Fujitsu bringing 400 jobs to Northern Ireland

Fujitsu has announced it will be creating more than 400 new jobs in Northern Ireland with the establishment of a new managed services centre.

Situated in Timber Quay, Derry, the Managed IT Services Centre of Excellence will see 328 new jobs created - 50 of which will be in place by the end of this year - while more than 74 jobs will be created at Fujitsu's office in Belfast.

David Courtley, chief executive of Fujitsu Services, said: "This is a significant step for Fujitsu and Northern Ireland, and builds on over 30 years of working and investing in the area. The jobs being created at the new Centre of Excellence will encompass a broad spectrum of specialist, high-quality IT services roles."

Invest Northern Ireland, the region's economic development agency, put £5.65m into the scheme, while Fujitsu has committed £18m.

Leslie Morrison, the agency's chief executive, said Invest Northern Ireland's award showed it was "committed to developing the specialist software sector and this latest investment by a company of Fujitsu's international standing sends out a strong message that Northern Ireland is now a serious contender in the global software market".

The new centre is expected to be fully operational by the end of 2009.

David Meyer writes for ZDNet UK