Ireland snatched the £300 million investment from under the nose of its rival, Singapore, using a combination of traditional grant-aid and tax incentives, the track record of the company's existing Irish workers and a hard-sell by the Tanaiste, Ms Harney, in New York.
More than for any other project this year, IDA Ireland celebrated the decision by Bristol-Myers Squibb to expand its Dublin operations. For much of the eight-month campaign to land the investment, the agency felt it was swimming against the current; right to the end it expected the decision to go to Singapore.
The key determining factor, according to the IDA, is the track record of the company's Irish management and workforce.
For some years, the agency has quietly done all it can to boost the standing and expertise of Irish managers within their corporate structures. After it attracts an initial investment, the IDA tries to deepen each company's roots in Ireland, encouraging expansions, especially those which involve research and development.
In Swords Laboratories' management team, led by Dr Kieran Brady, the agency's strategy has reaped a huge dividend. Insiders said last night that his successful stewardship of both the manufacturing and the R&D sides of the business - along with the consistently high level of commitment shown by workers at the plant - swung the final decision.
Another crucial element was a personal visit to the company's New York City headquarters by Ms Harney. Sources say she, along with the IDA's head of marketing, Mr Martin Cronin, pulled out all the stops at the March presentation with Bristol-Myers Squibb.
The decision delighted executives for another reason - it underscored the attraction of Ireland to the pharmaceutical industry at a time when growth in the computer sector is levelling off.
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