Trend Micro, a Japanese security software company, will set up a new facility in Cork and create 100 jobs over the next two years.
The company said yesterday it had decided to move its back office functions from a number of European locations to a single shared services centre in Cork.
The multimillion euro investment in Cork will enable Trend Micro to consolidate its finance, order management and shipping operations. This should promote more efficiency and greater levels of consistency and customer care, the company said in a statement.
The announcement of new jobs was warmly welcomed by the Tánaiste and IDA Ireland yesterday following the loss of hundreds of jobs in Cork recently.
"This is yet another vote of confidence in Ireland's highly skilled and motivated people. This is an endorsement of IDA's policy of promoting high value-added activities for the economy," said Ms Harney.
Mr Anthony O'Mara, financial director and managing director of Trend Micro's Europe, Middle East and Africa operations, said the wealth of skills and the Republic's reputation for customer service were instrumental in the company's decision to invest.
Mr O'Mara, who was born in Ennis, Co Clare, said the firm would try to take advantage of the Republic's lower corporate tax rate but this was not the main reason for choosing to invest.
He said European pressure to remove the Republic's competitive tax rate would be a concern but wouldn't make Trend Micro change its mind about investing in Cork. "Operational issues brought us to the Republic not the tax rate," he said yesterday in an interview with The Irish Times.
IDA Ireland will provide grant aid to support Trend Micro's investment in Cork. It will also help the company get up and running at the new facility by July.
Trend Micro develops antivirus and internet content security software and services. The company is based in Tokyo, Japan, and has located its European headquarters in Marlow, Britain.
Despite the current difficult economic climate, Trend Micro has experienced strong growth over the past year. Earlier this month the firm announced a 37 per cent rise in net sales at $364 million (€339 million) for the 12 months to December 31st, 2002.
