Abiomed opening plant in Ireland

Abiomed Inc. is expanding into Ireland, the Danvers medical device company said today. The company said it has signed a long-term operating lease for a manufacturing facility in Athlone, Ireland, and expects its Impella blood pump production line to be operational there in about 18 months.

The 30,000-square-foot plant in Ireland is intended to meet demand for its Impella 2.5 cardiac assist device from the Abiomed facility in Aachen, Germany.

In June 2008, the US Food and Drug Administration gave Abiomed clearance for its Impella 2.5 device, allowing it to begin selling the blood pump to the estimated 14,000 cardiologists at approximately 1,700 hospitals in the United States, the company said.
(By Elizabeth Campbell, Globe correspondent)