Tipperary Crystal hopes to boost employment and tourism in Co Tyrone with a £500,000 sterling (#816,593) investment in the North's oldest crystal factory.
The group has developed a new visitors' centre at Tyrone Crystal, the Dungannon-based company that it acquired in a deal estimated to be worth £5 million just 10 months ago.
Mr Niall Wall, chief executive of Tipperary Crystal, said the new investment reflected the group's confidence in Tyrone Crystal's future. He said the new centre was part of an ongoing investment plan to develop the Tyrone brand and strengthen the company's position as number two to Waterford Crystal in the industry in Ireland.
The visitors' centre is the latest move by Tipperary to reposition Tyrone Crystal in the luxury goods market. Tipperary has also commissioned Dublin-based designer Louise Kennedy to produce a range of products for the Tyrone company.
The company's business had slumped in the early 1990s, prompting fears among its workforce that its future was uncertain.
A management buy-out team helped turn its fortunes around in more recent years but Tipperary's acquisition has provided a new investment stream and a new focus for the company, which today employs more than 100 people.
