Carrick-on-Shannon is set to benefit from 79 new jobs which are being created by VistaMed, a medical devices firm that is investing €7.2m with the help of Enterprise Ireland in R&D and manufacturing activities.
The Leitrim company is to expand its production capacity and manufacturing facilities in Carrick-on-Shannon, creating 79 new jobs – almost doubling its current workforce.
The investment will also see VistaMed expand its research and development activities to ensure continued growth in export sales and Irish employment.
Indigenous exports three times more valuable than multinational exports
“As I have said before, in order to create the jobs we so badly need we must not only deliver high levels of multinational investment, but also create an indigenous engine of growth by driving a step-change in the performance of our domestic exporters,” the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton, said.
“Indigenous exports provide three times more benefit to the Irish economy than multinational exports.
“VistaMed is an Irish company in a regional location taking advantage of Ireland’s excellent record in the multinational medical technology sector to drive innovation and employment growth. We need to see more of this, and in the Government’s Jobs Strategy, I will announce plans to build on this success to drive an indigenous engine of employment growth”.
Established in 1998, VistaMed offers design, development and manufacturing of complex catheters and complimentary medical devices supported by a state-of-the-art extrusion process manufactures complex medical tubing out of two manufacturing plants in Carrick-on-Shannon and Rooskey, Co Leitrim.
Targeting a worldwide market
“VistaMed was founded on being a solution provider for technically challenging extrusion products and catheters for a worldwide market,” VistaMed’s managing director Paddy Mulholland, explained.
“VistaMed has continued to develop it capabilities and today we offer a comprehensive design development and manufacturing of innovative catheter solutions. Our recent partnership with Helix Medical has further enhanced our ability to be a true global partner for our services for which we have seen strong demand internationally.
“This investment will allow us to add additional sophisticated equipment and expand our talented technical resources, which will enable us to continue to offer a world-class service.”
The company employs 93 people in Leitrim and exports to the UK, Europe, America, India and South America.
Welcoming the announcement, CEO of Enterprise Ireland Frank Ryan said: “Ireland is globally renowned for its expertise and innovation in medical devices and life sciences. A high-end manufacturing company, VistaMed is one of our leading home-grown firms in this strategically important sector.
“This investment, supported by Enterprise Ireland, will help VistaMed create an even stronger position from which to grow its exports and will generate high-value jobs for Co Leitrim and the border region,” Ryan said.
