Sellotape Henkel
Image: NIKHIL MANOHAR INGLE/Shutterstock

Adhesive giant Henkel to create 40 jobs at new 3D-printing facility in Dublin

23 Oct 2017

Chemical and consumer goods manufacturer Henkel will create dozens of jobs at its new 3D-manufacturing site in Dublin.

As part of a new multimillion-euro investment, Henkel – the firm behind household names such as Super Glue and Sellotape – will open a 3D-printing facility in Tallaght, Dublin.

According to The Irish Times, the new site will look to hire 40 scientists and engineers to oversee its R&D expansion at its existing Dublin facility.

Its purpose will be to expand into highly lucrative manufacturing areas such as medical devices and aerospace components by 3D-printing advanced, precise materials.

Globally, Henkel is one of the largest companies of its kind, employing 50,000 people in 120 countries with revenues of more than €18bn.

The move was backed by IDA Ireland and will now bring the German company’s total Irish employees to more than 400 across its three sites in Tallaght, Ballyfermot and Little Island, Cork.

Henkel’s technology centre director, Dr Matthew Holloway, said the fact that Dublin is home to a number of innovative medtech start-ups and a strong academic research base was key to its decision-making process.

“As the world’s largest adhesive company, Henkel is uniquely positioned to accelerate the adoption of additive manufacturing/industrial 3D printing,” Holloway said.

“Many of the materials and equipment technology are complementary to our existing adhesive business, and we already have strong relationships with many of the early adopters through this.”

He continued: “The speed with which we can start the project due to the available laboratory space and on-site expertise gives us an advantage.”

IDA Ireland CEO Martin Shanahan said: “Henkel’s investment will help to further develop a pronounced national competency in high-performance materials for additive manufacturing.”

Colm Gorey
By Colm Gorey

Colm Gorey was a senior journalist with Silicon Republic. He joined in January 2014 and covered AI, IoT, science and anything that will get us to Mars quicker. When not trying to get his hands on the latest gaming release, he can be found lost in a sea of Wikipedia articles on obscure historic battles and countries that don't exist any more, or watching classic Simpsons episodes far too many times to count.

Loading now, one moment please! Loading