Write a comment
Newry Chamber of Commerce was among the organisations that helped organise the first All-Island Advanced and Sustainable Manufacturing Networking Expo in Dundalk. The cross-border Expo was hosted by the Louth and Meath Education and Training Board's (LMETB) Advanced Manufacturing Training Centre of Excellence (AMTCE) and is intended to be the first in a series of all-island networking events.
The Expo was a cross-border initiative attended by Erin McGreehan TD, Chair of the Oireachtas Committee on Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science and Dr Caoimhe Archibald MLA, Minister for the Economy. They were met by Martin G. O’Brien, CE and Sadie Ward McDermott, Director of FET at LMETB; Michael Savage CEO of Newry Chamber, Alistair Quinn, Head of Southern Regional Business, Invest NI and Philip Sheridan, Director, AMTCE.
The Expo was organised in collaboration with Invest NI, Belfast Met, SRC, Newry Chamber of Commerce, Bormac, Dundalk Chamber of Commerce, DBEC, North-East Regional Skills Forum and DkIT. The events are planned to alternate between locations on either side of the border.
Dr Archibald said: “Manufacturing is a vital part of our economy, supporting well-paid jobs, driving productivity and helping us deliver a greener economy. That is why advanced manufacturing is one of my priority sectors and why we are investing in the technology, skills and innovation businesses need to grow and compete.”
The Minister continued: “Manufacturing also operates within a highly integrated all-Ireland economy, with shared supply chains, skills and research partnerships. By strengthening that collaboration, we can help businesses tackle shared challenges, embrace new technologies and build a more competitive and resilient manufacturing sector.”
Dr Archibald and Deputy McGreehan also met Ireland’s first ever intake of Robotic and Automation Apprentices, who are in training at AMTCE. LMETB is the first and currently only ETB in Ireland offering the apprenticeship. There are nine male and female apprentices from employers in mining, pharmaceutical, automation, construction and electronic components, and they come from eight counties: Cavan, Dublin, Galway, Laois, Longford, Louth, Meath and Westmeath.
The apprenticeship was developed by an industry consortium in conjunction with LMETB and validated by Quality and Qualifications Ireland (QQI). AMTCE has dedicated robotics and collaborative robotic labs designed to train learners in modern industrial automation. Completing the apprenticeship also provides a potential academic progression opportunity to Southern Regional College in Armagh, to enter the third year of a degree programme.
Deputy McGreehan said: “Advanced manufacturing is about people as much as technology. It is people who develop, operate and adapt new technologies and turn them into commercial opportunities. As Chair of the Oireachtas Committee on Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, it was my pleasure to meet with the first Robotics and Automation Apprentices in AMTCE, Dundalk today.”
She continued: “As the manufacturing sector grows more sophisticated, we need technicians, engineers, data specialists, robotics experts and software developers, and that means backing apprenticeships, further education and lifelong learning. It is vital that SMEs, which don’t have the resources of a multinational to build their own training or R&D facilities, can access these opportunities too.”
Small business representatives, industry figures, researchers, training experts and policy makers attended the Expo to accelerate cross-border collaboration in advanced and sustainable manufacturing. Speakers and panellists presented case studies and cross-border initiatives. Panel discussions covered AI, the circular economy, skills and training, finding and retaining talent, and the digital transformation of the sector. They also looked at what a genuinely connected advanced-manufacturing ecosystem on the island of Ireland would look like and where the strongest opportunities for collaboration lie.
The panel on AI focused on digital twinning and the opportunity to run R&D ‘in silico’, which means performing research, experiments or testing on a computer or through computer simulation. This can massively accelerate what small, resource-constrained companies can do. The panel also discussed open-source tools, open weight models and edge compute, a distributed computing model that brings data processing and storage physically closer to where data is generated. Examples of SMEs already using AI innovatively included affordable, off the shelf computer vision and real-time bespoke assistants with detailed knowledge of the design being manufactured, which can be accessed through natural language prompts on the factory floor.
Thomas Holden, National Technical Manager for Concrete Products at Roadstone, and architect Justin Kinsella, Managing Director and co-founder of HTL.tech, presented the ShoreReefs Waterford Project. It is Ireland’s largest 3D-printed marine biodiversity enhancement scheme for Waterford Council and a working demonstration of what additive construction can do for Irish coastlines. HTL.tech, BAM and Roadstone worked together to re-establish the marine habitat as part of a major expansion of the rail network. The project produced 430 bespoke habitat modules printed in low carbon HTL-Roadstone concrete, with the design tuned zone by zone to match local conditions along the Suir estuary. It created 1505 m² of new, colonisable marine habitat on the wall face and converted 500m of wall to colonisable habitat in five distinct biodiversity zones.
Richard Moore, senior sustainability manager at Terex Corporation, presented a case study on how data, AI and technology are helping to move sustainability from periodic reporting towards more informed, data-driven decision making. Terex operates in ten locations on the island of Ireland, designs, manufactures and supports heavy machinery and industrial equipment, and is one of the region’s largest manufacturing and engineering employers.
A further panel discussed current cross-border developments and initiatives. Edel Treanor, director at Mullan Lighting in Monaghan, which designs and manufactures handcrafted, bespoke and decorative light fixtures, delivered a presentation on its digitalisation process. The company has undertaken a number of successful cross-border initiatives through InterTradeIreland, including the Acumen programme, Co-Innovate and Innovation Boost, and has worked with educational institutions such as Southern Regional College.
Cross-border initiatives in which AMTCE has been involved include the PEACEPLUS funded CyberQuest project, the Five Nations Cyber Initiative, and ongoing collaboration with Belfast Metropolitan College on cross-border cybersecurity networks. A Cyber Academy is due to begin in January 2027 in partnership with Southern Regional College in Armagh.
Martin O’Brien, Chief Executive of LMETB, said: “I want to thank Dr Caoimhe Archibald, Minister DfE and Deputy Erin McGreehan, Chair of the Oireachtas Committee on Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science for their attendance at this key networking Expo on the future of advanced and sustainable manufacturing on the island of Ireland.”
He continued: “At LMETB, we are committed to ensuring that learners have access to the skills, facilities and training needed by industry. By strengthening links between employers and education and training providers, we can develop the talent our industries need to grow and remain competitive. We look forward to continuing this work with our partners in industry, education and government to support a more skilled, innovative and sustainable manufacturing sector.”
The Expo also included tours of AMTCE, live demonstrations and visits to its 3D construction facility in Drogheda. More information is available at www.amtce.ie
