100 jobs are to be created in Athlone by an international market research company over the next three years.
The NPD group is setting up operations in the IDA's Business and Technology park in Garrycastle in the town.
The NPD group provides consumer and retail market research for over 1,800 customers in the automotive sector, the entertainment industry and a variety of other areas.
'Athlone was our preferred location for several reasons, but none more important than a deep talent pool of well-educated and multilingual people. The presence of Athlone Institute of Technology was also a factor in our decision,' commented Tod Johnson, Chairman and CEO of The NPD Group.
The company has already advertised for senior quality assurance engineers to be based here.
Recruitment is at an advanced stage and the firm , which has its international headquarters in New York, is announcing a major expansion today.
'Today's announcement demonstrates that Ireland is very much open for business and is an excellent location to host the global operations of multinational companies,' said John Perry, the Minister of State at Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation.
And Esri Ireland is also to add 20 jobs to its number in North Dublin. The company specialises in computer mapping technologies for big government and corporate clients.
