Manufacturer Schrader Electronics has managed to defy the downturn. Symon Ross talked to managing director Stephen McClelland for an insight into the business

Antrim firm Schrader Electronics has gone from strength to strength in 2010 at a time when many other manufacturing businesses have faltered.

The success of the company – which makes remote tyre pressure monitoring systems – is all the more impressive given the torrid time which the motor industry has had during the recession.
After a slump in demand for its products in early 2009, Schrader saw marked turnaround in the second half of last year and throughout 2010.

Managing director Stephen McClelland told Ulster Business: “Our sales year-on-year are up about 70%. It really is a fantastic turnaround and has been driven by our main market – North America. There is a tyre pressure system mandate in North America so about 90% of our production ends up there.”
Mr McClelland explains that while the US economy was entering recession the motor industry had overproduced, building up inventory that went unsold. With the added hit production took when General Motors and Chrysler went into Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, Schrader’s long stretching record of sales growth was interrupted.

But the US cash-for-clunkers scheme and a stabilising of the economy – allied with the fact that production had been so low – saw demand pick up rapidly at the end of 2009 and early 2010.
“On the first of January 2010 they had no cars. They had massive trouble getting the cars built fast enough,” said Mr McClelland. “We normally ship once a week but we’ve been having to ship once a day to keep up with demand.”

The MD admits that Schrader could have let around 150 staff go during the downturn but opted to keep them on, going to short-time working across the company and spending time retraining employees. The upturn in fortunes for the industry means it has brought in two new shift teams and taken on 75 new workers this year at its plants in Antrim and Carrickfergus. Schrader now has around 950 staff, of which 830 are based locally.

“We were always confident about coming back. We’d had four or five years of growth and then a stagnation in 2009, but we didn’t really want to give out a negative message that the growth period was over. We saw it as a stutter and had a belief that we will continue to grow very strongly,” said Mr McClelland.
With a 52% share of the market for TMPS in North America, the company now has its sights set on Europe, where the European Commission will require the technology be installed in European cars by 2014. As well as increasing safety, it is estimated that correct tyre pressure can save on average 2-3% on fuel – a key factor in the EC regulations being introduced.

Ahead of the mandate Schrader will be expanding its offices in Germany and Paris. It currently produces 35 million units a year but by 2015 expects to have doubled that – a massive achievement when you consider the firm’s first contract in 1996 was for 120,000 parts per year.

“Europe is a bigger market than North America. Our job is to make sure we get the same market share. We’re confident we have a good chance of getting that, at least around 40%, because we have strong positions with many of the main customers in Europe anyway,” said Mr McClelland.

While the company also has plans to expand its production facility in Tennessee, the managing director said it intends to remain a Northern Ireland company.

“We are not going to go to Eastern Europe or somewhere like that, we’re going to stay in Northern Ireland and expand here because we’ve identified how to do that in our existing two factories. We really see NI staying as the main core business both R&D wise and manufacturing wise for a very long time,” he said.
Last month Schrader’s parent company Tomkins received a takeover offer by a private equity consortium of the Onex Corporation and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board. But Mr McClelland said he would be excited by the change rather than concerned, noting the prospective new owners have been twice to view Schrader’s local factories and are supportive of its business plan.

“We are one of the jewels in the Tomkins crown, because we have growth opportunities,” he added. “We have been set targets by the new owners and we are already meeting them.”

The local tourism industry has developed significantly over the last few years but how has the recent recession impacted the sector? David Elliott spoke to Niall Gibbons of Tourism Ireland to hear how the organisation is going to tempt more tourists to these shores.

During the darkest days of the troubles, selling Northern Ireland as a holiday destination to family and friends was a difficult enough task, never mind trying to attract tourists with no connection to the place.

But in recent years the onset of peace, a flourishing economy and the establishment of a network of budget airline routes into the main airports has attracted a flurry of visitors. To accommodate this we’ve seen a significant expansion in the local tourist service industry as a whole with an extra 800 hotel rooms added to the Belfast area alone in the last few years.

On the streets where soldiers once patrolled, tourists can be seen marvelling at a combination of our troubled past, our beautiful vistas and, of course, the warm welcome. Local cynics may scoff but travel guide Lonely Planet normally has its finger on the tourist pulse and touted Northern Ireland as a ‘must see’ destination in 2007. In tandem with the popularity of Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, already a popular tourist destination, has managed to grow its reputation amongst tourists, particularly from the US, Canada and Germany.

But the economic conditions in 2007 are very much different to those in 2010 with tourists’ disposable income bearing the brunt of the harsher environment. Tourism Economics, an independent industry research company, said tourism into Ireland will decline by 2% in 2010 based on consumer spending and consumer confidence assumptions.
This hasn’t worried Niall Gibbons, Chief Executive of Tourism Ireland.

“We produced a marketing plan in December and there’s good degree of ambition in there,” he said. “We’re looking to grow tourism by 3% to the island of Ireland in 2010.”

