ADDRESS BY MR. NOEL TREACY, T.D., MINISTER FOR SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND COMMERCE AT THE OFFICIAL LAUNCH OF THE ENTERPRISE IRELAND HELPLINE AND INFORMATION SERVICE FOR THE YEAR 2000 ( Y2K ) IN ENTERPRISE IRELAND, GLASNEVIN, DUBLIN 9 ON FRIDAY 18TH DECEMBER 1998.

Today is a very significant new step in our national response to the year 2000 issue with the establishment of the Enterprise Ireland Y2K National Information Service.

Recent surveys suggest that almost nine out of ten businesses are aware of the Y2K problem or the Millennium Bug, and that many of these are familiar with at least some of its potential implications. At its simplest, these terms are now common parlance for the many problems that will arise in the run-up to the year 2000 in information technology and embedded chip applications.

In fact it is the latter element that may ultimately prove most costly to contain and correct. Embedded chips are used in many everyday household, retail, commercial and industrial activities. Their unobtrusive functioning in equipment such as lifts, mobile phones, fax machines, security systems, environmental control systems and several other systems may well create a false sense of security with regard to the possible scale of compliance procedures necessary to overcome this dreaded problem.

At the national level we need to recognise that we may well face a significant number of business failures and economic disruption as a result of communications and computational errors if we do not act decisively and immediately to avoid them. While many business people still view the Year 2000 problem as a technical issue to be resolved solely by specialists, it's "downside" is such that it cannot be left to the expediencies of a technical elite, even where such an option is financially viable for a small company.

Smaller companies are, in fact, particularly vulnerable in my opinion, as many have failed to take on board the very serious nature of the Year 2000 problem ahead. In May of this year I commenced the Year 2000 National Awareness Campaign and specifically targeted the small business sector across the country. While a significant number of enterprises have responded positively to the many issues that need to be resolved, unfortunately large numbers are still ignoring this terrible problem. Ignoring the Year 2000 problem is simply not an option as failure to address it adequately could have very serious implications for the ability of many companies to continue to operate effectively, or survive at all.

The Year 2000 problem is likely to begin to impact almost immediately as systems that rely on future dates e.g. ordering, invoicing etc. begin to hit key dates in 1999 and 2000. Corrective action can be taken to prevent the occurrence of many problems, or at least minimise their impact. Every company, across all business sectors, must examine their own vulnerability and prepare an action plan for implementation without any further delay.

Taking responsibility for the Year 2000 problem at the level of the individual enterprises is the first step in developing an effective response strategy. Companies need to ensure not only that their own systems are free of latent problems but equally as important, that their suppliers and customers are not going to cause them unexpected problems. To do this each individual company needs to evaluate their supply chain and ensure that it is compliant in all critical areas. It is absolutely vital that all companies who have not addressed the Year 2000 problem do so immediately. Next month might be too late.

Enterprise Ireland has been an active proponent of measures to reduce and eliminate the potential economic disruption associated with the Y2K issue. Among the recent initiatives which they have adopted is a requirement that all recipient companies of grant aid have adequate measures in place to render them Y2K compliant.

On behalf of the Government I have asked Enterprise Ireland to establish a National Y2K information service specifically geared to the needs of both small and medium sized companies. The new service will combine elements of the successful Enterprise Link and Information Desk services already in operation here in Glasnevin, at Enterprise Ireland Headquarters.

This new national service will operate in tandem with other public actors such as the County and City Enterprise Boards, the Irish Computer Society, the Chambers of Commerce of Ireland, ISME, IBEC/SFA, Udaras na Gaeltachta, Shannon Development and various other interest groups. Enterprise Ireland will act as a co-ordinating node for a variety of activities relating to Y2K issues. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of these and various other bodies, represented on the National Y2K Business Awareness Committee for their invaluable assistance in the national campaign to date.

The national service will consist of a helpline number 1 850 572 000 which will provide direct access to a team of information officers. More detailed requests will be handled with the back up of a panel of internal experts. Callers will be provided with an information pack outlining a straightforward strategy that can be undertaken by companies themselves. This can be used as a basis for tackling the Year 2000 problem within individual businesses. It will include checklists for self-assessment, sample draft letters to equipment and software suppliers to ensure that their systems are Y2K compliant, information on liability and many other issues, a national Y2K directory of service suppliers and a faxback form for more detailed queries.

The new national directory will be a key source of information on external expertise for companies. Public advertisements for submissions to this national directory have been placed in the national media and relevant magazines. This directory will be revised and updated on a regular basis.

The service and pack material will build on the successful experiences of the ISME/ESB helpline for ISME members, the PLATO/Cork Y2K initiative, the IBEC/NSD information packs, the Y2K material and proposals of the Irish Computer Society and a range of other sources.

In addition the new national service will provide a series of training workshops commencing early in the new year both to companies and to intermediaries such as the County and City Enterprise Boards and many others. These workshops will be based on the checklist approach.

Enterprise Ireland will also utilise the Mentor network throughout the country to expand awareness of the Y2K issue in SMEs. There are approximately 350 mentors working in companies throughout the country at any one time, and in fact there are up to 600 mentor contracts ongoing at the moment.

I am also very happy to say that the County and City Enterprise Boards will play a major part in this national campaign. I have asked them to get involved as they represent a unique single point of contact for small businesses nation-wide. Small and medium sized companies, especially the very small ones, may not be sufficiently alive to the extent of the potential difficulties and adverse affects which the Year 2000 computer problem poses to their businesses and the CEB's are ideally placed to get them involved.

Enterprise Ireland will also operate a dedicated website providing updated versions of its information pack and various other relevant material. The Y2K website will provide links to other suitable sites of direct benefit to SMEs. It is proposed to gather a number of case studies of how Irish companies are successfully preparing for Y2K and distribute information on them at the website and in the information pack. These models would act as real world illustrations of how the Year 2000 problem is tackled in different sectors.

This national service to industry will be offered free of charge to companies from now until the Year 2000. I wish every success to all of those involved in this vital national project and I hope that this service will evolve successfully to become a dynamic complement to the actions of individual enterprises in resolving their year 2000 issues. The new service will be an information referral, training and networking exercise.

I am very pleased that in the recent national budget, we allocated a sum of £40 million towards the Year 2000 computer problem. This fund has been earmarked to ensure that the delivery of the vast range of State services will not be interrupted. Embedded systems throughout the Public Service may require very significant expenditure.

Finally, I am calling on all businesses to do what is necessary to ensure that your computer systems, procedures, processes and products are well prepared. Act decisively and the competitive position, sales, employment, and even the very existence of your company can be protected into the new millennium, thus ensuring that the Celtic Tiger can continue to grow and prosper.

World Infinity Day - 09.09.'99 - is fast approaching. If companies are not Year 2000 complaint, by that date; God only knows what will happen to them, their staffs and their entire business on 01.01.2000. This scenario is too disastrous to contemplate. Today, I give on behalf of the Government, the Final Warning of 1998 - to ALL BUSINESSES - ACT NOW. Discharge your PERSONAL & LEGAL obligations, or otherwise, you will not get the chance of doing BUSINESS in the NEW MILLENNIUM.