BMTC and CÚRAM Signal Intent for Joint Cooperation

A collaboration with representatives from the Biomedical Manufacturing Technology Centre (BMTC) at the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology (KITECH) has been agreed by CÚRAM, the Science Foundation Ireland Centre for Research in Medical Devices based at NUI Galway. The MOU will see the establishment of a programme for academic cooperation to jointly organise conferences and workshops on topics of mutual interest and to exchange faculty and students for limited periods of time for purpose of education and /or research.

Commenting on the agreement, Prof Abhay Pandit, Scientific Director of CÚRAM said “Both organisations have significant mutual interests that include advanced material research, biomedical technology and the development of efficient manufacturing processes for tissue applications, chronic wound management applications and therapeutics for various diseases. I’m delighted to have progressed this relationship and look forward to the benefits of sharing expertise and training opportunities for our researchers.”

It is expected that the first researchers from KITECH will be visiting Ireland and CÚRAM in mid-2018. The agreement provides an excellent forum to create and develop synergistic academic projects that will benefit both countries.

According to Dr Woo Jong Lee, a head of BMTC, “We expect Ireland, as a global leader in the Medtech industry, to be an excellent partner and gateway to the EU market. We, KITECH and BMTC, are delighted to be able to establish this collaborative partnership with CÚRAM, a world leading biomedical research centre, based on the MoU signed in December 2017. We believe this MoU will be a cornerstone for establishing collaborative relationships in the future between the biomedical ecosystems of our two countries.”

KITECH (Korea Institute of Industrial Technology) is government-funded research institute and drives the nation's industrial advancement by the development and commercialisation of fundamental technologies and technology support for SMEs. BMTC (Biomedical Manufacturing Technology Center), an affiliated research centre of KITECH, has established a R&BD supporting system for medical device manufacturing, especially in intervention and minimally invasive surgery fields.