That 3% equates to 230,000 additional visitors and will bring the targeted number of tourists to the island in 2010 to 7.85 million, a boost which will certainly need hard work from Tourism Ireland if you take into consideration Tourism Economics predictions.

“We have recalibrated what we do in the market place and have invested heavily in tactical marketing, including working with air and sea carriers. If they’re putting money into the marketplace we try and leverage additional investment with them.” For the airlines, this also means trying to maximise the inbound route legs.

“An airline will put on a plane and obviously wants to fill it both ways. For us, it’s a key challenge, particularly in Northern Ireland where some of legs are weighted in favour of the outbound leg.”

So with planes essentially taking more people out of the country on holiday than they are bringing in as tourists, how will Tourism Ireland tempt more visitors?

“We have to fly our flag and give people motivating reasons to spend their money, get into a plane and spend time here,” Niall said.

He points to the Titantic Project in Belfast, the Giants Causeway on the north coast and the St Patricks Visitor Centre in Downpatrick as examples of our growing wealth of attractions and maintains it is essential for Tourism Ireland to target the right tourists.

One is Germany, the largest outbound tourism market in the world where the population of 80 million people take over 70 million trips abroad each year.

“The island of Ireland has 0.5% of that market so we (Tourism Ireland) have carried out a root and branch review and found a lot of potential. We’re going on national television in Germany for the first time and have had travel agents over as most people in Germany book their holidays with them.

“On the other side of the coin is the new and developing market opening up in China. There’s currently no direct access for people from China other than to route through Paris, London or Amsterdam. And if they want to come to Northern Ireland and the Republic they have to pay for two different visas. We’re working with our colleagues so only one tourist visa is needed for both the UK and Ireland.”

Being able to attract people here is one thing but having the proper infrastructure in place to make their stay as easy as possible and to transport them to the sights is another. Our rail system, for instance, is relatively limited and it, and other forms of public transport, have been said to be inadequate when it comes to dealing with a tourist influx.

Faced with this, Niall pointed to the availability and price of car hire which, he believes, compares well with other destinations. But it remains extremely difficult to hire a car in Northern Ireland and drop it off in the Republic, and vice versa, thereby creating a significant obstacle for tourists wishing to enter via one and leave via the other.

“We’re exploring an idea to see if it would be feasible to give a month’s grace so a car hire company can re-let a southern registered car in Northern Ireland, (or vice versa) so it can be returned via a rental rather than make the renter to pay a return fee.”

It’s encouraging to see Tourism Ireland has acknowledge these idiosyncratic problems facing tourists here and realises it needs to make the tourist experience as easy and pleasurable as possible. Niall is a firm believer in the fact that if we can get tourists here for the first time, we’ll be able to charm them and maybe even tempt them to come back.

Given the fact the industry is becoming more and more valuable to the local economy, we can only hope Tourism Ireland succeeds in its endeavours, but it may take the additional help of global economic recovery to prosper.

“We’re sometimes a bit self critical but so far we’ve punched above our weight. But ultimately it will take international recovery to help boost the tourism sector.”

The last couple of years have been some of the most challenging for investment managers. We talk to Nigel Crawford, head of Quilter’s Belfast office, to hear more about the company and his views on the best place to invest your money.

What is your role at Quilter?
I manage the Belfast branch of Quilter, which opened in early 2008. As head of the branch, it’s my role to make sure that the team here delivers the personal service and private client portfolio management expertise for which Quilter is known. I also have my own clients, whose investments I manage and with whom I liaise on a regular basis.

Tell us why you decided to become an investment manager.
My first involvement in finances was when I was asked to be treasurer of a youth organisation when I was much younger! I’ve always had a keen interest in stock markets and how business works and have been fortunate in being able to enjoy a good career in wealth management in Belfast.

What are the biggest challenges and opportunities facing the business at present?
The two years since we established the office in Belfast have been very challenging for the economy and stock markets so we’re even more delighted that we’ve been able to build up the business in that time. It’s been very exciting to be part of growing a business in Belfast and helping extend Quilter’s reach in Northern Ireland. The challenge for us is to keep growing and to help our clients achieve their investment objectives.

What are your views on the local and global economy in the coming months?
Globally, central banks have allowed the economic recovery to develop unimpeded, but now steps are being taken to reduce the unprecedented stimulus measures. Recent surveys of business conditions indicate that growth is sustainable beyond the inventory cycle, albeit at a more moderate pace than normal for the developed world. Money markets are not anticipating rates to rise much this year and many businesses have taken difficult decisions in a bid to position for future growth.

Locally, there is a more positive feeling in the market now, although an understandably heightened sense of risk awareness. Outside investment into Northern Ireland is continuing and this can only help the overall economy and we are already beginning to see signs of this happening.

How do you see the Quilter business developing over the next few years in Northern Ireland?
We expect business growth from clients of intermediaries whose main priority is to deliver overall financial planning, leaving the investment management of client portfolios to us. New legislation will soon require many financial advisers to review the way in which they operate and we look forward to working closely with these advisers and helping to manage their clients’ investments.

