“We have an Innovation Centre, which is basically
our internal R&D facility, in which we focus
on new technologies and advanced processes”,
explains Ryan, “To me, innovation is anything
that will improve our competitive advantage. It is
not necessarily restricted to R&D, rather it is any
improvement throughout the entire organisation
- it can be a business process or any other activity
that adds value. We want all 1,000 of our employees
to constantly be thinking of how to make
improvements in their areas”.
In 2010, Creganna acquired Tactx Medical,
making the company a truly global supplier to the
minimally invasive medical device industry. The
acquisition meant that locations in Singapore,
California, Minneapolis were added to the Galway
and Massachusetts bases that Creganna already
operated.
“We identified a number of technologies that we
wanted to expand into in line with our global supply
agenda. We were actively looking for an acquisition
that would fit, and when Tactx came on the market,
it happened to be a perfect fit”.
introductions and hosting events. This gives us a
consistent stream of potential new customers”.
The R&D assistance that Enterprise Ireland
provides to client companies is also something that
the Chief Executive is very positive about.
“Enterprise Ireland have also assisted us with our
own internal research and development efforts.
They have provided introductions to companies
that been able to provide us with new technologies,
and also, very importantly, they have provided us
with grant aid for our R&D. This has been a longrunning arrangement. We are net beneficiaries of
the work of Enterprise Ireland”.
“Ireland overall is an excellent place for the Life
Sciences sector in particular. The European CE
mark means that Europe has become the best place
to start in the sector. Going to the EU market first
therefore, has become the norm in Life Sciences.
Ireland’s particular advantages in delivering access
to the EU market make it an ideal location for a
business like ours. There is already a very significant
cluster here and the country’s future as a med-tech
hub looks very positive”.
Creganna is a client of Enterprise Ireland. Helen
Ryan is very definite in her praise of the State
Agency.
“I have to really compliment Enterprise Ireland on
the work that they do. They