New €12m GSK facilities open in Cork

February 29, 2016February 28, 20162309 Views

Pharmaceutical giant GSK has just opened two new facilities at its site in Cork.

Employing about 450 employees at the Cork site the global healthcare company now employs over 1,800 staff in Ireland.

GSK has now invested over €700m in the Cork site since its inception in 1974. Last year, GSK invested €30million in R&D in Ireland, which has contributed significantly to the company’s global success in scientific innovation.

Kevin O’Keefe, head of engineering at GSK Cork, said the kilo scale facility was a new opportunity for GSK in Cork. “The plant will expand our operating scale to allow us introduce new, targeted medicines that require highly specialised manufacturing equipment. This investment opens up new potential for Cork to produce these in the future,” he said.

GSK site director, Joe Power, described the investment as “substantial” and said it “demonstrates GSK’s strong commitment to our Cork site.”

“It’s a wonderful endorsement of the world-class technical capability we have here, and will work to attract new business for the operation,” Mr Power said.

“It will also be very rewarding for our employees, knowing the difference they will be making to patients all over the world, who will ultimately take the medicines that started out here in Cork.” GSK said it had now invested €700m in the Cork site, since it opened in 1974, and that it had invested €30m in R&D in Ireland last year alone.

The new investments – a €9.5m Kilo Scale Facility and a €2.5m Technical Development Laboratory – were opened by Roger Connor, GSK’s Global Manufacturing Supply President and Joe Power, GSK Cork Site Director.

The GSK Ireland IMPACT Awards which will award up to FIVE community- based healthcare charities with €10,000 each has made its call for entries.

GSK today launched its second annual GSK Ireland IMPACT Awards, designed to recognise and reward community-based charities who contribute to the improvement of people’s health and wellbeing in Ireland. There are thousands of “unsung healthcare heroes” all over Ireland: charities who are right at the heart of Irish communities making a real difference that we never get to hear about.

This will be the second year of the GSK Ireland IMPACT awards. The program is an expansion of the global healthcare company’s IMPACT awards programme which has been running in the UK and

USA for nearly 20 years. Up to five winning charities will receive €10,000 each in unrestricted funding through the awards, while five runner-up charities will receive €2,000 each. In addition to the prize money, winning charities will also receive a video and photography package.

Claire Taaffe, Communications Director for GSK, said: “We want to build on the success of last year’s awards, and are encouraging even more charities to enter this year. Healthcare charities tackle some of society’s most difficult, often overlooked challenges. GSK wants to champion these charities, so many of whom are at the heart of Irish community health and support them to continue their great work.”

CEOof The Wheel, Deirdre Garvey and judging panel member commented: “Right across Ireland, there are hundreds of small charities who are making a real impact to their communities. Very often, it is these small charities who are struggling for resources. The GSK Ireland Impact Awards will give these groups a great opportunity to apply for much needed funding but also to get the recognition they so rightly deserve.”

SineadGrennan, CEO of Sonas APC, one of last year’s winners commented, “Winning a GSK Impact award was fantastic recognition for us and the work that we do but it even more importantly allowed us expand this and bring our services to an even wider group of people who live with dementia and their care partners. I would encourage charities to enter: the application itself is a very useful process and you never know, you just might win..