As an investor, why should I choose to work with Quilter rather than with the competition?
Quilter’s regional network is one of the best in the industry. It’s essential that clients have direct access to the people who manage their money and this means that we need expert investment managers who can also build really strong client relationships. Quilter is also very good at client communication. Whatever is happening in the markets, clients need to be informed about what is happening to their investments and what we are doing to help them achieve their specific financial goals – whether it’s to fund retirement or provide an inheritance for future generations.

How has the investment management industry changed since the onset of the credit crunch and recent recession?
The industry certainly came under focus during the downturn and, thankfully, this has encouraged greater transparency and openness. There has been renewed emphasis on “risk management” and on educating investors about what “risk” and “reward” really mean. Financial education is key to helping younger generations understand budgeting and to make sensible monetary decisions so that they are better equipped to plan for their financial needs now and in the future.

Gerard Kelly (left) in the foyer of the Park Inn Hotel in Belfast with Han Oldenburger.

The all-island hotel sector has been through significant changes over the last 10 years and now boasts an offering for every taste and pocket. We hear from Han Oldenburger, Regional Director for The Rezidor Hotel Group in Ireland, on how his hotels are performing in a challenging trading environment.

What is your experience prior to taking up your position with Rezidor?
I have been working in the hotel industry for the past 40 years, and have been working with The Rezidor Hotel Group for the last 20 of these years. I have held a number of general manager positions with other companies in Hong Kong, Singapore, and Switzerland. I was appointed Regional Director/Area Vice President with The Rezidor Hotel Group in 1992, and worked in Denmark, Germany, and the Netherlands. I took up my current role as Regional Director Ireland in March 2009.

What are your plans for the group in the next few years in Ireland?
The Rezidor Hotel Group is the largest international hotel group in Ireland/Northern Ireland, currently operating 15 hotels on the island. There are 13 Radisson Blu hotels, 11 in the Republic and two in Northern Ireland. These include one hotel in Belfast and three in Dublin, plus key destinations across the island such as Galway, Limerick and Cork. In addition there are two Park Inn hotels. With this solid base, we plan to continue to deliver the levels of service, meeting facilities and accommodation that our guests have come to expect and to grow our market share.

Where does Park Inn’s offering sit compared to other hotels?
Park Inn is a fresh and energetic mid-market hotel brand that focuses on mastering the essentials to deliver a great hotel experience within its class. Easy to use and hassle-free, Park Inn hotels represent great value and affordable hospitality.

What is the group’s unique selling point?
The Rezidor Hotel Group in Ireland operates two different hotel brands, namely Radisson Blu Hotels and the Park Inn Hotels. Each of these brands has their own individual USP’s.

Our Radisson Blu Hotels are unique and innovative in both design and product offering, catering for accommodation, dining experiences, conferences, weddings, leisure breaks, family events, spa treatments, fitness and leisure programmes, to name but a few.

What sets us apart from the rest? Our “Yes I Can” philosophy, and our unique service concepts. These concepts include our One Touch Service, 100% Guest Satisfaction Guarantee, Super Breakfast, Grab and Run, it’s GoldPoints Plus Loyalty Programme incorporating 40 frequent flyer programme partners.

Rezidor operates two Park Inn hotels in Ireland, in Belfast and at Shannon Airport. The brand offers efficient, uncomplicated and hassle-free stays.

Rezidor has the unique advantage of having over 390 sister hotels (open or under development) in Europe, Middle East and Africa, all of whom are focused on delivering our brand promises and thus strengthening our ability and strategic advantage in attracting overseas visitors into our hotels when they stay in Ireland.

Are the Radisson Blu and Park Inn properties well placed to weather an extended period of economic downturn?
In 2009, as part of our ongoing business strategy, we focused our attentions primarily on two areas of the business, namely sales and costs.

This focus in 2009 has given us a very solid platform from which to operate our hotels in 2010. Our concentration for the year 2010 and beyond is now firmly fixed on driving sales, both maintaining our existing customers and gaining new business from those who have become disenchanted with our competitors.

What is your outlook on the UK/Irish hotel market in the next few years?
I wish that I had a crystal ball… The number of factors which impact on the success of our hotel industry have been well documented. I think that to generalise on how the market will perform in the next couple of years would be to ignore the specific market conditions prevalent in both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. Each market faces its own challenges. However, I feel confident that the future for our hotels is more certain because of the way we operate our business. This is due to our focus on service and standards, and our ability to change to capture new opportunities in an ever changing environment.

In terms of tourism, can governments in the Republic and Northern Ireland do more to facilitate and attract more visitors?
I feel that anyone in the tourism industry at present would automatically say that “of course they can do more” – and I would agree with this. However, one must also acknowledge the efforts and initiatives that both governments and tourism boards have already undertaken, and give our support to these, whilst still maintaining the pressure to change and do even more.

I am concerned that the question of accessibility into Ireland as an island may not remain a top priority. Our governments, regardless of whether north or south, should be prioritising this as both a short and long term objective.

