A vibrant high-tech manufacturing cluster has developed in the Limerick and greater midwest region over the past three decades. “Things have moved on a lot since Analog Devices Ireland was established here in 1976,” says general manager Shane Geary. “There are now 7,500 jobs in high tech manufacturing in the Midwest region and 23,000 in engineering overall. We now have a big cluster in the electronics and high-tech industries. That cluster has raised the waterline for all companies and means we have access to suppliers with high-end engineering skills.”
Skills availability is the key component in the mix. “Regionally based companies want to be sure there are no constraints on the availability of talent,” Geary adds. “We are lucky to have a pipeline of talent from TUS and UL and we are able to recruit abroad as well. The existence of the cluster is certainly attractive for other companies and it just adds to the critical mass of talent in the location.”
Companies in the sector came together to start the Limerick for Engineering initiative, a pioneering collaboration between industry and education and training providers, some years ago. The aim is to increase the quality and quantity of engineering talent — engineers, technicians, and apprentices — available in the region, thus facilitating further growth in the high-tech industry cluster.
Industry partners include Analog Devices, Cook Medical, Optel Vision, Stryker, Takumi Precision, Vistakon, modular Automation and Zimmer, supported by academic partners at TUS and UL and the LCETB.
“This brings together key engineering firms and educational institutions. It showcases the industry and the breadth of talent we have here. We want to attract secondary school children to choose Stem subjects. We are looking at five- to 10-year horizons in terms of talent pipelines to sustain the industry. It’s about going into schools and educating children on Stem pathways. We had 1,000 students at the annual Explore Engineering Showcase event at Limerick Racecourse in May.”
Worlds of engineering
Companies participating in the event demonstrated their leading-edge technologies and provided children, parents and teachers with unique insights into the various worlds of engineering.
Local collaboration is critically important. “We are very fortunate to have really tight relationships between industry and TUS and UL. They have been really responsive to the needs of industry and looking after its skills needs. Also, something we have here in the region is the ability to move quickly and not get bogged down in red tape. The industry cluster benefits from that.”
The cluster also benefits from the region’s value proposition, Geary believes. “When I look back at some of our records from the 1980s, we were looking at things like postage costs as issues. Things have changed dramatically since then. Connectivity is important. Shannon Airport is important, so are midwest to Dublin and Cork connections. They widen the talent pool available to us. Housing challenges are everywhere but the region does have great value proposition. It offers great quality of life and a real choice between rural and urban living. I can cycle to work every day from rural location.”