Japanese pharmaceutical firm Astellas claims top honour at Manufacturing Excellence Awards 2025

A Japanese pharmaceutical manufacturer with operations in Co Kerry has been named the overall winner at the Manufacturing Excellence Awards 2025, held at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Santry in Dublin.

Astellas Ireland’s Killorglin plant, which manufactures treatments including the immunosuppressant Prograf, was selected by a distinguished judging panel for exceptional performance across innovation, quality, sustainability and operational efficiency.

The judging panel’s citation stated that Astellas had “set a benchmark in Irish manufacturing, demonstrating leadership, adaptability and a commitment to continuous improvement”.

James O’Neill, lead pharma manufacturing operations at Astellas, commented: “It’s the first time entering from our operations and manufacturing side of things. The award win helps promote your site, what you’re doing and what you’re best in class at.”

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The Kerry plant, established in 1990, employs 250 permanent staff and has made notable environmental advances, with its wind turbine and wood chip boiler reducing carbon dioxide emissions by more than 3,000 tonnes annually. The facility also won the award in the waste management category.

Now in its second year, the Manufacturing Excellence Awards attracted 72 entries from 42 companies across Ireland. The ceremony was hosted by Colm O’Regan and attended by 134 industry professionals, with 17 trophies presented across various categories recognising excellence in Irish manufacturing.

The Irish Manufacturing Council serves as the strategic partner for the awards programme, helping to promote collaboration between industries and the Council.

Guangbo Hao, IMC secretary, highlighted the importance of the programme. “The awards are a great opportunity to assess and recognise the excellence of the industries and a significant promotion for the collaboration between the industries and IMC,” he said.

Among the award winners, Redmond McDonnell, chief executive of DesignPro Automation, expressed delight at winning in the manufacturer category, noting “whenever you win amongst your peers, it’s always a very good thing” and highlighting the value of recognition among customers and suppliers.

John Byrne, chief executive of Hygeia, called it “a fantastic achievement” for their 85-year-old company to win in the manufacturer category, noting that the recognition is “an acknowledgment for both company and staff for what’s been achieved through the year”.

Judging coordinator Matt Cotterell noted that the Manufacturing Excellence Awards showcase the diversity of activities and capabilities within the Irish manufacturing sector. “The awards feature companies that make a very valuable contribution to the Irish economy, providing a great range of employment opportunities whilst enriching the communities where they are based,” he said.

Dr Cotterell explained that manufacturing is a team activity requiring multiple disciplinary activities with a focus on continuous improvement and customer satisfaction. “It is technology-enabled but people are key, and the awards ceremony celebrates the valuable contribution of people in enabling companies to succeed and is a great networking event.”

Winners of the Manufacturing Excellence Awards 2025

He added that sustainability and digital transformation are themes that featured strongly in all the award categories. “Real-time monitoring of processes and systems performance is being implemented across the supply chain by manufacturers, allowing them to make data-informed decisions and improvements.”

Heber McMahon, director of sales at Cygnum Timber Frame, said it was “a pleasure” to be recognised alongside notable companies. Paul Murray, supply chain manager at Aryzta Ireland, noted that the company’s award entry was well received. “There are many other companies that we worked with who would have the standards that we have and we’ll be speaking to them in due course,” he added.

Boston Scientific Galway was the award winner in the manufacturing team category. “We were delighted to take part in the awards night, and to be recognised amongst the high calibre companies was truly inspiring,” said Jonathan Carr, principal manufacturing engineer. “The whole process and the evening event were extremely well run.”

Cormac McAteer, senior engineering manager at Seagate Technology, commented that the awards “demonstrate how capable you are as a company” when developing partnerships. Jade Power, ESG & contracts manager at Glenpatrick Spring Water, described being “absolutely thrilled” that the firm was shortlisted, adding that the trophy win was “the cream on top of the cake”.

Adam Kane, community lead at events organiser Business River, stated: “Events like this are made possible through the support of our partners. We are thankful to our strategic partner, Irish Manufacturing Council. I also want to recognise our communications partner, The Irish Times, as well as our supporter, Amárach Research. Their investment in the awards underlines their commitment and support of this key business area.”

Dr Matt Cotterell (judging coordinator) – head of school of mechanical, electrical and process engineering, Munster Technological University
Dr John Cosgrove – director of Smart Manufacturing, Technological University of the Shannon
Barry Cox – standards development manager, National Standards Authority Of Ireland
Jill Ellis – senior lecturer in food manufacturing, The National Centre for Food Manufacturing, University of Lincoln
Guangbo Hao – professor in mechanical engineering, University College Cork (UCC)
Rocco Lupoi – associate professor, School of Engineering, Trinity College Dublin
Margaret Morgan – professor, Ulster University
Joe O’Callaghan – programme director, UCC
Morteza Tabatabaeipour – assistant professor, Ulster University

Overall manufacturing excellence award

Winner: Astellas Ireland (Kerry plant)