Pharma boom and quality drive bring 13% growth to IAM
Dublin-based cargo general sales agent IAM has reported a growth of 13% in traffic for the first quarter of 2004, compared to the same period in 2003.
Against a backdrop of falling exports due to the migration of some high-tech manufacturing to lower-cost locations (16% decrease in total exports from Ireland in 2003 from 2002), IAM's performance was initially buoyed up by successfully increasing market share for the 12 carriers it represents.
Now, the beginning of a surge in pharmaceuticals manufacturing has created further air cargo traffic, contributing a large proportion of IAM's growth.
Ireland is a major global centre for pharmaceuticals, with 13 of the world's top 15 companies - including Allergan, Bausch and Lomb, Pfizer and GlaxoSmithKlein - having operations here.
Eighty-three overseas companies operate 126 plants in Ireland, employing 17,000 people and exporting goods valued at €33bn per annum.
The sector is showing annual growth of over 11%, with over half its output destined for the rest of Europe.
New pharma-related investments already under way run to tens of millions of euro, with hundreds of new jobs being created in the coming months.
The Wyeth plant in Dublin (due to be completed in 2005) will be the largest biopharm site in the world, it is claimed.
IAM managing director Ian McCool says: "Ireland's manufacturing base has changed dramatically over the past three years.
“Computer hardware and software manufacturing was a key employer and contributor to the air cargo industry.
“But there have been a number of well-known high-tech departures, mostly those that use manual automated processes.
“This has made a serious dent in total air freight volumes, and some of what is left has transferred from air to sea in order to cut costs.
"Fortunately, there has been a shift of focus to the pharmacutical and healthcare industry, which has started to boom in Ireland.
“This sector is more dependant upon the highly-educated and skilled labour pool for which Ireland is well-known.
“Ireland offers a stable, cost-effective, English-speaking base which is ideally located to service the whole European market."
