Medical manufacture

US medical device manufacturer CaridianBCT is investing £16m to establish a facility in Larne, Northern Ireland, creating 235 new skilled jobs over three years.

Invest Northern Ireland is providing more than £1.7m towards the investment, which will aoso go toward training, part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund. The investment will establish the Larne facility as the one of the company’s strategic manufacturing sites.

CaridianBCT intends to expand the Larne facility’s role in the assembly and delivery of its Atreus Whole Blood Processing system.

James McKelvey, managing director of CaridianBCT, Larne, said: ‘Our decision to make this investment reflects our confidence that the Larne operation can continue to make a significant contribution to the company’s global success, particularly in relation to our groundbreaking Atreus system and our innovative wider blood-collection product range.’

Craig Rinehardt, senior vice-president of operations, said: “The Larne site offers a proximity to important European markets such as Germany and Spain where certain customers have already begun using our new Atreus technology and from here we will continue to maximise our global reach.