| HID's expansion will enable the company to meet growing demand for access control products and service solutions |
HID Global, a trusted leader in solutions for the delivery of secure identity, officially launched its newly expanded e-Government (e-Gov) manufacturing campus in Connemara, Galway, Ireland. Initiated in July 2009, HID Global's expansion of its Galway e-Gov campus will enable the company to meet growing demand for product and service solutions for e-Doc, e-Passport and e-NID applications in more than 30 countries.
HID Global Ireland Teoranta will house e-Gov engineering and manufacturing at its expanded operations in Ireland. The company has increased employment at its Galway campus by 22% and has invested significantly in the expanded operations.
"Our expanded e-Gov operations in Connemara, Galway, Ireland, give us significantly higher production capacity for our microchip-based inlays that are used as core components in the manufacture of e-Docs, e-Passports and e-NIDs," said Jason Bohrer, Senior Vice President, HID Global Operations. "e-Gov represents a growing segment of HID Global's Identification Solutions (IDS) business, especially in the area of e-Passport inlay solutions. With our newly expanded facilities and the excellent track record of our production team in Ireland, we are well positioned to capitalise on rapidly accelerating demand for e-Docs."
Galway expansion drives continued growth in worldwide eGov market
HID Global's e-Gov access control solutions are designed to extend the life of e-Docs |
The vast majority of European Union countries, as well as numerous countries outside of Europe, are now issuing machine-readable electronic passports. Acuity Market Intelligence has projected that e-Passport market revenues will reach nearly $7 billion annually by the end of 2014, with a compounded annual growth rate of 31.5 percent. In its April study entitled "The Global e-Passport and e-Visa Industry Report," the firm said that 88 percent of all passports issued in 2014 will be electronic passports. Acuity said e-Passports accounted for 57 percent of all passports issued and 28 percent of all passports in circulation during 2009.
Pádraig Ó hAoláin, CEO of Údarás na Gaeltachta, welcomed the decision by HID Global to centralise its eGovernment base in the Connemara Gaeltacht. "HID Global are locating all of their e-Gov product research, development and manufacturing operations in Connemara. Of particular significance is the decision to include full-time research and development positions at its campus here," Ó hAoláin said. "Secure documentation like e-Passports is set to become commonplace over next couple of years. These will be developed in Connemara and carried by millions of the world's travelling citizens. This investment made by HID Global is a significant vote of confidence in the area, its workforce and the Irish economy."
The secure contactless technology inlays and pre-laminates that HID Global manufactures in Connemara allow governments, worldwide, to make their e-Passports and other electronic documents more secure. The company's microchip-based inlays are tamper-proof and highly secure, and reduce authentication error and the possibility of documentation falsification. Utilising patented technologies, including ceFLEX material and wire transfer technology, HID Global's e-Gov solutions are designed to extend the life of e-Docs while withstanding daily mechanical wear and reducing incidents of tampering and fraud.
In addition to expanding production of these inlay products, the HID Global manufacturing and e-Doc engineering teams in Connemara, Galway, Ireland, will also support development and manufacturing of additional e-Gov-related technologies and solutions for existing customers, while meeting the needs and requirements of new customers.
Additional information on the complete portfolio of HID Global e-Gov solutions can be found here.