It is clear to most people in Galway that the medical device industry plays a fundamental role in the economic fabric of the city. Indeed, while visitors to the city may be surprised to overhear terms like ‘stent’, ‘biomedical device’ or ‘catheter’ rising out of countless conversations on Shop Street on Saturday afternoon, it is hardly surprising to locals who know that more than 6,000 are employed in the medical device sector in Galway. Indeed, if we look at the number of people indirectly employed this figure rises to about 10,000. No doubt every Galwegian knows someone who works in the medical device industry or a related industry.
However, while many may know some basic facts about medical devices, few take the time to look at exactly what is involved in this industry. What is produced in the large multi national corporations located here? What makes Galway so popular with these companies, how do we compare to other cities internationally and what are we, as a community, doing to maintain this thriving industry in Galway?
In an effort to answer some of these questions and to look at current and future trends of biomedical research and development in Galway, staff and students in the National Centre for Biomedical Engineering Science (NCBES ) at NUI Galway will focus on key aspects of this industry in this series of articles over the coming months.
It is hoped that these articles will shed light on the products which are generated in Galway, reveal the science and engineering behind these products, and highlight the role which scientists and engineers are playing within the University to further develop this industry and put Galway firmly on the global medical technology map for the future.
Large medical device manufacturing plants have established in Galway to produce a wide range of goods. Generally these include implantable devices such as stents which are small mesh tubes that are used to support narrowed or weakened arteries in the body. Products also include respiratory devices such as nebulisers to deliver fine sprays to the lungs and diagnostics devices that can measure the progression of medical conditions in minutes. A significant number of companies that conduct testing on these medical devices, ensuring the efficacy and safety of the products, are also located in Galway.
The list goes on, however many companies based in Galway produce single components of the products listed above. These precisely engineered parts are assembled, tested and packaged into the final product for sale or export. The medical device industry therefore, is interdependent on other medical companies with a large market for specific medical products resulting in a tendency to locate in close proximity of one another. Galway was fortunate in having attracted a couple of large medical device companies in the 1980s. This subsequently attracted further supporting industries. Currently, there are about 140 medical device companies in Ireland providing almost 25,000 jobs. Fourteen of the top 25 medical device companies in the world have located in Ireland and many of these are based in Galway. However this critical mass should not be taken for granted. The industry needs to be continually fostered to maintain this position
In an effort to maintain and indeed build upon this position, the Irish taxpayer has invested significantly in science and technology over the past decade to provide expertise, knowledge and facilities and to conduct research and development into medical technologies to underpin the medical device industry in Galway and nationally.
The National Centre for Biomedical Engineering Science (NCBES ) is central to this biomedical device hub. Part of the work of the NCBES is research and development of medical devices, diagnostics, and pharmaceutical delivery products. NCBES was established at NUI Galway in 1999 to develop innovative therapeutic solutions to current medical challenges including cardiovascular disease, orthpaedics, reproductive medicine and cancer.
Similar to the way in which the industry has evolved in Galway, the NCBES now includes several research groups which each provides a valuable component in the process to develop medical devices. These include the NFB which develop implantable biomaterials, REMEDI which develops stem cell technologies, the Glycosicence Group investigating smart sensors to detect the presence of chronic diseases and infections and the Molecular Diagnostics group which has developed technologies for the detection and identification of bacteria.
In the coming issues, this series will describe the current state of the medical device industry in Galway and investigate what we are doing to nurture the industry through research and development carried out at NUI Galway.
