The Shire. Image: Camera_Bravo/Shutterstock
The Shire. Image: Camera_Bravo/Shutterstock

Biotech giant welcoming 150 new recruits into the Shire

27 Apr 2017

With a move of office and an expanded floor space, biotech company Shire is looking to fill 150 new positions over the next couple of months.

From Citywest to the city centre, Shire has moved its Dublin base amid a surge in operations, with plans to double to 300 employees during the summer.

Now based at the Miesian Plaza on Baggot Street, Shire has partnered its lead commercial and technical operations employees with its global services team on site.

“It’s an exciting time for us at Shire in Ireland,” said Alan Walshe, GM of the company’s Irish operation.

Last year, Shire revealed its plans to build a new manufacturing operation in Co Meath, with 400 employees required on the 120-acre site.

This operation will employ the latest bioprocessing techniques and flexible production strategies, enabling it to supply both clinical and commercial-scale products.

“The decision to open our corporate HQ at the Miesian Plaza, and last year’s announcement of our investment in a state-of-the-art biologics facility at Piercetown in Co Meath, demonstrates that Ireland remains an important part of Shire’s global footprint and future strategy,” said Walshe.

Shire is a biotech company providing treatment for rare diseases, with its products and services currently in more than 100 countries worldwide.

Its core therapeutic areas include haematology, immunology, neuroscience, ophthalmics, lysosomal storage disorders and gastrointestinal diseases as well as a growing franchise in oncology.

“Ireland is a global centre of excellence in life sciences due to the country’s strong regulatory track record and talent availability,” said Martin Shanahan, CEO of IDA Ireland.

“Shire’s continued growth here across a number of business activities and its previously announced manufacturing investment is a clear endorsement of Ireland’s ongoing attractiveness to overseas companies.”

Earlier today, digital mapping company Esri Ireland reported its own expansion plans, with aims of increasing its Geographic Information Systems software from annual revenues of €7m in 2016 to €10m by the end of the decade.

To do that, it has revealed plans to up its headcount from its current level of 50 to 85 over the next two years, with a series of technical roles to be created in Dublin and Antrim.

The Shire. Image: Camera_Bravo/Shutterstock

Gordon Hunt
By Gordon Hunt

Gordon Hunt joined Silicon Republic in October 2014 as a journalist. He spends most of his time avoiding conversations about music, appreciating even the least creative pun and rueing the day he panicked when meeting Paul McGrath. His favourite thing on the internet is the ‘Random Article’ link on Wikipedia.

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