Medical device group VistaMed has announced that it will add 100 jobs to its Irish workforce over the next two years.
VistaMed is owned by German group Freudenberg Medical, with managing director Patrick Mulholland, who founded the business in 1999, retaining a 10 per cent shareholding.
It makes tubes and catheters for diagnostic and minimally invasive surgical procedures in the areas of cardiology, urology, endoscopy, neurology and pain management for major medtech companies.
VistaMed said it currently employs 525 people at its manufacturing plants in Carrick-on-Shannon and in Roosky, Co Roscommon, as well as an R&D innovation centre in the Leitrim town. The new jobs will be based in Carrick-on-Shannon.
“This latest jobs announcement is in direct response to the strong demand for development and manufacturing capabilities in VistaMed from existing and new customers,” said Mr Mulholland. “This is an exciting time in the continued development of our company. Many of the devices we develop offer exceptional opportunities for engineers to gain experience working with the most innovative products to come on the market.”
He said the “significant expansion” would see positions created for management, engineers, technicians, operators, automation, quality-control and validation personnel and in administration.
Commitment
Tánaiste Leo Varadkar said he was "really pleased" to see the company expanding in Leitrim.
“This significant expansion demonstrates Vestment’s continued commitment to Carrick-on-Shannon, where it was founded and underscores Ireland’s position as a global hub for the world’s leading medtech companies,” said the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment.
The Minister of State at the Department, Robert Troy, said VistaMed was an industry leader, and its decision to expand in Leitrim was "a strong endorsement of the talent and resources in the region".
IDA Ireland chief executive Martin Shanahan noted that VistaMed was a significant employer in Co Leitrim.
“Its strategy for its Irish operations is most welcome,” he said. “VistaMed is a member of a strong medtech cluster of companies in the northwest that benefit from the region’s highly skilled and talented workforce.”
In its most recent accounts, for 2019, VistaMed reported a 49 per cent slide in profits to €3.3 million after a global downturn in demand for one of its devices led to a 17 per cent fall in sales to €29.5 million.