While there is currently a lot of focus on our overseas markets, we must be careful not to ignore or be complacent about the importance of domestic tourism for our long term viability.

The future is in our hands. It is up to us to nurture and develop our business rather than just babysit.

An effective and productive organisation relies heavily on a healthy workforce. This applies equally to mental health and well-being as Dr Robert Kerr, lecturer in Organisational Behaviour at the University of Ulster explains…

There is often some confusion when people start talking about employee well-being. Some feel the concept is too fuzzy and many are unsure as to what well-being actually refers to. When we talk about employee well-being, what we are really talking about is our employee health both mental and physical.

So why should organisations be interested in employee well-being?
Putting aside the obvious costs associated with poor physical health (e.g. lost productivity, absenteeism and turnover), mental health-related costs can be significant. The World Health Organisation estimates that one in four of us will be affected by mental illness. In 2006, The Confederation of British Industry calculated that stress-related absence alone cost UK businesses £660 annually per employee. ‘Presenteeism’ can also occur. This is when employees perform below par due to illness or a negative mental attitude. The Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health estimated that employee ‘presenteeism’ cost UK employers up to £15.1 billion a year.

But employee well-being is more than simply counting the costs of ill-health, it is about employees realizing their full potential and living a productive life. Improving employee well-being creates a healthier more engaged workforce. The Chartered Institute of Personnel Development identify employee well-being as a key source of productivity and sustainable competitive advantage and the 2008 PricewaterhouseCoopers report ‘building the case for wellness’ argues that focusing on employee well-being can result in improvements in your company profile, competitiveness, profitability, productivity and employee engagement.

Okay, so accepting there is an obvious business case for focusing on employee well-being where do you start?
Basically you need to assess your current level of organisational well-being, decide where you want to be and work out how you are going to get there (your well-being strategy). There are many sources of support to help you in this process. Locally both the University of Ulster and Business in the Community (BITC) are actively involved in well-being related research and interventions with a number of organisations. In 2007 BITC launched the campaign ‘Business Action on Health’ with the drive to embed health and well-being into the heart of every business. Within the University of Ulster Professor Marie McHugh, Dean of the Ulster Business School, leads an active research team working with a number of UK organisations in this area.

A key question in running your well-being strategy is how to maintain momentum?
One innovative way to maintain momentum is enlist enthusiastic volunteers from your workforce to act as well-being ‘champions’. Every organisation will have employees actively involved in creating, running or participating in health and well-being related activities in their spare time. These employees probably cajole other work colleagues to join them. Why not provide an opportunity for these employees to contribute to your campaign. Other employees are probably interested in running some sort of well-being related activity, be it a social activity, keep fit class or charity event, but most will have no idea where to begin. Providing a framework of support for these potential well-being ‘champions’ can create a structure that harnesses their natural drive and enthusiasm towards well-being related activities into momentum for your well-being campaign. McDonalds use the term ‘freedom within a framework’. By giving employees a support framework you can facilitate strategic consistency while allowing local creativity and innovation to shine. The framework should not limit the creative process but rather focus it towards the key aims of your well-being strategy. Don’t tell people what to do with a list of rigid policies, but empower them with room to move and create (the ‘freedom’).The ‘framework’ comes in the form of tools and guidelines that any employee interested in running a well-being event must work within. This system allows you to centralise the communication strategy for greater consistency of voice and profile but decentralise the actual administration of many well-being events to localised ‘well-being champions’ – helping you to communicate your well-being brand values in a local voice.

Mike Irvine – DAVY

Leaders in Business – Heading up one of Donegal Square’s newest additions to the local wealth management community is Mike Irvine, a man who sees big potential in the local investment market. We hear more from the head of Davy Northern Ireland.

It’s two and a half years since Davy set up its base in Northern Ireland, a period which has been one of the most volatile for financial markets in living memory. On the face of it, you would imagine it was bad timing to open an office with an offering of wealth management, stock broking and financial advisory services during that period, but Mike Irvine, head of Davy Northern Ireland believes it has worked in Davy’s favour.

“The turmoil of 2008 and 2009 created opportunity for us. Existing wealth management relationships were dislodged as clients realised their adviser didn’t really know how to cope with difficult markets.” Mike said in an interview with Ulster Business. “Building a business during the tough times requires you to put down strong foundations and set a very high standard of client service. These are things which will hold us in good stead when the environment has improved.”

Indeed, the fact Davy started with a blank canvas in Northern Ireland going into the credit crunch and subsequent recession has meant it has managed to post a solid performance for its clients here.

Backing up the regional team are a host of experts in the company’s Dublin headquarters, a resource base which gives a considerable advantage to Davy when it comes to offering a complete service for investors. This, combined with an independence from other investment vehicles, means the company’s offering stands out.

“We’re the only proper private client service available locally,” Mike said. “We can provide genuine global diversification and world-class partnerships – others say that but can’t really deliver it.”

