Enterprise Ireland
Annual Report and Accounts 2006
Annual Report and Accounts 2006
A €2 million Enterprise Ireland research programme for the biotechnology industry launched in 2006 will contribute to the competitiveness of Irish companies in the global biotech market.
Biotechnology is an area of global opportunity where Ireland has a strong research base. The BioIndustry-led Research Programme aims to deliver technological advancements and enhanced efficiencies to the Irish biotechnology industry by addressing their R&D priorities.
The programme is an example of industry, academia and government working together to facilitate strategic and innovative research, and brings together key biotechnology collaborators to work on challenging research projects.
In developing the programme, Enterprise Ireland and the Irish BioIndustry Association (IBIA) worked in partnership with business leaders and scientists from the biotechnology sector to develop a shared research agenda. They identified bio-diagnostics and bioprocess monitoring as areas of potentially great benefit to the industry in Ireland.
Leading academics from seven Irish universities (DCU, NUIG, NUIM, Tyndall National Institute, UCC, UCD and UL) will carry out the research on behalf of the companies over the next two to three years.
Enterprise Ireland and the IBIA have also convened an industry advisory board for the programme. Leading scientists and business managers from biotechnology companies Elan, Wyeth, Biotrin International, Deerac Fluidics, Luxel, BioClin Laboratories, Omega Research, Tridelta and Enfer comprise the board, while TEKES, the National Technology Agency of Finland, provides external consultancy support.
Paul Logue, Vice President of neuroscience biotechnology company Elan, who chairs the advisory board, says:
"This programme provides a unique forum that brings together industrial and academic collaborators to work on research projects that will undoubtedly enhance the innovative capacity of the biotech sector in Ireland."
The objectives outlined for the programme include carrying out R&D projects for Irish bioindustries to meet generic research gaps, increasing the awareness of industry R&D needs in third-level institutions, and providing a platform for industry-academic partnerships.
The programme also promotes industry-industry interaction, trains scientists in industry-relevant technical competencies and supports the development of R&D activity within companies.
