Waterford's hungry push for industrial development has been redoubled rather than requited by last week's announcement of a £43 million expansion by Bausch & Lomb. The county's various development agencies and groups, as well as its politicians, feel that it is still coming from behind outstripped years ago by the strong growth in high-tech industry and jobs secured by Dublin and other centres.

Tanaiste, Ms Harney's publicity package for the Bausch & Lomb expansion said the project heralded an "industrial renaissance" for Waterford.

She said regional development was a priority to her and the Government. But Waterford's business sector awaits hard evidence that the city and the region are to be allotted the resources, the infrastructural investment, and the promotional priority required to give impetus to its industrial growth.

The 650 Bausch & Lomb jobs are a welcome development from Waterford's premier industry. But observers point out that it does not broaden the industrial base in the area. Fresh players are badly needed to tap the increasingly sophisticated local skill-pool.

Ms Harney's announcement that 1997 has been one of the most active of recent years in terms of first-time visits by overseas companies has merely sharpened awareness locally of the region's deficiencies when trying to attract new industry.

Waterford's Chamber of Commerce puts the focus on two distinct areas of need: improvement in transport infrastructure and urgent investment to facilitate the expansion of Waterford Institute of Technology (WIT).

The Chamber's chief executive, Mr Frank O'Donoghue, says: "The advancement of WIT is seen as critical to the development of the whole region, and the chamber has been reminding the Government parties of their pre-election promises in regard to WIT."

There is a view shared widely in industrial circles that WIT has one of the largest and best computer schools in the country. "And yet we have not attracted any major software company to either the city or the county," said Mr O'Donoghue.

The chamber continues to lobby Government for the completion of the upgrading of WIT. So far, there has merely been a name change and legislation must be expedited which will give WIT the authority to accredit its own awards, it says.

Moreover, although there was a recent general "statement of intent" by Minister of State, Mr Martin Cullen, that substantial funds would be available to WIT over 10 years, the chamber asserts that a phased investment of this money must begin immediately to allow the institute to expand its degree places.

When the many industrial visitors arrive in Waterford, the IDA makes a point of promoting WIT's strength in software courses. The IDA's regional manager, Mr Pat Loftus, underlines the significant influence exerted by the strong development of the institute's degree courses with some 50 per cent of the 6,500 student body now engaged in degree programmes ranging from engineering and computer sciences to business, accountancy, arts and European languages.

the fact that poor road access between their city, the midlands and Dublin is placing Waterford at a disadvantage.

The N9 and N10 urgently need upgrading and this has not been included in the Roads Programme, the Chamber notes.

Mr James Kennedy, significantly, also put the spotlight on Waterford's regional airport as a vital piece of infrastructure.

"As the world moves closer to the reality of the `global village', we simply have to have frequent scheduled flights and easy access to the rest of the world, and that is not the case at present," he said.

He added: "I believe the lack of good connections from Waterford to international [centres] is a negative for the development of further inward investment."

Calling for urgent expansion of the services in and out of the airport, the chamber stresses that this should include an early-morning link with London "many of the multinational companies and also local business and professional people are crying out for this". The chamber is actively supporting the airport company's application to Government for additional funding.

Meanwhile, local IDA executives argue convincingly that there is another, very optimistic side to Waterford's story.

Waterford's IDA industrial estate on the Cork Road was one of the first to be set up in the country and now, 27 years on, it accommodates more than 4,000 workers and is the biggest IDA estate in the country.

It includes some extremely high-skill, high-tech operators. Allied Signal, for example, is the single biggest supplier of impellers for turbo-diesel engines in the world. It also makes aerospace components. Its 450 workers include many engineers with specialist knowledge of materials sciences.

There are precision engineering companies like Hitol Ltd and Turnex Ltd, and the high-purity valve manufacturing plant of Carten Controls Ltd all of which have prestigious international standing.

Mr Loftus, points out that the agency is steadily making available high-tech advance factories a 25,000 sq. ft. high-spec building is already available on the Industrial Park , and there are plans for three more.

Construction of a prestige office development will begin shortly. The IDA has also purchased a 77acre site for the development of a new Technology and Business Park, and it is actively promoting more than 200 acres of land at Belview Port.

The quality products and international marketing activities of the 40 different companies on the existing industrial park are attracting attention and drawing visits by many overseas industrialists.

The region's environmental advantages: its unspoiled and impressive mountains, valleys, rivers and coastline are a major selling point in themselves, says Mr Loftus.

FAS, another agency with a vital role in facilitating new industry, has also developed its training programmes, in-service skills, teleservices and so on. Some 50 per cent of green-field projects coming to Ireland at the moment are involved in international services.

There are many seminal and ground-breaking things happening in Waterford, says Mr Loftus.

From the perceptions advanced on all sides, it seems evident that if the vital issue of access can be resolved, the various strands could come together to provide the region with the elusive breakthrough which can generate a chain reaction of industrial development.