“It’s difficult in this industry to lift above the rhetoric and the spin.”
Mike’s academic and career background were definitely free of the latter two factors. A law degree at Queens was followed by a career in accountancy and corporate finance with PwC and KPMG in both London and Belfast which provided a sound footing from which to take over at the helm when Davy set up in Belfast.

Building an impressive client base has been the company’s main aim over the last few years and Mike feels there is huge potential in the future, not just for Davy but for the local economy. In particular, he points to private equity investment in business, a system which remains underdeveloped in Northern Ireland.

“The infrastructure around private equity is woefully inadequate here,” he said. “There are some moves to improve this but on the whole we settle for incredible mediocrity in this area. What Northern Ireland needs is equity that is going out to make big opportunities happen; a proactive approach.”

To highlight our disparity against other parts of the UK, Mike points out there are over 20 business angel networks in Scotland and only one in Northern Ireland.

This doesn’t mean there isn’t a willing line of investors looking to invest here.
“We have about two conversations a week with people who want to invest in businesses in Northern Ireland,” he said. “There’s a great opportunity to facilitate the financing and identification of business opportunities.”

And he believes Davy is well placed to take the lead in this area.
“I think we are well positioned to lead change in developing this infrastructure and be part of a better equity finance network.”

Given it has come through a period of economic turmoil relatively unscathed in a local context, such a bold proposition doesn’t sound far from the mark and could be the shot in the arm the local market needs.

Joanne Stuart – Institute of Directors and Attrus

Leaders in Business – As chairperson of the Institute of Directors, Joanne Stuart has been lobbying hard for Northern Ireland businesses and stands out as a true leader in the area. She gives UIster Business a rundown of her own background as well as the challenges she sees for the local economy in the coming year.

Joanne Stuart is now best known for her role as the current chairman of the business leaders’ organisation the Institute of Directors in Northern Ireland. But she is a successful businesswoman in her own right with a career spanning almost 20 years in the IT industry.

She began in a firm of accountants but quickly realised she wanted a career in industry and before long was group accountant for Prentice Ltd in Portadown.

“It was there that I found myself responsible for implementing a financial and stock management computer system and through that I discovered my love of IT!” she says.

Joanne moved to England and into IT with Siemens Nixdorf and then McKeown Software before joining Oracle Corporation, the world’s second largest software company. She stayed with them for nine years in senior management roles culminating in her move back to Northern Ireland to open the Oracle office in Belfast.

Her current business is one she started herself, Attrus Ltd, an IT and business consultancy.

“In 2006 I was one of six women in Northern Ireland nominated by Invest NI to attend the Women’s International Leadership Mission to Boston where I met Kathleen Hagen of Invest NI. She is one of the most inspirational people I have encountered, and it was through my discussions with her that I made the decision to leave Oracle and set up on my own.

“It’s been one of the best decisions I have made and I now have my own business that provides a range of services into the IT industry.”

Another business figure to whom Joanne owes her inspiration is Larry Ellison who founded Oracle in a garage in the 1970s and has built it to the global corporation it is today, and who, she says, is charismatic and continually pushing the boundaries of where technology can take us.
One of Joanne’s motivations for going out on her own was to create time to make a contribution to the wider Northern Ireland. She’s passionate about a number of subjects such as education, innovation, sustainability and the need for a more vibrant private sector.

Those enthusiasms have driven her voluntary activity. She chaired IoD’s Education and Skills committee before taking on the chairmanship of the Northern Ireland Division for a three-year period in May 2008.

She has other voluntary roles, too, including non-executive director of Sentinus, a not-for-profit provider of STEM education activity within schools. She is also a trustee of the Integrated Education Fund and a non executive director of TIDES, a social enterprise organisation working in the areas of conflict resolution and diversity. Recently she became involved in a project with Mediation Northern Ireland working on sustainable peace building.

“In business terms 2009 was a packed year. I was mainly working with Fujitsu Services on the implementation of the HR Connect project” she says.

“I‘ve also worked on the Review of Variable Fees and Student Finance Arrangements affecting university students. Sir Reg Empey appointed me as Independent Chairperson for the review in December 2007 and I have just completed my interim report and will be delivering my final report in the first quarter of 2010.”

Chairing IoD requires both energy and commitment; and the past year has seen IoD’s priorities shaped by a deep world recession and the effects of the credit crunch, adding to a workload which is time-consuming in normal times.

Joanne says: “If I had to pinpoint two key challenges that businesses are facing and which were my top two lobbying issues then it would be the problems of accessing credit and the barriers placed in the way of economic development by the Planning Service.

Away from work, Joanne says there’s nothing more relaxing than spending a cold, wet Friday evening at Ravenhill ‘standing up for the Ulster Men’, although sometimes it can be more frustrating than relaxing!. She is also doing a ‘virtual walk’ around Ireland for IoD charity of the year, the Northern Ireland Cancer Fund for Ireland, which entails walking about six miles a day with a view to completing the total distance in six months.

Looking towards 2010, she says it will be a busy year with the conclusion of her review into Student Fees and the continuing lobbying on behalf of IoD members especially in light of public expenditure cuts.

