Business & Finance

Feasibility Study Grants

Feasibility Study Grants are designed to assist the promoter with researching market demand for a product or service and examining its sustainability. It includes assistance with innovation including specific consultancy requirements, hiring of expertise from third level colleges, private specialists, design and prototype development. The maximum Feasibility Study Grant payable shall be 50% of the investment or €15,000 whichever is the lesser. Expenditure may be considered under the following headings: Market Research - Consultancy Costs - Technical Development/Prototype/ Innovation - Salary/Own Labour Research - Miscellaneous Costs Please contact Wexford LEO for an application form for the Feasibility Study Grant. Phone: 053 919 6020. Email: info@leo.wexfordcoco.ie n

Business supports

The Business Expansion Grant is designed to assist a business in its growth phase after the initial 18 month start-up period. Sole traders, partnerships or limited companies that fulfill the following criteria can apply: - Located and operating within the LEO geographic area. - A business, which, on growth, will have the capacity to progress to the Enterprise Ireland portfolio - A business employing up to 10 employees - A manufacturing or internationally traded service business - A domestically traded service business with the potential to trade internationally. For more information and how to apply click here: https://www.localenterprise.ie/Wexford/Financial-Supports/Business-Expansion-Grant/ The Agile Innovation Fund is now available for small businesses: Introduced by Enterprise Ireland, the Agile fund will help clients of LEO Wexford respond more quickly to market opportunities and challenges like Brexit. Offering fast-track approval and a streamlined online application process, the new Agile Innovation Fund will allow companies to access up to 45% or 50% in support for product, process or service development projects with a total cost of up to €300,000. For more information click: https://www.localenterprise.ie/Wexford/Financial-Supports/Agile%20Innovation%20Fund/ n

Green for Micro

Sign up for The Local Enterprise Office Green For Micro programme – helping your business prepare for the low carbon, more resource efficient economy of the future. Book Now: https://bit.ly/3zW6RBn This FREE initiative is available to companies with up to ten employees, and provides the mentorship and technical support your business needs to go green, covering such as resource efficiency, understanding your carbon footprint, reducing costs and implementing an environmental management system. n

BD Enniscorthy (formerly Clearstream Technologies) cel South East Radio and food by Jack’s Burgers. Above lef last 25 years – Anne Doyle, Kathleen Nolan, Bernie Higgi George Lawlor (Chairman of Wexford Co. Council), and G Frank Holion, Berta Klak, Francis White and Gemma O’B

25 years a

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Left: Margaret Nolan (Senior Operations Supply Chain Manager) and Martin Murphy (Manager New Product Introductions).

Left: Niall Byrne, D Nolan, Rebecca Co and Mollie Morris

Right: Jack Dav Andrea Kearne Stephanie Rona Chloe Millar an Helen Bolger

Far right: Lee Hy (South East Radio Martin Murphy

lebrated its 25th Anniversary on 20th July 2022 with an outdoor event for staff with entertainment by ft: Site Director Ger Reynolds with four members of staff who have been with the company for the ins and John Murray. Above centre: Martin Murphy (Manager New Product Introductions), Cllr Ger Reynolds (Site Director). Above right: Forming an orderly queue at Jack’s Burgers were Brien, with Jack Dempsey and James Hayes of Jack’s Burgers.

at BD Enniscorthy

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Above: Mary Dunne and Siobhan Kelly. Below: Karen Byrne and Claire Sweeney.

Inset photo: Site Director Ger Reynolds with Frank Corcoran, proprietor Slaney News.

BD Enniscorthy (formerly Clearstream Technologies) celebrated its 25th Anniversary on 20th July 2022 with an outdoor food and entertainment event for staff. Above: Site Director Ger Reynolds (centre) with four members of staff who have been with the company for the last 25 years L-R: Kathleen Nolan, Anne Doyle, Bernie Higgins and John Murray. A fifth staff member, Louise Carley, has also served 25 years.

Enniscorthy’s biggest employer celebrates 25 years of success

The BD (Becton Dickinson) plant in Enniscorthy recently celebrated 25 years of success in the town.

Formerly known as Clearstream, BD is the largest employer in Enniscorthy with almost 500 staff spread over two buildlings on their campus at the Old Dublin Road.

The business designs, develops and manufactures innovative and minimally invasive medical devices associated with various surgical procedures particularly in vascular intervention. The business is ever-evolving and its offering continues to diversify and enhance its reputation for excellence both within the BD community and worldwide. Its R&D section in Enniscorthy is headed up by local man Sean Wall. At a recent event to celebrate their first 25 years, the Slaney News was delighted to meet Ger Reynolds who is the Site Director and is a local man from Wexford town where he attended St Peter’s College. He is ten years at the Enniscorthy site starting as Manufacturing Manager before becoming Site Director (Director of Operations). Ger is confident that “as we look to the future we would expect that we will continue to be a success story here in Enniscorthy over the next 25 years”. Ger says that while many things have changed over the years, one aspect of the company that has remained constant is the quality of the people working there. At the celebratory event we met four staff members who have there for the whole 25 years – Kathleen Nolan, Bernie Higgins, John Murray and Anne Doyle who were each presented with a gift from Ger Reynolds to acknowledge their commitment and service.

