Waterford’s Pharma Industry at a Glance
- Over 4,300 people are directly employed by Pharmaceutical and Medical Device companies in Waterford. Many more are employed indirectly.
- More than 10 companies have manufacturing sites.
We are continually updating this page and try hard to keep this information as accurate as possible. But if you know of a company we’ve missed or see data that needs correction, please contact us.
BTW, if you are interested in a career in the Pharmaceutical or Medtech industries or are considering upskilling for a better job or a promotion, check out our range of pharmaceutical courses.
Top Medical Device Companies in Waterford
- Activities: Medical Devices – Contact Lenses
- Employees in Waterford: 1450
Bausch + Lomb has had a manufacturing facility in Waterford since 1980. Today, the plant is the company’s biggest manufacturing site in the world, and the company is now the biggest private-sector employer in the county.
The Waterford plant supports research and development, as well as the manufacturing of contact lenses and surgical products. There is also a pharmaceutical manufacturing area within the site.
Between 2015 and 2017, the company invested $200m in the Waterford plant, leading to 300 new jobs.
And in 2018, Bausch + Lomb announced a further expansion to the site with the addition of multiple production lines (and approximately 100 new jobs) to support the manufacture of daily disposable contact lenses.
Bausch + Lomb won “Overall Waterford Business of the Year” and “Exporter of the Year” at the 2020 Waterford Business Awards.
Check out this video from IDA Ireland about Bausch + Lomb’s Waterford operations…
- Activities: Medical Devices – Advanced Respiratory & Injectable Devices
- Employees in Waterford: 150
Jabil’s Waterford plant manufactures respiratory and injectable devices for pharmaceutical customers. The site uses “state of the art injection moulding processes and integrated complex automated assembly lines within cleanroom manufacturing environments.”
Jabil has had a manufacturing site in Wicklow since 1980. It was in 2013, that the company announced its investment in Waterford.
- Activities: Medical Devices – Contract Manufacturing
- Employees in Waterford: 140
The Schivo site in Waterford comprises over 80,000 square feet of manufacturing space, plus two clean rooms, a number of application development labs, and over 75 precision machining systems.
They specialise in the contract manufacturing of minimally invasive devices and life science systems.
Top Pharmaceutical Companies in Waterford
- Activities: Pharma – Contract Manufacturing
- Employees in Waterford: 120
EirGen has a purpose-built high containment facility within its Waterford site. Here, it produces high potency solid dose products.
The company offers development and manufacturing opportunities with new active substances, upgrading formulation, and generics.
In 2016, the company announced 200 new jobs as part of an expansion of the current site and the creation of a new development centre.
Check out this video for a look inside Eirgen’s Waterford plant and hear from the CEO…
- Activities: Pharma & BioPharma – Laboratory Services
- Employees in Waterford: 250
Eurofins provides laboratory services to the pharmaceutical industry – serving 18 of the world’s top 20 pharmaceutical companies. The support services span both drug development and ongoing manufacturing.
The company has had a presence in the county since 2011.
In 2016, it announced an expansion of its Waterford site which will see the existing site extended and a second site built, creating 160 new roles – bringing the total site employment to over 500.
- Activities: Pharma & Healthcare – Manufacturing
- Employees in Waterford: 750
GSK is the 9th biggest Pharma company in the world (based on 2019 revenue).
The company produces a wide range of products, including pharmaceuticals, vaccines, and consumer healthcare products.
GSK’s Waterford site has been manufacturing consumer healthcare products for over 30 years. It produces over 6.5 billion Panadol tablets every year – which are then exported to over 70 countries.
The site employs about 10% of Dungarvan’s population. In 2017, GSK announced the opening of a purpose-built biomass energy facility at the site. The facility will use locally sourced wood chips to create carbon-neutral fuel. This is expected to reduce carbon emissions at the site by up to a third.
Check out this video for more information and a look inside GSK’s Waterford site…
- Activities: Pharma & Healthcare – Manufacturing
- Employees in Waterford: 740
Sanofi is the 7th biggest Pharma company in the world (based on 2019 revenue).
The current Waterford site began initially as Genzyme in 2001. In 2011, Genzyme was bought by Sanofi and in 2016, the site changed its name to Sanofi Waterford.
Today, the plant operates 24 hours a day, 7 days per week producing a wide range of products including the insulin product, Lantus.
Over €200m has been invested in the Waterford plant over the last 5 years.
In March 2019, Sanofi was awarded “Overall Waterford Business of the Year” at the Waterford Business Awards.
The overall winner of Waterford Business of the Year is Sanofi #wba19 sponsored by @WaterfordCounci
— LEO Waterford (@LEOWaterford) March 9, 2019
- Activities: Medical Devices – Respiratory Products
- Employees in Waterford: 730
Teva’s Waterford site researches, develops, and manufactures respiratory devices.
In total, it produces approximately 60 million branded and generic inhalers every year, which are then exported to over 30 countries around the world.
Teva has had a presence in Waterford since 1985 and their facility is fully FDA regulated, allowing direct export of their products to the US market.
- Activities: Pharma – Packaging
- Employees in Waterford: 130
West manufacture “integrated containment and delivery systems for injectable medicines”.
In 2018, West expanded its Waterford site. This facility will be a centre of excellence for West’s elastomeric laminate sheeting used in insulin pen injectors, as well as manufacturing other high-value finishing components.
Check out this video of West management talking about this investment in the Waterford area…
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