Darren Lemon – eircom Northern Ireland

Leaders in Business – The real mark of a well-run business is its performance during difficult economic conditions. eircom Northern Ireland has forged ahead during the recessionary months of 2009 and, crucially, bagged a £70 million government contract. Darren Lemon has been at the helm of the company since 2008 and here gives us a rundown of how he has managed to post such a buoyant performance.

2009 was a good year for eircom Northern Ireland. In one of the most challenging years in recent business history, this young and growing telecoms company doubled in revenue terms and increased staff numbers by 50%.

The last few months of the old year not only saw the completion of the implementation phase of the prestigious £70m Network NI for the Northern Ireland Civil Service, but the securing of additional significant new business.

This included multi-year contracts to provide services, with their partners to Northern Ireland Water and Viridian Group, as well as a further push into the private enterprise sector.

The man at the helm is general manager Darren Lemon, who moved to eircom NI in 2008 after a long career in the IT business, including top level posts at Northgate Information Solutions, SX3, Aurora Unicomp and CEM.

A Belfast man, old Instonian and keen tennis player, he says there are a lot more chapters to come in the eircom NI success story.

“We plan to continue to grow the business in 2010 and realise that in order to do this we must remain innovative and competitive,” he said. “There is no doubt, as businesses face another challenging year, that the emphasis will be on improving quality of product and delivery of service while keeping costs down.

“To help them do that, we will soon be launching a new range of communication solutions for our public sector and private enterprise customers – solutions which are designed to help organisations operate more effectively and to enhance how they provide services to their customers.”

One of the ways large businesses can remain cost effective while ensuring they are competitive in the global marketplace, he says, is by looking at improvements that can be made to their communications infrastructure.

“How we do business in Northern Ireland is changing, and will change even further in 2010,” Darren continued. “Optimisation of the communications infrastructure is a key enabler in boosting output, especially with employees working across sites, offices and teams.

“Our unified communications solutions offer a viable and compelling alternative to what’s been around the commercial marketplace in recent years, enabling businesses to rethink what they do, how they do it and opening up new opportunities in operational efficiencies and best use of staff.

“Put simply, unified communications is a really powerful tool which involves making all existing channels available to the user through a single access point, dramatically reducing time wastage and improving workplace collaboration.”

Another tool which radically reduces wastage in time and resources is Telepresence which represents the next generation in video communications technology.

The eircom NI Telepresence suite at their headquarters at Forsyth House, near Lanyon Place, is one of the most advanced in Europe. You need to experience it to appreciate just how amazing it is, but it is certainly the most advanced system in the country and takes conferencing to a whole new ‘lifelike’ level.

“It’s a top end illustration of what can be achieved in the name of efficient and effective communications, and on a broader level it means we can play our part in the green agenda by reducing levels of international business travel,” explained Darren.

The eircom NI chief believes that the biggest challenge to business in Northern Ireland this year will be the availability not just of capital but of sufficient levels of market confidence to kickstart the economic recovery.

“Economic times are challenging, but adversity also brings opportunity – that is why, for example, eircom NI sponsored the Young Entrepreneur of the Year awards in 2009,” he added. “It is that sort of ingenuity and drive which is the lifeblood of Northern Ireland’s future economic well-being.

According to the Matrix Report, the ICT sector is made up of around 750 companies employing more than 11,000 people. Overall ICT generates more than £500 million for the local economy. So what does the sector need to thrive? We spoke to voices from within the sector (ICT hub location; educator; enterprise advisor; private sector employer) to see what the industry requires to grow over the next 12 months

THE ICT HUB
Northern Ireland Science Park:
Chief Executive, Dr Norman Apsley

The future for ICT in Northern Ireland has never looked so good. The task will be to translate vast potential into genuine, sustainable commercial enterprise.

We recently held an event at the Science Park looking into the potential behind Project Kelvin. It was designed to generate ideas on how the various industry sectors (of which ICT is central) can capitalise on Kelvin.

In a nutshell, Kelvin is a low-latency, highest speed/capacity pipe connecting Northern Ireland to Europe and North America. When it comes online in the Spring, it will prove to be the catalyst for NI to emerge as a global hotbed for financial systems, creative media, education and cloud computing technologies.

In many web-based industries, the speed, reliability and security at which you transact business provides a vital competitive edge. Project Kelvin shaves milliseconds off connection speeds and massively increases capacity – this will prove to be a critical advantage.

We have seen something of this at the Science Park where our low-latency connectivity has helped to persuade small companies and multinational corporations to cluster around us. The exchange of knowledge and people within this ‘innovation community’ provides benefits for the sector generally. Kelvin could provide the springboard for ‘innovation communities’ to spring up more and more across the region.

This is good news for the ICT industry which is being boosted by other developments like the recent announcement of £48 million from BT & DETI into improving broadband connectivity. ICT technology will be one of the most significant transformational technologies available in the 21st century and this region will be well-placed within it. Our positioning and opportunity is such that we must take full advantage.

