Manufacturing & Supply Chain

Designed to foster collaboration between industry, academia and government agencies, the 2018 Research and Innovation Conference & Exhibition attracted over 1,000 visitors from across the major industrial sectors in Ireland to the Citywest Hotel, Dublin, on Wednesday, March 14th.

The visitors who braved the inclement weather were able to meet with the key organisations that are collaborating to establish Ireland as a global leader in scientific and engineering research, discovery and innovation.

The 2018 Conference & Exhibition was co-located with a number of associated events – The National Health Expo, The National Pharmaceutical & Life Sciences Expo, The National Medtech & Biotech Summit and The National Education, Training & Skills Summit, with delegates free to move between them. An extensive array of Seminars covered themes including Child, Elderly and Disability Care & Treatment; Health Jobs, Skills and Training; Disease Treatment & Clinical Healthcare; Sustainability and Energy; Innovation; and Finance, Supports, Collaboration and Business Intelligence.

Research and innovation is critical to maximising the competitiveness of Irish industry across all sectors. According to research from Enterprise Ireland, Irish companies that continue to investment in research, development and innovation have employment levels 25% above average and exports 30% higher. Furthermore, companies that consistently make significant investments in their innovation have superior sales growth even when the general business climate is challenging. Indeed, business innovation, in terms of developing new products, services and processes, has proved to be beneficial to the profitability of businesses of all sizes and stages of development.

The Event at Citywest featured 150 carefully chosen speakers, including well-respected figures from sectors such as pharma, medtech, biotech, life sciences, energy & environment, food & agri, health, transport, chemical and ICT, who delivered presentations on topical issues, case studies and technical aspects with the aim of equipping listeners with the knowledge necessary to push forward with their own research and innovation agendas, and to be part of creating a more innovative Ireland.

The conference and exhibition provided a valuable insight into the R&D and innovation ecosystem in Ireland, and, with its comprehensive programme of free workshops and key note presentations combined with the 80 exhibitors displaying the latest technological solutions available, was able to offer something of interest and value for all in attendance.