The contract was awarded under the INCO-DC programme, which promotes scientific and technological co-operation with developing countries.

Please see the Welcome page for a fuller description of our proposed next project, TRINET-2. We are seeking to contact other interested parties in order to prepare proposals for a continuation of TRINET under Framework Programme 6, the next EU Research & Development programme starting end-2002 and running for four years.

PERSONNEL

In order to illustrate the strength and breadth of the management team of the Informatics Development Institute, coordinating partner, we provide CVs of the three principals: 

Gordon Foster:

Fellow emeritus TCD, was professor of statistics at Trinity College Dublin and is a former dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Systems Sciences.  Before joining Trinity, he held the chair of computational methods at the London School of Economics. He has headed a number of international projects and worked on evaluation studies of the socio-economic impacts of informatics. He acted as consultant to UNIDO in assisting to develop their policy on the role of informatics in third world development. He is the author of the coding system for books, International Standard Book Numbering (ISBN), now in worldwide use.  He has published numerous reports and technical papers in probability theory, applied statistics, computer systems performance modelling, information systems design, information technology assessment, operations research and management science.

Diarmuid Herlihy :- Project Manager and Consultant

Graduate in English and Psychology, University College, Dublin.  Over 25 years experience in the computer and telecommunications industries, including project management, consultancy, marketing, and training.  Held management positions in Cantrell and Cochrane (soft drinks), Insurance Corporation (insurance company), System Dynamics (management consultancy),  Wang Ireland (computer sector), Magna Distribution (consumer electronics), Minitel Ireland (public videotext services), Broadcom Eireann (communications research and development), EMTel (on-line services). 

During a 3 year assignment with System Dynamics lectured in the Irish Management Institute on information technology and telecommunications.  Spent 8 years with Wang Ireland as a member of the senior management team.  Positions held in Wang included Marketing Manager, PC Dealer Manager, and Business Development Director.

For the last 10 years has been operating as an independent consultant - active in areas such as project management. marketing/ business development,  and training.  Recent projects include:
·        Project managing selection and implementation of client/server systems (Irish National Petroleum)
·      Management training in Internet (Irish Trade Board)
·      Project managing a European Project - Low Earth Orbit Satellite use in the developing world - Trinet (INCO Programme)
·      Mobile Sales Representative system, account management  (Cadbury Ireland)
·      European project - Electronic Commerce between Ireland, Italy, and Spain, using the Internet - ( DG X111 ).
·      Insurance Services (ACC Bank)
·      Audiotex system (voice response), (Kerry Group)
·      2 assignments in Kenya (Nairobi) in the last year, working with a management consultancy firm (KHI)
In summary, sectoral experience gained in Retail/Distribution, Banking, Insurance, Government, Manufacturing, Consumer Electronics, Computer, and Telecommunications sectors. 

Patrick R. O’Beirne B.Sc. M.A. FICS 

Managing Director of Systems Modelling Limited since 1981.  He is a Fellow of the Irish Computer Society,  the current chair of the European Spreadsheet Risks Interest Group, a director of the Informatics Development Institute, and an Expert Advisor to the European Commission.

A certified TickIT ISO9000 auditor, he promotes software development process improvement using the Personal Software Process. He is a frequent speaker at international conferences and an author on practical I.T. approaches.  From 1999 to 2002 his projects were consulting and auditing I.T. projects for information system conversion to the euro, the single European currency. He  contributed to the national Forfás Euro Business Awareness Campaign of Ireland.His book “Managing the Euro in Information Systems; Strategies for Successful Changeover” was published by Addison Wesley in August 1999, ISBN 0-201-60482-5.

From 1997 to 1999 his focus was writing articles, speaking internationally, consulting, and auditing Year 2000(Y2K) projects. He contributed to I.T. training courses in the Irish Management Institute, lectured in computer applications at the Management Science School of the Department of Statistics in Trinity College Dublin, and is involved in the TRINET project to provide remote regions with access to the world-wide Internet via low-earth-orbiting satellites. His background is in industrial quality control and operations research applications.