With the recent downturn in the global economy, countries throughout the world have struggled to celebrate growth opportunities within their various industrial sectors. The medical device market has not been immune to the downturn, but has been able to persevere better than most industries. The U.S. with the largest medical device market, estimated at $94.9 billion U.S. in 2010, and the Irish medical device market, estimated at $7.5 billion (mostly export), have been able to continue to forge through the economic challenges of the past few years. Ireland currently employs over 24,000 people in 160 medical device companies. In addition, Ireland currently has a strong base of U.S. medical device manufacturers and is an attractive location for U.S. medical device companies planning a global expansion. There are several reasons for this, including financial benefits that Ireland offers to companies planning to set-up manufacturing operations abroad, the opportunities it offers as a base of operations for selling into Europe, and a predominately English speaking workforce.

In a collaborative effort between ECN’s sister publication MDT, the leading publication serving the U.S. medical device design and manufacturing market, Enterprise Ireland, IMDA (Irish Medical Device Association), and IDA Ireland (Industrial Development Authority), we explored the Emerald Isle’s medical device industry addressing the newest, most interesting issues:

–    A snapshot look at the world class research and engineering facilities available in Ireland.
–    An overview of the Irish Medical Device Association’s strategy for growing the medical device sector.
–    A preview of the upcoming MedinIreland event, taking place later this year in October.
–    Brief profiles of the Irish presence maintained by three major players in the medical device community—Medtronic, Stryker Instruments, and Boston Scientific.
–    A case study that examines how an Irish-based medical device manufacturer responded to market demands to produce a much improved product.
–    A comprehensive review of the benefits of establishing a medical device manufacturing facility in Ireland.
–    Highlights of the partnership success that are prevalent throughout the industry, as well as the emerging “companies to watch” in Ireland.

Check out the whole collaboration, here.