The Clonakilty-based IT company, e-com interaction, is to increase its workforce to 150 people by the end of next year, the Minister for Agriculture and Food, Mr Walsh, has announced.
At present, the company employs 35 people in Clonakilty. Officially launching its new multilingual call centre yesterday at the West Cork Business Park, Mr Walsh said the number would grow to 60 by next December and 150 a year later.
The company provides third-party contract services for companies in the e-business sector and has been operating in Clonakilty since January of this year.
Start-up costs of €1 million were raised through private funding as well as grant and equity investment from Enterprise Ireland, as part of its policy of assisting high-potential businesses in regional locations.
Mr Walsh said e-com interaction would help the west Cork economy and was the type of growth company the Government wished to attract to the region.
Also yesterday, 11 manufacturing companies in the Macroom area who together employ almost 400 people, announced the formation of a new umbrella group, Macroom and District Manufacturers. The group, which has a combined turnover of €50 million, was formally launched by Munster MEP, Mr Brian Crowley.
Mr Denis McCarthy, who together with Mr Tomás Healy formed the group, said that working as a unit, the companies would have far greater negotiating strength with suppliers.
Members of the new group are: Alisa Systems; Irish Moulded Products, Medco, Pleno Investments, Neville Brothers, Follain, Mark Éire, Ossian, Tasty Wrought Iron, Faul Engineering, and O'Donovan Engineering.