts, which is the platform for our strong culture and performance. We take pride in our record for securing repeat business and the development of collaborative client relationships, with brands who entrust us time and again with their refit work.”

MJM Marine hosted an open recruitment day on Saturday 9th September 2023. When the new positions are filled MJM Marine will employ in the region of 300 people.