Research centre for €2bn plastics industry opens at Athlone Institute of Technology

4 Mar 2014

Post-graduate researcher Paddy Doran (right) shows Minister for Research and Innovation Seán Sherlock, TD, the process of extruding strands

A new research centre for the development of new plastic technologies with far-reaching applications across multiple sectors has opened at the Athlone Institute of Technology (AIT).

Minister for Research and Innovation Seán Sherlock, TD, opened the Applied Polymer Technology (APT) Gateway at AIT, as part of an international plastics conference attended by more than 100 delegates.

APT Ireland is part of an Enterprise Ireland-funded nationwide network of technology gateways, designed to deliver technology-based solutions for companies in Ireland.

The All-Ireland New Technology Forum and Society of Plastics Engineers annual conference has been co-hosted by AIT and Waterford Institute of Technology (WIT), in association with IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland, Plastics Ireland and IBEC.

According to APT Ireland’s manager, Dr Seán Lyons, “The research centre will create practical and pragmatic solutions to the problems facing the plastics industry, which includes sectors as diverse as medical devices, pharmaceutical, automotive, packaging, renewable energy, construction and recycling.

Colm Gorey was a senior journalist with Silicon Republic

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