We have infrastructure, entrepreneurialism, talent, supportive government. We now need people with ambition and vision to take the industry (and the local economy) forward.

THE EDUCATIONALIST
Sentinus: Chief Executive,
Brian Campbell

The recent report of the STEM Review clearly recognises that STEM is a priority area for government and that STEM education provides a key element of a successful economy. However, the review also identified a shortage of quality talent with appropriate STEM skills in all industry sectors and the collective aim is to tackle this scarcity.

Sentinus works with children aged 5 to 19 years old delivering STEM programmes (we regularly engage with around 60,000 pupils from the NI student population. We work with schools, colleges and businesses throughout Northern Ireland to promote engagement in STEM) and our big message is that ICT (along with the many other STEM disciplines) offers an exciting and rewarding career.

We think it’s important to bring young people close to industry so that they can see the application of sciences in the marketplace. Our STEM Ambassadors Scheme aims to get role models from industry working with young people in STEM activities. In Northern Ireland, more than 850 ambassadors have been trained and security checked, and this experience allows students to see how STEM can be applied in a real-world context.

We also operate industrial bursaries schemes, four-week paid STEM industrial placements for post 16 students. These allow young people to engage in R&D projects hosted by companies, universities; and other organisations.

All of this delivers benefits for young people and the wider economy. For example, we estimate our work benefits the economy to the tune of £1.5million per annum, and this has been brought about through a combination of Department of Education funding and charitable donations from industry approximating £800,000.

Engaging young people early on and creating positive, valuable experiences, will be vital to maintaining a thriving ICT sector and accruing value for the economy in the longer term.

THE INNOVATION SPECIALIST
XCell Partners: Founder,
Diane Roberts

My advice for ICT entrepreneurs is this, have the confidence to embrace risk.

The skills and the qualities of the people in Northern Ireland are often as strong as those in Silicon Valley. But what we do need is to persuade people to be eager risk-takers and innovative in their approach to building brand new businesses.

What is unique about Silicon Valley is the concentration of investors, strong technical depth and an outlook in general that enterprise is a necessary component to any economy. Here in Northern Ireland we have much that can match this, but we can always do more.

What we have to do is to get our entrepreneurs to immediately build business ideas that have immediate export potential. We have to work as a community to develop greater funding possibilities. In addition, (and this is something that the US are great at), we need to get people who have ‘been there and done that’ to share some of their time and experience with our young enterprises.

Many start-ups don’t make it. Only the most technically proficient, most ambitious, but more importantly those with a strong determination and a positive frame of mind will stand any chance of succeeding. What all start ups want is capital. Investment funding is out there, but entrepreneurs need to show confidence, differentiation and character, and sell themselves!

Over the next year, like in all economies across the globe, entrepreneurs and investors are going to have to work harder and smarter to see businesses succeed. It’s a time as tough as most of us would have experienced, but that needs to motivate us as well as keep us focused on robust, sustainable economic growth.

THE PRIVATE SECTOR EMPLOYER
Northgate Managed Services:
Chief Executive Andy Ross

The ICT sector has seen a significant shift away from the use of IT for organisational transformation and innovation, to the greater need to improve efficiency and cut costs.

In order to survive and grow in these budget-conscious times, the ability to adapt to the changing needs of clients and deliver real business value has become paramount. Where just two years ago, companies were investing millions in IT to better compete on a global scale, the focus has changed dramatically now – clients want more for the same or the same for less.

IT Providers that have retained market position and experienced success throughout 2009 have been those that have planned well for this shift and demonstrated high levels of flexibility to clients without compromising on quality. As every company assesses its operational costs and expenditure, providers have had to tailor IT solutions to meet individual budgets and objectives .ie. from the simple provision of IT consultancy and guidance, or implementation of one-off projects, through to the complete outsourcing of IT requirements to a managed service.

Northern Ireland can be a credible and viable near-shore alternative. Northgate has been in an ideal position as our economies of scale enable us to pass on cost savings to customers, combining this with unrivalled expertise of the UK market. To compete with offshore competitors, IT providers must continue to review the market and solutions to minimise costs.

A continued shortage of skilled IT professionals has provided further opportunities for offshore companies to pick up contracts. Moving into 2010, there needs to be a stronger commitment to offering school leavers a direct route to develop a long-term career in the IT sector. By implementing our IT Apprenticeship scheme as an additional option to our existing graduate schemes this September, we are developing a qualified and talented workforce that will help us grow our business and this should become standard across the IT sector in order for it to grow.

Looking ahead, Northern Ireland’s biggest challenge will be its ability to continue to meet market demands in the future and retain our competitiveness on a national and international scale.

Scratch the surface of the Northern Ireland economy and there’s a company competing in the world market from our own back yard. David Elliott went along to find out more about Randox, a business claiming a significant stake in the global diagnostics market.

