The choice of locations of webworks is primarily a matter for Enterprise Ireland and not one in which I have a direct function. The webworks programme arose from a major study of the Internationally Traded Services – ITS – sector by Enterprise Ireland. The study, ITS 2007, conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers, examined areas with potential for development in Ireland and made recommendations for policy formation and specific interventions by the development agencies.
The study recognised that the new knowledge-intensive industries were largely establishing in the Dublin area and recommended the creation of regional hubs to address this imbalance. The webworks programme aims to create the environment that will foster the clustering of new ITS companies in the regions. The study recommended that large-scale webworks, c. 50,000 square feet, be located in the major regional urban centres of Galway, Cork and Limerick immediately and that one smaller webwork, c. 20,000 square feet, be considered for a primary regional town on a pilot basis. The study also recommended that consideration should be given to extending the webworks programme to other regional towns with institutes of technology such as Letterkenny if the pilot centres prove to be successful.
In line with ITS 2007, Enterprise Ireland decided that large webworks be established in the major regional centres of Galway, Cork and Limerick. It was also decided that two smaller centres be provided in regions not covered by the major urban centres where there was a low level of ITS companies. The north-west and the south-east are two such regions and it was decided that the pilot centres should be located in the main regional towns of Sligo and Waterford to test the viability of centres in regional towns. Enterprise Ireland expects that the construction of all these centres will commence by the end of 2004.