MEDICAL
WWW.MADEIN.IE « JULY 2020 « 23
IMR also focused on
breathing assist modes to help
with the essential task of
weaning patients off full
ventilation. The team worked
directly with MIT to share
ideas and improvements and
the AMBU bag ventilator is
based on an open-source
platform provided by MIT.
The design intent is for the
device to be low-cost, simple,
and built from readily available
components. A version of this
was requested in the New York
Emergency.
Ireland has a unique
capability in that it already
produces a signifi cant portion
of the world’s high-end ventilators already from leading
international companies so there is an active program to work
with local medical device manufacturers in Ireland to produce
these systems here.
Barry Kennedy, CEO of Irish Manufacturing Research, said:
“Thanks to the innovative work carried out by our teams in
Dublin and Mullingar, including our team of 70 researchers in the
midlands, and in partnership with globally recognised research
institutes and companies, IMR is delivering solutions that can
have a scalable and global reach.
“As we all know, the COVID-19 pandemic has created a global
demand for ventilators and modern life support ventilators are
scarce so Ireland, through IMR playing a leading role, is helping
address this demand, both right now and in the future for the
expected ‘Second Wave’ of this pandemic.
“We are targeting to bring these new innovative systems to
market for between €5,000 to €10,000 which is signifi cantly
below the cost of high-end systems normally used in hospitals.
We have also developed sophisticated, but readily repeatable and
aff ordable, electronic controls and user interfaces for the
caregiver to use.”
Speaking about their partnership with IMR, Jonathan Downey,
Operations Director at ARTeSYN Biosolutions said: I would just
like to commend IMR on how quickly they pivoted to begin
research on ventilator systems given their foresight for the global
demand for such systems in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
This crucial research would not have started if it were not for the
fantastic team within IMR and I’m proud to be part of an
international network of
organisations, working towards
solutions that could hopefully
save lives.”
Stephen Malone, CEO of
Malone Group said “The strong
working relationship with IMR
on robotics research allowed
the teams to mobilise without
delay. With access to expertise
from MIT, as well as IMR,
progress was made quickly and
we are proud to be part of this
extended group who diverted
resources at a time of national
crisis.” MADE
About IMR
Founded in 2014, Irish Manufacturing
Research is part of a select EU network
of Innovation for Manufacturing SMEs
(I4MS). These are regional Manufacturing
Digital Innovation Hubs that provide a onestop
shop for manufacturing companies
to access all of the supports they need
to become ready for the next generation
of digital manufacturing. IMR provides
information and support to manufacturing
SMEs that ranges from access to key
research capacity and skills in Ireland and
across Europe; Technology roadmaps and
frontier technologies; technology roadmaps
and frontier technologies; and access to
experimental facilities.
IMR’s vision is to enable
manufacturing of all sectors and sizes
to be leaders in the world of advanced
manufacturing so that they can compete
and thrive in the global economy. As
a leading manufacturing Research
&Technology Organisation (RTO)
with labs and industrial pilot lines in
Dublin and Mullingar, IMR works with
leading global and indigenous brands
to de-risk and de-mystify new and
emerging technologies & to deliver high
impact collaborative research. IMR’s
ambition is to signifi cantly accelerate
the implementation of key elements of
Ireland’s industrial strategy and enable
Irish based manufacturers to be early
adopters and winners in the fourth
industrial revolution.
Given its role spearheading Ireland’s
progress as a hub of excellence for
advanced manufacturing, it goes almost
without saying that IMR’s brief is a broad
one, encompassing many of the key
advanced manufacturing technologies
and methods currently available.
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