What do a factory in rural Antrim and a US police investigation program have in common? The answer lies in a manufacturer of clinical chemistry products called Randox, based not far from the shores of Lough Neagh, which counts the medical examiner’s office in Miami Dade as one of its many clients around the world. The company’s media fact sheet clears the air of recognition by pointing out this is the setting for CSI Miami, the cult hit US television show and certainly not the first thing that comes to mind when arriving at the relatively humble Randox headquarters outside Crumlin to meet founder and managing director Dr Peter Fitzgerald.

A refreshing change from the typical senior executive, Dr Fitzgerald gives the impression of a man thoroughly immersed in his chosen field while still – luckily for this reporter – capable of explaining complex products in layman’s terms.

Randox’s trading by-line states it provides ‘clinical diagnostic solutions’, basically products which measure – for example, proteins and enzymes – to help diagnose various conditions in the body and therefore make it easier for doctors to pinpoint specific ailments.
Dr Fitzgerald started the business in 1982 having worked in a research post in Queen’s University and has since grown turnover to €270 million with 26 global offices, 800 employees (around 600 of whom remain at the Country Antrim headquarters) and a presence in 130 countries.

The idea for the company came from an obvious gap in the market.
“We decided a number of years ago that diagnostic tests were inadequate. There were too few tests per patient and it was difficult to get an accurate diagnosis. The best way to overcome this is to put many different tests on a microchip which then becomes a bio chip.
“Everything we do is outside the body,” he said. “Body fluids are taken out and put onto a microchip. The chip is then attached to a measuring machine and we get a meaningful figure. Normally you do one test at a time but with our technology you can do many tests at a time which enable clinicians to carry out more accurate diagnosis earlier, saving money and time.”

These ‘clinical chemistry’ products account for about 25% of global diagnostics tests and of that, Randox has a considerable share. In volume terms, it accounts for 7% of the world clinical chemistry market and 2%-2.5% in value terms. Achieving that hasn’t been easy with the sales proposition often involving education of the market-place.

“We’re going through a very long educational process where we have to educate the market,” Dr Fitzgerald said. “The best example is in cardiac medicine. We find that by carrying out many tests on the one sample we can improve the accuracy of diagnosis and for patients going to hospital, we can improve life expectancy by 20%.

“In addition, we can rule out cardiac problems at an early stage, something which would otherwise be costly to the health system.”
Unsurprisingly for a medical company, Randox spends a considerable amount of time and money on research and development – it has 185 people employed in the division – and has a number of well-developed products up its sleeve. One example involves the diagnosis of different types of stroke, an important factor in minimizing their impact on the body and in treating patients but thorough medical trials mean its products such as these are a few months off.

Overall, the aim is to make diagnosis a more personalized process.
“It’s one thing having the test but you have to understand what it means in the individual setting,” Dr Fitzgerald said. “Medicine tends to treat people like part of a herd and now we’re moving toward personalized medicine. Sometimes you need to know what’s normal for someone in a healthy state if you want to know what they’re going to be like when they’re ill.”
But for now, business in its ‘classical’ diagnostics products remains buoyant and sales have increased every year since the company’s inception. Around 70 extra employees have been taken on at the Crumlin headquarters since the start of 2009 and profits are “going north”.
Randox’s largest market is the US, followed by China, France and UK & Ireland and although these are relatively developed markets, Dr Fitzgerald said there is potential for a bigger market share.
“There’s no market we operate in which is anywhere near saturation, even with the classical products. And with the classical products, there’s even more potential.”

So while the market looks healthy, what about the production? Would a manufacturer of this size not benefit from outsourcing or building factories in countries with lower labour costs?
“For us, the labour element is around 15% so it’s not excessively high. The most important thing to us is quality of the product as we’re making medical products and can’t have a slippage in that area. We do have lands in Bangalore for manufacturing that we could use but we’re happy as we are for now.”

Although Randox can still claim to keep all its manufacturing in Ulster, the need to build a new facility saw it nip across the Northern Ireland border into Dungloe in County Donegal recently, not without a whiff of controversy.

Dr Fitzgerald said Invest NI were “very bureaucratic and slow in their movements” in 2008 when the company was looking to expand while the equivalent government investment vehicle in the Republic, IDA Ireland, were quick to act.

“Although we own quite a bit of land, when we looked at the cost of building a manufacturing facility here (in Crumlin) it was very expensive and prohibitive,” Dr Fitzgerald said. “At that time Invest NI were in a less-dynamic mode and so we were approached by IDA Ireland who showed us a number of factories we could rent or buy. It seemed to be a lower cost option and they moved very fast to offer us a package.
“I have to say the main thing was the access to manufacturing facilities and ease of the discussion but that’s all passed now with the new leadership at Invest NI including a very good minister in Arlene Foster and a dynamic new CEO, Alistair Hamilton.”

With burnt bridges partially repaired, does Dr Fitzgerald envisage selling the company in the near future?
“It’s not a plan at the moment. We’ve done a lot of R&D and I have to make sure we commercialize what we’ve achieved.”
And because of this commitment, he sees a bright future for a company which sums up the much lauded word, innovation.
“We believe we are only medium sized at the moment but could be very large before long.”