The BD journey started in Enniscorthy in September 1996 when the first eleven staff went as a group to New York for training and then started making stents by hand in Enniscorthy in January 1997. Internationally, BD is now in 77 manufacturing sites in 50 countries worldwide employing 75,000 staff. Four of those sites are in Ireland: Dublin South, Drogheda, Limerick and Enniscorthy. The staff of BD are always active in supporting local charities including ‘Kit Out the Refuge’. Wexford Women's Refuge is delighted with this support which it receives from BD. n

Meet Wexford’s National Women’s Enterprise Day Leading Light: Laura Sinnott of Wexford Home Preserves.

Laura’s career first began in the hospitality industry, where she worked in successful hotels and gained valuable lessons in quality control and food preparation, as well as a passion for customer service excellence. For some time she also worked in Bosch and Lomb in Waterford, where she built experience in devising and maintaining processes that have been key to her success over the years.

In 2008, Laura and her husband decided they wanted to set up a business and were on the lookout for an opportunity. Tom’s aunt Ellen had a small scale cottage business creating jams in Our Lady’s Island, Wexford. The quality of the jam was exceptional and Ellen had built a loyal customer base. When Ellen retired, Laura and Tom offered to buy the business with the intention of delivering the products to a wider audience while still retaining the original values of local, quality and integrity.

Since then, Wexford Home Preserves has gone from strength to strength and currently employs 14 staff at their premises in New Ross. They produce a wide range of quality sweet and savoury preserves which are available nationwide. Over 100 national and international food awards have been won by the company, including the coveted 3 gold stars in the International Great Taste Awards three times and gold in the World Marmalade Awards. Laura and Tom also have appeared several times on national television, sharing the story of their business – on Nationwide and Local Heroes with Joe Duffy.

To find out more about Wexford Home Preserves, please visit their website: www.wexfordpreserves.ie n

Rosslare Europort – major works to commence later this year

Every monthly issue of the Slaney News we seem to be reporting on positive news for Rosslare – a new ferry service, new infrastructure for the port, etc, and this issue is no exception! Wexford TD and Minister of State for Law Reform James Browne TD has confirmed that the government is prioritising the redevelopment of Rosslare Europort. Works related to the redevelopment of the port are expected to get underway before the end of 2022. In December 2021, Minister Browne and government colleagues confirmed that the OPW will develop new infrastructure at Rosslare Europort on behalf of the Revenue Commissioners, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and the HSE. The border control post, known as Terminal 7 at Rosslare Europort, will consist of 19 buildings, associated enabling works and an access road. The redevelopment includes a new Garda station, agriculture inspection facilities and customs posts. “My government colleagues and I are eager to see redevelopment works at Rosslare Europort get underway. Since the pre-tender process got underway in January 2022, the OPW now expects to issue the tender documentation to the market in the third quarter of this year. Once this stage has been completed, the OPW intends to complete the procurement process and commence works by the end of 2022.

“The works serve as a major investment in a border control post at Rosslare Europort to facilitate East/West trade through the port. The volume of traffic using the port since Brexit has increased. The redevelopment works involve the replacement of a number of state buildings. “Using funding from the EU’s Brexit Adjustment Reserve Fund, the works will develop Rosslare Europort as a strategic port for our country, and my government colleagues will continue to prioritise the construction of this state of the art border control post”, Minister Browne concluded. n

Minister impressed by Wexford LEO

On the conclusion of his recent visit to Wexford County Council’s Local Employment Office (LEO), Damien English, Minister of State for Business, Employment and Retail, said: “I am delighted to be here in Wexford today and to meet with so many enterprising individuals and to learn about their businesses. I am always impressed with the diversity of business that engages with our various LEO teams all around the country. And Wexford can be proud of their local business community; with its biotechnology firms, not-for-profit network of food producers, cuttingedge cosmetic manufacturers and advanced medical products for the global medical device industry, the range of entrepreneurial spirit here in Wexford is truly inspiring. The willingness of businesses to grasp opportunities is vital in ensuring regional growth and job creation. Through the LEOs, and other agencies and supports, the Government will continue to support innovation and ambition in our business community to ensure that our economy will continue to grow and thrive.” n Minister Damien English’s visit to the Local Enterprise Office, Wexford, on 30th June 2022. L-R: Minister English, Breege Cosgrave (Acting Head of Enterprise at Wexford LEO), Cllr George Lawlor (Cathaoirleach Wexford County Council), Eamonn Hore (Deputy Chief Executive Wexford Co. Council). Pic: Mary Browne.