Contact lens maker Johnson & Johnson Vison is to create 200 more jobs at its Limerick factory.
The company said it was investing 35 million euros in the Castletroy operation, which has the potential to create up to 200 new jobs over the next three years.
It already employs 1,600 people at the Limerick factory, which is one of the largest contact lens factories in the world.
The additional investment will allow the company to expand its intraocular lens product portfolio for cataract patients.
Recruitment of 120 additional employees across Johnson & Johnson’s laboratories, automation, engineering and quality control has already begun, he said.
Another 80 will be employed in the construction of an extension to the Limerick plant.
Johnson & Johnson Chief Operating Officer, John Fitzgibbon, said: “Almost 2.2 billion people worldwide experience visual impairment, and approximately 20% (200 million) of people worldwide have vision impairment. vision or blindness caused by uncorrected cataract or refractive error.
“With the growth of our manufacturing operations in Limerick, we are committed to changing these statistics, helping to solve a lifetime of eye health needs with our IOLs (intraocular lenses),” he said.
Minister of State for the Department of Further and Further Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Niall Collins welcomed the investment, saying that “this investment by Johnson & Johnson Vision in its Limerick plant is significant and clearly signals their willingness to drive and commit to expanding their advanced manufacturing footprint in Ireland. ”
Mary Buckley, Executive Director of IDA Ireland, said: “Today’s announcement by Johnson & Johnson Vison Ireland in Limerick is very welcome news for the Mid-West region and follows another significant investment in the company’s Cerenovus campus in Galway last month.
“The availability of a highly talented and skilled workforce in Ireland has enabled Johnson & Johnson’s ambitious expansion plans,” she said.
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