RAM SFI Research Centre for Medical Devices at NUI Galway has received a significant funding award of €46,372,380 from Science Foundation Ireland. The investment was announced on Monday by Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Simon Harris TD.
The announcement demonstrates the Government’s strong commitment to reinvesting in CÚRAM and the MedTech industry in the West and Ireland, supporting the continuation of strong academic, industry and clinical collaborations that are central to CÚRAM’s work. The investment will support up to 520 researchers at CÚRAM over the next six years.
CÚRAM’s strategic mission is to establish a world-leading Irish Medical Device Research and Development Centre in the development of diagnostic devices, biomedical implants, cell-device and drug-device combination products to address unmet clinical needs. In doing so, the Centre partners with local Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs ) and multinational medical device and pharmaceutical companies to increase employment in Ireland.
CÚRAMs Research Programme aims to enhance researchers’ creative, entrepreneurial, and innovative potential and focus on the translation of key CÚRAM technologies into clinical devices. Research is focused on three clinical areas of chronic cardiovascular, neural and soft tissue pathologies. These pillars have been structured to meet patients’ current clinical needs with the aim of developing devices to improve daily management of chronic conditions. Research activities are enhanced through entrepreneurship and public engagement programmes and are informed by market, patient and clinical needs.
Centre growth
The first phase of CÚRAM, established in 2015, has positioned the Centre well to exploit its innovation and commercial potential. The centre has had many significant scientific accomplishments in Phase One that contribute to advances in knowledge and the development of medical devices for the treatment of unmet clinical needs. Based at NUI Galway, CÚRAM is becoming recognised globally as a ‘go-to’ Centre for undertaking medical device research.
The collaborative partnerships established to date indicate the value that the industry is already seeing in its partnerships with CÚRAM. CÚRAM currently employs 190 researchers in 10 partner institutes and to date has 38 industry partners that include 15 multinational corporation partners and 23 SME’s . A total of 150 projects to date have been completed resulting in 43 patent applications; 1,712 journal publications; 10 licence agreements; and five spin-outs.
In addition CÚRAM’s funding has been matched by its researchers securing over €40 million in EU grant funding in its first six years. President of NUI Galway, Professor Ciarán Ó hÓgartaigh, said this reinvestment to sustain CÚRAM in the next phase recognises and respects its standing as a global leader in medical device research in and for the world.
“We know now more than ever that research in health and wellbeing is critical to our humanity. The values of excellence, openness, respect and sustainability are strategic values to which we aspire at NUI Galway. CÚRAM’s dedication to world class research and development of medical devices to treat a diverse range of health needs in society is testament those values,” he said.
Professor Abhay Pandit, Scientific Director, CÚRAM, NUI Galway, said the transition from a Centre having a highly diverse set of projects, to a focused Centre with a balanced portfolio of prototype devices will be exciting, challenging and rewarding to our ecosystem.” Today’s Government announcement sees an investment of €193 million in five SFI Research Centres that includes CÚRAM for a further six years. This investment by Science Foundation Ireland will support approximately 1,060 graduate and Post-Doctoral students and Research Fellows employed by the Centres.
Senator Aisling Dolan, Fine Gael spokesperson for Science, Innovation & Research spoke about the significance of this award for Galway and the west.
‘From my previous roles working in SFI, I worked on the Research Centres programme and I have also worked with Professor Abhay Pandit and his impressive team at NUI Galway. I am absolutely delighted to see CÚRAM – the Centre for Medical Devices win this multi-million euro award for the next 5 years. It is testament to the leadership, the quality of research at NUI Galway and the achievements with industry and clinical partners over the last 5 years. The work that went into this application and the review process would have taken over a year – it is absolutely incredible as it was in no way guaranteed.
Minister for State Hildegarde Naughton said that Galway is a university town and prides itself on the quality of its graduates.
“More particularly, we are world leaders for our ability to provide excellent employees for the Med Tech industry locally. This major funding announcement will ensure we will continue in that tradition, and better it. These are excellent jobs in an expanding industry, and I am very pleased that Minister Harris has acceded to my request that this be acknowledged in today’s Science Foundation Ireland Research Centre funding,” she said.
