The Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI), the applied research arm of the Georgia Institute of Technology (both Atlanta) is betting on Ireland as its gateway to the European market as it sets up its first applied research facility outside the U.S. later this year in the city of Athlone.

Over the next five years, the Irish operation plans to build up a portfolio of research programs and collaborations with industry, which will include medical devices, predicted as valued in excess of $24 million. At full operation, the facility is expected to employ 50 researchers.

David Parekh, deputy director of GTRI, chief architect of the Ireland initiative over the past two years, explained to Medical Device Daily that the country – while having a population the size of Atlanta, or about 4 million – has made significant investments in its universities and economy in recent years. That investment and openness to business innovation has enticed companies, large and small, to put new operations there, the major names including Medtronic (Minneapolis), Boston Scientific (Natick, Massachusetts) and Johnson & Johnson (New Brunswick, New Jersey).

It is with such companies that in some instances GTRI is already partnered, and it hopes to partner with them in Ireland as well. Specifically, the focus will be on biotechnology/biopharma initiatives and information technology. GRTI's biotech research will focus primarily on medical devices for preventive and predictive medicine and manufacturing of medical devices.

“While we can contribute to the things like surgery that may involve larger scale technology solutions, what we really want to focus on is on the front end – things that would be in the home or clinic,“ Parekh told MDD.

To do this, he said GTRI will take advantage of the Georgia Tech's “engineering, sensor and other expertise“ and “work alongside companies [that] understand medical problems“ to find faster ways to conduct tests.

“So instead of a live culture to come back in a couple of days or weeks, you might be able to do something quickly in the home,“ he said.

Another example Parekh cited, where GTRI might have something to contribute, is with physical therapy in the home, such as providing a video Internet “so that doctors can actually work with patients in the home.“

He added that the emphasis will be on the earliest stages of the healthcare continuum. “What we're trying to do is to provide more and more capability at the front-end to help reduce the cost of healthcare.“

GTRI is interested in working with those companies and “take time to listen first, understand where they see their market going – and then see where our skill set as a university could have an impact“ in order to develop a long-term partnership with them.

GTRI also will have a focus on radio frequency identification technology and other advanced technologies in communication, but he said will depend in large part on “which ones make the most sense to the corporations we work with there,“ Parekh said.

Athlone is between Dublin on the east coast and Galway on the west coast of the island nation. Elan Pharmaceutical and Ericsson are both headquartered in Athlone, according to GTRI, and other major corporations have plans to come to the region.

The fact that so many big-name companies either have or are interested in locating there is that this country, once so poor, has taken big strides to turn around its economy with a business-friendly attitude, Parekh said.

In the past, educated natives would have to seek work in other countries due to the stagnant economy. But Ireland now is making a $3 billion investment in research universities over a 10-year period. The country also made attending high school free, as in the U.S., but also attendance at its colleges or universities free to its citizens.

Ireland has also made “significant funds“ available for investment and applied research and development, including such initiatives as creating the Science Foundation Ireland in 2000 – similar to the National Science Foundation in the U.S. and formation of the Ireland Development Agency, which, he said, is “part of the Irish government“ and “concentrates on direct investment by multinationals.“

The country also has the lowest corporate tax structure of any in Europe. All of these initiatives combined have made it the second wealthiest country in Europe, just behind Luxembourg, he said.

“I think within five years, you'll be seeing some major outcomes of this,“ Parekh said. “What we're setting is expectation. In reality, there will be some things you see in the first year, where we've already been doing some pre-work.“

Dr. Stephen Cross, Georgia Tech vice president and GTRI director, said, “GTRI Ireland is an integral part of GTRI's plan to develop international operations and build long-term relationships with industrial partners by providing innovative solutions through customer-focused R&D. This initiative directly supports Georgia Tech's vision to define the technological university of the 21st century.“