Address by Mr. Michael Ahern TD, Minister for Trade and Commerce at the Cork Constraint Computation Centre (4C) Open House

On 19^th January 2006 at UCC at 9am

President Wrixon, Professor Freuder, Ladies and Gentlemen, distinguished guests,

I am delighted to be here today to address the 4C Open House and to have the opportunity to see at firsthand the many accomplishments 4C has achieved in its first four years of operation. I would like to extend a particular welcome to those members of the 4C Advisory Board, and to the representatives from Microsoft and British Telecom, who have travelled from the U.S. and the U.K. to join us today.

At a time when Ireland is making unprecedented levels of investment in research, technological development and innovation, it is important that we take the time to acknowledge the many successes we have achieved to date and to commend the work of the people who are contributing to Ireland's growing reputation as a first class location for research and development.

We are all aware that successful economies of the future will be those that embrace knowledge and learn to use it. For Ireland, this involves promoting excellence and using knowledge to bring together our best scientists, educators and entrepreneurs to work across sectors and industries. The Cork Constraint Computation Centre (4C) represents a prime example of success in this area. Since its establishment in 2001, 4C has achieved worldwide recognition and has established excellent research credentials.

Constraint Programming is a significant growth area in the world of ICT and it is important that academic research in this area continues to be supported given its potential for business development by software companies. It already has wide commercial application but much remains to be done to fully explore and exploit the technology. Given the diffuse nature of knowledge generation today and its increasing role in industry, not all knowledge that industry will require for growth can, or should, be generated in-house.

Indeed, one of the overriding challenges identified in the area of innovation is the connection between the research community and the industrial base. In this context, 4C represents a significant new resource. It provides considerable scope for enhancing the level of industry-university collaboration in Ireland and underpins this collaboration through its Industry Associates Programme for which it is to be congratulated.

4C is currently working on a number of projects with the support of Enterprise Ireland and is closely collaborating with industry in the execution of a number of these projects. This collaboration is being achieved by direct interaction with companies and also by way of guidance from industry about current and future commercial developments in the exploitation of the technologies in question.

The research is aimed at solving real problems from the world of manufacturing and eCommerce and the solutions themselves are capable of being exploited by companies developing software products that support manufacturing and eCommerce.

Many other bodies, such as the IDA, the Southern Health Board, the Royal Irish Academy, and the PRTLI-funded UCC Boole Centre for Research in Informatics have also developed a supportive, mutually beneficial relationship with 4C. In addition, the Technology Transfer Initiative of the Atlantic University Alliance and the it@cork professional organization have assisted with technology transfer. 4C has also collaborated with other Irish universities: with the University of Limerick in Embark Initiative and European Union funded research, with Trinity College Dublin and a consortium of other universities and IT's in the SFI-funded CTVR CSET.

This synergy of effort is important not only at project level but also at national level to deliver maximum results and to optimise returns on what is significant state investment in research and development. Recognising this, the Government put in place last year a dedicated Cabinet Subcommittee on Science, Technology and Innovation, which is chaired by my colleague Minister Martin. This Committee has been directing work on a major Strategy for Science, Technology and Innovation to 2013, which will be completed shortly. The Strategy builds on the important work contained in our National R&D Action Plan- Building Ireland's Knowledge Economy, published in August 2004.

The objective of the new Strategy is to make a quantum leap forward in the area of R&D and to move Ireland from impressive latecomer to acknowledged leader in this critical area. Our success will be marked by demonstrable achievements in a number of areas, namely - increased participation in the sciences by young people, increased numbers with advanced qualifications in science and engineering, enhanced contribution of research to economic and social development, a transformational change in the quality and quantity of research undertaken by enterprise, increased output of economically relevant knowledge, enhanced productivity and an established international profile for Ireland in this key arena.

The Strategy will engage all of Government and will enable us to take the necessary policy decisions, in a coordinated way, to secure Ireland's position in the global marketplace, where R&D capacity and reputation are key factors in attracting and retaining investment and employment.

This Government has already placed research and development centre-stage in our economic strategy and events like today's, give us the opportunity to acknowledge not only the success of 4C but also other Government initiatives such as the Programme for Research in Third Level Institutions (PRTLI) and the establishment of Science Foundation Ireland (SFI), which have transformed the R&D landscape in Ireland.

I am particularly pleased that UCC has embraced the challenge of helping Ireland build a truly global knowledge based economy and has been very focused in attracting investment from Science Foundation Ireland (SFI). To date UCC has been successful in obtaining 131 awards from SFI involving a financial commitment of €118m.

SFI, of course, awarded the initial large-scale, funding that helped attract Professor Freuder from the U.S. and that has provided stability and flexibility, critical mass and critical infrastructure for 4C. UCC, with the help of the HEA, had already made an investment in building a strong group within the Computer Science Department in Prof. Freuder's field, which, together with a commitment to further growth opportunities, provided the other key element in recruiting Prof. Freuder to Ireland. And UCC, with help from the latest government capital budget, is planning a new state of the art IT Building, which will bring 4C physically together with the rest of Computer Science on campus.

Finally, 4C demonstrates how Ireland is building human capital for the Information Age by bringing the best and the brightest to Ireland in Professors Freuder and Provan to collaborate with the best and the brightest of local talent, including Professor Bowen, recuited back to Ireland from the U.S. and of course one of my own constituents, Dr Barry O'Sullivan, Associate Director of 4C, a recently elected member of the Executive Committee of the International Association for Constraint Prgramming. And so the circle keeps on turning - or the spiral keeps on rising.

I congratulate those involved in establishing this centre of excellence and I look forward to the many innovations that this centre will make and to the continued success of Ireland's research community.

ENDS

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