A Government investment of €40m will help SFI launch the second phase of its Trinity-based AMBER research centre.
AMBER, the Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) centre for Advanced Materials and BioEngineering Research, has launched its second phase, which will see it add 350 new research positions between now and 2025.
The phase is being delivered via €40m in funding over the next six years through SFI’s research centre programme, coupled with €77m in cash and in-kind contributions. AMBER will raise this investment from international and non-exchequer sources.
AMBER runs academic and industry-oriented scientific research into materials important in sectors such as ICT, medtech, personalised and regenerative medicine, energy, sustainable materials, and manufacturing. It currently partners with more than 40 companies across these fields and will continue to significantly scale its industry investment during this next phase.
It works in collaboration with Trinity’s Centre for Research on Adaptive Nanostructures and Nanodevices (CRANN), the Trinity Centre for Bioengineering, the Tyndall Institute and a number of third-level institutions around Ireland.
Prof Mark Ferguson, director general of SFI and chief scientific adviser to the Government of Ireland, said: “The SFI research centre AMBER has contributed hugely to fundamental and applied materials science research. In only a short period, AMBER has made incredible progress in terms of increased academic and industrial collaboration, training PhD students for industry, winning competitive funding from the EU, producing excellent scientific results, and public engagement.
“Science Foundation Ireland looks forward to continuing to support this world-class centre, increasing our ability to positively impact both society and the economy through excellent scientific research.”
Dr Patrick Prendergast, provost of Trinity College Dublin, where AMBER is based, added: “AMBER has played a leading role in consolidating Ireland’s reputation for materials and bioengineering science research, and this announcement highlights the ongoing ambition of the centre to create high-quality, high-tech employment opportunities for the future.
“AMBER has been a successful model for linking industry and academia, underpinned with fundamental research, and will continue to positively contribute to economy and society.”
