National Institute for Bioprocessing Research and Training Facility Breaks Ground in Ireland

A ground breaking ceremony for the commencement of construction of the National Institute for Bioprocessing Research and Training (NIBRT) at Belfield Innovation Park in Dublin was held on November 29. The investment, in the region of €50 million, is funded by IDA Ireland.

NIBRT is an independent national institute owned by the collaborating academic institutions—University College Dublin, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin City University, and Institute of Technology Sligo—and run by an industry-focused board. Its training and research programs have been underway since NIBRT’s founding in 2006, using the facilities at the four colleges and in conjunction with other training and education establishments throughout Ireland.

The new NIBRT facility will include state-of-the-art dedicated training facilities, aimed at ensuring Ireland has a specialized workforce to capture this growing sector, and its scale-up expertise and leading edge equipment will help the industry to solve its technical challenges and improve its processes.

The biopharmaceutical sector was identified as a key focus area for Ireland’s future development by the Irish government’s Technology Foresight study in 1998. That report noted that as traditional pharmaceutical companies expand into biopharmaceuticals, new skills sets are required to make the transition This assessment prompted the government to invest in supporting the industry by helping the workforce pool develop industry relevant skills and by supporting bioprocess research aimed at improving quality and yield.