US semiconductor firm Hittite Microwave Corporation is to create 30 jobs in Cork as it establishes an international operations centre there and invests €4 million in research and development.

The company designs and manufactures high frequency, analogue and mixed signal electronics components.

Eleven people will be employed at the new operations centre, which will manage the company’s non-US business. A global supply chain and finance team will also be located in Cork.

A further 19 jobs will be created as a result of R&D activities, and it is expected the Cork facility will design high performance components for use in telecommunications and sensor systems.

The new managing director of the Cork operation Jason Lynch said the investments were “very exciting developments” for Hittite Microwave.

“The choice of Cork as the location for R&D activities is due to a combination of the availability of world-class engineers to contribute to the execution of the company’s global R&D strategy and the proximity to the semiconductor and integrated circuit design capabilities in Tyndall Institute, University College Cork and Cork Institute of Technology,” he said. “Meanwhile, the new international operations centre will bring us closer to our customers and will have responsibility for growing our international business.”

The move is being supported by the Government through IDA Ireland.

Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton welcomed the investment, describing it as “great vote of confidence in Cork and in Ireland”.

“This is an innovative US semiconductor company deciding that Cork is the place to carry out very significant research activities due to the presence of high-end research institutes and the availability of talent,” he said.