Research and development in life sciences can help take Ireland to the next stage in attracting major off-shore investments, a biotechnology conference in Boston was told yesterday.
The conference, organised by Biolink USA-Ireland, has brought together 15 Irish biotech companies with US executives representing big American companies like Merck and Pfizer.
"Yesterday we held a match-making session which was like speed dating," said Marina Donohoe, manager of Enterprise Ireland New York office.
"I'm very confident we are going to be hearing about deals coming out of this," she said, describing how 45 meetings took place at the Boston conference involving Irish chief executives and senior executives from US biotech industries. Dr Denis Headon of Rice University, Texas, president of Biolink USA-Ireland, told delegates that international collaboration with world-renowned researchers would increase Ireland's influence and reputation in research and development.
Their aim was to organise a nationwide network to encourage US-Ireland collaborations in technology matching, technology bundling, partnering, research, investment and career development.
Enterprise Ireland client companies have reached agreements worth over $5 million (€4.08 million) with further potential of $10 million said Dr Headon, founder of Biolink USA-Ireland, which has 400 Irish and Irish American members.
