Some 150 jobs are to be created in Co Kildare with the opening of a new plastics factory.

MGS Mfg Group is to open a €12 million manufacturing centre in Leixlip over the next three years.

Minister for Jobs Richard Bruton said: "Today's announcement that this leading international engineering and manufacturing company is locating a high-end facility in Ireland with the creation of 150 jobs is great news and a strong indication of the potential for jobs expansion in this area."

Mr Bruton said the Government is targeting 20,000 new manufacturing jobs in Ireland by 2016.

The factory will be set up in an existing 45,000sq ft building on the campus of Hewlett-Packard, one of the company's key clients.

The investment is supported by the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation through IDA Ireland.

Local Labour TD Emmet Stagg said the investment is another vote of confidence in the North Kildare area.

Meanwhile, Heavey RF group will create 20 jobs over the next three years with the establishment of an international software R&D centre in Cork.

The company, which supplies mobile techology solutions to the logistics, manufacturing and retail sectors, is headquartered in Dublin. Global customers include DHL, Syncreon, Glanbia, Kerry Group, Cadbury and DSV.

"Our solutions are consistently outperforming our international competitors. This expansion investment aims to capitalise on this and bring our solutions to a much wider audience," Heavey RF chief executive Ronan Clinton said.

Mr Clinton said the company at looked at locations in Eastern Europe to set up the new development centre, but ultimately selected Cork due to the "high quality of both education and people in that region".

Additional reporting: PA