Global CRO Icon has launched a new global innovation hub that will create 200 new jobs in Ireland.

The hub will foster development of new technologies and clinical trial processes to enable faster access to large volumes of clinical data and enable clinical trial personnel to derive better insights from the data. The 200 new jobs will include roles in IT, data analytics, clinical science, project management, finance and human resources.

Ciaran Murray, CEO of Icon, said, “Since our foundation in Dublin in 1990, Icon has grown to become a global leader in clinical research, employing 11,000 highly-skilled professionals in 40 countries. We have successfully built relationships with all of the world’s top biopharma companies and have been at the forefront of innovation in the design and conduct of global clinical trials. As innovation plays an increasingly important role in improving the outcomes of clinical trials, we are excited to reinforce our commitment to that goal by locating our global innovation hub in Ireland, one of the leading R&D and innovation centers in the world.”

The Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Richard Bruto, TD, said, “As I have said from the start of the Action Plan for Jobs process in 2012, our key aim is to create a powerful engine of Irish enterprise alongside the strong multinational sector we have built up. Icon is a great example of what we are trying to achieve—an Irish company, operating in 40 countries around the world, delivering cutting-edge services to some of the world’s biggest businesses and employing increasing numbers of people in Ireland.

“Today’s announcement that Icon is creating an extra 200 jobs in Ireland—split roughly evenly between Dublin and Limerick—which will take its total employment to 1,200 here, is a huge boost and a great example of what is possible from companies like this,” said Bruto.

Julie Sinnamon, CEO Enterprise Ireland, said, “Enterprise Ireland is committed to working with companies like Icon to help them innovate and internationalize technologies to support the design, implementation, management and interpretation of clinical trials throughout the world. I warmly welcome this exciting new investment, which will expand Ireland’s capabilities in the field of data analytics and Big Data management in the life sciences sector.”