Funding announced for revolutionary technology projects.

Funding has been announced for 12 projects with companies from the south Connemara (IRL) as partners in four of those projects.

Leagan Gaeilge

Tomás Ó Síocháin, Chief Executive of Údarás na Gaeltachta, has welcomed the announcement that three of the authority's client companies - Eirecomposites, HiTech Health Manufacturing and InverMed (all based not far from The Read-out Signpost location) are partners in projects which will receive a share of the Disruptive Technologies Innovation Fund.

This morning the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Simon Coveney T.D., the Minister for Higher and Further Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Simon Harris, T.D. and the Minister of State for Trade Promotion, Digital and Company Regulation, Dara Calleary T.D. announced an allocation of €58.8 million for proposals under the Disruptive Technologies Innovation Fund (DTIF). The aim of the fund is to support investment in the development and deployment of disruptive technologies and applications on a commercial basis.

Eirecomposites, based in Indreabhán, is a partner in the NSPCCA project, which is developing communication methods and satellites in space, jointly with the University of Ireland, Dublin, the company Mbryonics in Galway and other parties. Funding of almost €8 million has been announced for them today.

Eirecomposites, together with the University of Galway and Microfocus Galway Ltd, is also involved in the Digi-Stent project, which has received funding of €4 million, to create wireless digital stents.

HiTech Health Manufacturing has received €6.5m to develop CellConnect, a project that will capture data from every stage of the cell manufacturing process; the Gaeltacht company, located at An Tulach, is collaborating with the University of Galway and with Odyssey Validation Consultants Ltd.

Selio System, a pre-biopsy intervention device, has also received €4 million; Inver Med, based in Indreabhán, is jointly involved in this project with Trinity College, the University of Limerick and Selio Medical Ltd.

"This is great news for the companies involved in the projects that received funding today. It it notable that a company from the Conamara Gaeltacht is involved in a third of the groundbreaking projects which have been recognised as exceptional." said Tomás Ó Síocháin of the Údarás. "This is a great achievement for the companies themselves and also for this small Gaeltacht area. It shows that companies in Gaeltacht regions can be on a par with pioneering companies in Ireland and around the world, if they emphasize constant innovation, research and development."

"Our sincere congratulations to Eirecomposites, InverMed and HiTech Health Manufacturing. Údarás na Gaeltachta aims to ensure that the Gaeltacht is at the cutting edge of innovation; there are other companies emerging across the Gaeltacht regions, which will be just as creative and innovative as the ones we recognise today, and we at Údarás na Gaeltachta will be there to assist them."

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