There is hardly a month that goes by that we don’t hear a significant jobs announcement for the Galway region. Crucially, many of the announcements are for highly paid jobs in engineering, the IT sector, and other industries. In other words, if you are an engineer, there are excellent career opportunities in the Galway region.
Specifically, there are opportunities in the medical device manufacturing, pharmaceutical manufacturing, and related industries. These industries are strong in Galway, particularly medical device manufacturing.
In addition, the wider economy is strong in Galway. The county also has well-respected educational institutions, a well-educated workforce, and excellent quality of life. All these factors contribute to the decisions made by companies of all sizes to set up, expand to, and launch in Galway.
Those companies include some of the world’s largest multinationals in addition to mid-size multinationals and strong, vibrant, and innovative Irish companies.
Strength of the Medical Device Manufacturing Industry in Galway
Before looking at the medical device industry specifically, let’s look at Galway City and County overall.
More people work in Industry in Galway than in any other sector. This means Industry is a bigger employer in Galway than Ireland’s other big sectors for employment – Health & Social work and Wholesale & Retail.
Here are the figures:
- 3 percent of the population in County Galway work in Industry
- 6 percent of the population of Galway City work in Industry
- The national average is 11.4 percent
Not only is the industrial sector in Galway already strong, it continues to grow. In the period from 2011 to 2016, employment growth in Industry was as follows:
- 7 percent employment growth in County Galway
- 4 percent employment growth in Galway City
- The national average is 9.4 percent
The figures for medical device manufacturing are even more impressive. Between 2011 and 2016, employment in the MedTech industry increased by over 28 percent.
In addition, around one-third of Ireland’s med tech employees work in companies in Galway.
Engineering Opportunities in Galway
The above figures should be interesting to any engineer working in industry or who wants to get into this sort of career. That said, the figures don’t show the whole picture as there are thousands of other high-quality engineering jobs available in Galway in addition to those accounted for in the medical device stats above. These jobs are in companies that support the medical device manufacturing and pharmaceutical manufacturing industries.
SL Controls is a prime example of this but there are many other examples too. In fact, you can look at Galway as being a hub not only for the med tech and pharmaceutical industries, but also for companies that employ people with your skills and experience.
Engineers that are currently in demand in Galway include controls engineers, automation engineers, and validation engineers.
Not Just About the Job
Of course, choosing where to work is not just a decision you take based on the job. What about the quality of life in Galway – is it somewhere you want to live?
In a previous post, we outlined multiple benefits of living and working in Galway. These included quality of life, cost of living (compared to places like Dublin), the natural environment, and the character of the city.
In fact, it’s hard to see a counter argument to considering Galway as an engineering career opportunity. Why not get started today – check out our engineering careers page now to find out more about our latest vacancies.