By Business & Finance 
The lifesciences company employs more than 2,000 people across Ireland
Global life-science company, Allergan, headquartered in Ireland, announced a €65 million capital investment programme for 2019 to facilitate the continued expansion of the company’s laboratories and manufacturing campuses at Westport in Co. Mayo and Clonshaugh, Dublin.
The Westport facility has created 63 new jobs, bringing total employment in Ireland to more than 2,000 across the country. One in ten employees in Allergan’s global workforce is based in Ireland.
Speaking of the announcement, An Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar, said:
This is great news for Westport and for Mayo and reinforces the region’s deserved reputation as a location for investment and innovation. It is further evidence of the confidence international companies like Allergan continue to have in Ireland.
40 years of Allergan in Ireland
Allergan operates four facilities in Ireland – two manufacturing operations, one at Clonshaugh, Dublin and one in Westport, Co. Mayo – as well as an international supply chain office in Earlsfort Terrace, Dublin and a facility in Galway. The Westport and Clonshaugh facilities develop and manufacture a range of branded medicines primarily for the export market.
Allergan’s Westport campus is the largest and most complex in Allergan’s global network. Encompassing a pharmaceuticals facility, two biologics plants and an ocular implant facility, and is responsible for the global supply of flagship Allergan product Botox and manufactures a range of eye care products.
Welcoming the investment, Heather Humphreys T.D., Minister for Business, Enterprise & Innovation, said:
Allergan has a long proud history in Ireland stretching back over 40 years and employ over 2,000 staff here at their 4 sites. This latest investment reaffirms their commitment to Westport, and it enhances Ireland’s reputation at the forefront of the Lifesciences sector.
Allergan’s future plans
Speaking about the investment, Martin Shanahan, CEO of IDA Ireland, said:
Allergan’s commitment to Ireland has been exemplary and we warmly welcome this continued growth and expansion in Westport and Dublin. This latest €65 million investment brings Allergan’s total investment in Ireland to in excess of €670 million, which is a considerable vote of confidence in Ireland as a place to do business and in the IDA’s regional development strategy.
The investment in Westport focuses on four key area – two new manufacturing suites in its biologics facility to provide the capability to introduce new product formats for one of Allergan’s products, and the launch of a new product currently in development, as well as the completion of a new state-of-the-art microbiology and cell-based laboratory. The completion of the new biologics facility – which represents a total investment of more than €140 million – is in the final stages of qualification and regulatory approval before commencing commercial production.
At its ocular implant facility in Westport, Allergan is introducing automated manufacturing processes using high-end robotics. This new technology could be used to produce products that have the potential to revolutionise the treatment of common eye conditions such as glaucoma. The company is also upgrading its existing manufacturing capabilities and capacity for the introduction of new eye care products due to launch in the coming years.
Investment at the Clonshaugh facility in Dublin, which encompasses two manufacturing facilities and the plc head office, will focus on expanding specialised manufacturing capability for new product development and the launch of new solid dose products currently in development.
