An Athlone-based pharmaceutical company is to close with the loss of 165 jobs.
Conor Medsystems, which was taken over by pharmaceutical giant Johnson and Johnson in February, blamed the commercial failure of a coronary medical device called the CoStar stent for the closure.
Tests in the US revealed that the stent, a tube which helps the blood to flow through restricted arteries in the heart, proved to be an inferior product to one made by its rival Boston Scientific and that it also slightly increased the risk of heart failure or a repeat procedure after eight months.
The company decided not to seek US Food and Drug Administration approval for the product following year-long clinical trials, although it has already received approval here and until recently it was available in parts of Europe, Asia and Latin America.
The Athlone factory has operated since 1999. Workers were given paid leave two weeks ago after the company withdrew the stent from all its markets.
The announcement was made to staff yesterday morning confirming their worst fears.
Despite the company saying that closure was under "consideration", staff at the plant insisted yesterday that the facility was closing and their jobs were gone.
They have notice of 30 days to negotiate their redundancy packages.
Workers expressed their frustration that despite recent difficulties, Conor Medsystems had continued to recruit staff until last week. One man who had uprooted his family and moved to Athlone last month described the closure as an "absolute tragedy".
Staff were also frustrated that the company had withdrawn the stent after only a year of clinical trials when most major clinical trials last for five years.
They said it was not good enough to simply cease production of the product on the basis of the information available to the company now when further tests could resolve any difficulties involved.
They also expressed frustration that the IDA was investing money into a Johnson and Johnson site in Cashel, Co Tipperary, but Conor Medsystems was prepared to close the facility in Athlone.
The state-of-the-art factory in the IDA Business Park in Athlone includes two clean rooms with three more under construction.
This facility will now be obsolete unless the IDA can attract investment into the business park quickly.
Staff from the IDA met with the company yesterday afternoon to discuss the situation.
Midlands regional director of the IDA Kevin McCarthy said: "We would be immediately seeking alternative investment for the midlands, including Athlone, in the medical and pharmaceutical industries."
However, the workers fear that any future investment may not be quick enough for the 165 staff that lost their jobs yesterday.
Many of them commute from all over the midlands and say that because of the specialised nature of their work, it will take them a long time to get secure employment.
In a statement, Conor Medsystems vice-president Jeff Tillack said: "We very much regret the potential impact of this decision on our staff and their families. Our priority is to treat individuals with respect and dignity."
Mr Tillack emphasised that the closure was difficult because of the tremendous efforts made by everyone in Athlone since 1999 when the facility was established.
The company also said it would put in place an extensive support programme to help employees to find alternative employment.