By Business & Finance 
Michael McLoughlin, CEO, ConnectIreland; Emer Cusack, project manager, Growth Markets team, IDA Ireland; and Paul Evans, corporate executive VP, SMK Corporation.
SMK, a multinational electro-mechanical component manufacturer headquartered in Tokyo Japan is to establish a new European headquarters in Dublin.
SMK designs and produces a wide range of products for the electronics sector including connectors and switches, remote control units and touch screens. Demand for SMK products is driven by the requirements of a new generation of communications devices such as smart phones and tablets, as well as a proliferation of pay TV services and ever-increasing electronic content in vehicles. The company works closely with clients in new product development and boasts many household name clients in these sectors.
SMK Electronics (Europe) in Ireland will co-ordinate the activities of the company’s sales and design operations in Europe and will employ seven people initially. The new European HQ will be located at Northwood Business Park and will be overseen by Paul Evans, corporate executive V.
SMK was introduced to Ireland through ConnectIreland, the company responsible for delivering the Government’s Succeed in Ireland initiative, as part of the Action Plan for Jobs, in association with IDA Ireland.
Welcoming the announcement, Minister Richard Bruton TD said: “I am delighted that SMK has chosen Ireland as the location for its new European headquarters. The availability of talent was a key consideration for the company and once again highlights the attractiveness of Ireland’s well educated workforce to foreign direct investment. The announcement is another ConnectIreland project supported by my Department through IDA Ireland and is another example of how companies leading in their field are establishing in Ireland. I wish SMK every success for the future.”
SMK’s Paul Evans added: “We considered a number of locations for our new European headquarters including Germany, England and the Netherlands. We chose Ireland because of the availability of highly skilled professionals and the business friendly environment. ConnectIreland’s support enabled us to establish our new European HQ in Dublin far more quickly than we could have in any other location we considered.
“We expect to create seven jobs in Dublin in the first year and given the rapid growth of our business in Europe, we expect our Dublin HQ to play a central role in our expansion over the next 10 years. As our business in Europe grows, Dublin can expect to benefit from that growth.”
