Eight North East companies are toasting success after winning Queen’s Awards for Enterprise.
The winners of the 2022 Queen’s Awards for Enterprise have been announced, celebrating the achievements of UK businesses across categories including innovation, international trade, sustainable development and promoting opportunity.
This year, regional businesses join 232 from across the UK in a range of sectors for the awards, recognised by Her Majesty The Queen on her birthday as among the best in the country.
Read more: Queen's Awards for Enterprise 2022 - all you need to know
Small Business Minister Paul Scully said: “This country is renowned for its entrepreneurial achievements and there is no greater showcase for it than The Queen’s Awards. It’s vital we celebrate the success of our businesses and recognise the contributions they make to communities across the country. I congratulate this year’s winners for their hard work and commitment over the last year and I wish them every success for the future.”
Winning firms from the region include MoD supplier Pearson Engineering in Newcastle, which has won an innovation award.
The award recognises the company’s outstanding export performance over the past three years, which saw turnover increase by 123% between 2018 and 2020, and exports increase from 87% to 95%.
Pearson Engineering serves customers throughout North America, South America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia and Oceania and despite the challenges brought by the Covid-19 pandemic and Brexit, the company has continued to deliver equipment to friendly Armed Forces around the word, whilst also entering new markets.
Craig Priday, managing director, said: “This award recognises the exceptional staff at Pearson Engineering, who have gone the extra mile to deliver our life-saving equipment to our worldwide customers. This accolade also recognises the hard work of our sister company, Responsive Engineering, which manufactures our core equipment, together with our other trusted supply chain partners in the North East and beyond.”
Sure Purity, based in Blaydon, wins the Queen’s Award for International Trade. The company began in 2016 in Sunderland after its founder Gary Robson, uncovered a widespread issue concerning carbon dioxide quality used in the carbonation of beverages. It now sells to six continents with sales outlets in 100 countries and overseas sales have grown by 414% across the last three years, with the percentage exported rising to 88%.
Mr Robson said: “It’s an incredible honour to receive an award this prestigious and we’re proud to be flying the flag for the North East region. We’re a region that is known for our history of innovation and we’re proud to be continuing this legacy. With our industry-leading product, we’re not only helping to protect global brands and their consumers from issues of contamination, we are also providing a sustainable way for major brands’ beverage bottling plants to reduce their solid waste by 50%, and in doing so lower their carbon footprint.”
Newton Aycliffe based Roman, which also wins an international trade award, was initially based around providing colour coordinated glass screens to match bathroom colors. Since then, it has evolved into being the largest manufacturer of shower enclosures, wet room panels and bath screens in the UK and Europe. Over three years to March 2020 its overseas sales have grown by 46% and exports now make up around 10% of all sales.
A spokeswoman for Roman said: “We are all immensely proud of this huge honour – and to be awarded a second one makes it even more special. The award is recognised all around the world and we know that this accolade will further strengthen the Roman brand nationally and internationally. I know all of our staff and their families will take great pride in such news.”
Newcastle based SoPost, launched by Jonathan Grubin 10 years ago, also wins the Queen’s Award for International Trade. The platform for online product sampling has developed a technology solution that allows brands to run effective sampling campaigns online with a focus on relevance, data and analytics. Overseas sales have grown by 101% and now account for 62% of total sales.
Mr Grubin said: “We’re over the moon to have received a Queen’s Award for Enterprise. We’ve been recipients of awards like the Deloitte Fast 50 and Sunday Times Tech Track 100 in the past, which are all amazing accolades, but this one is really the icing on the cake as the most prestigious award for UK businesses. We entered because we wanted to gain some recognition for the incredible work our teams have been doing internationally, and having witnessed the rigour of the application process, it’s even more satisfying to be one of this year’s recipients.
“More than half our sales come from international markets, and global expansion is a key strategic priority for SoPost. We’ve had people in the US since 2016, and opened offices in France and Germany last year. While we build these markets out, we’re also recruiting in Australia to support our growth in APAC.”
Meanwhile D-Line (Europe) Limited, based in North Shields, wins an international trade award after seeing exports grow by 128% in three years with its trunking, cable organisers and fire-rated cable fasteners.
Paul Ruddick, founder, said: “To win any Queens Award requires highest standards, so for D-Line to receive awards in three consecutive years is a fantastic achievement. And we’ve won in both Innovation and Export categories, in highly competitive markets and challenging times. It is testament to all D-Line stakeholders that our innovative cable management products are now used every day in over thirty countries around the world.”
Darlington based Beanies – also an international trade award winner – has been making and selling its low calorie and sugar free coffees, with a large number of unusual flavours, since 2013.
The product range is exported to over 30 countries and overseas sales have grown by 187% over the last six years and in the final year accounted for 12% of total sales.
John Evans, managing director, said: “This Queen’s Award means a great deal to the business, not only does it reward the hard work that has gone into the last nine years, but it truly puts us on a firm footing for developing the next stage our export potential. These are exciting times for us and is an example of what can be achieved even for the most modest of companies. Personally, I am very proud of achieving this very prestigious award and for the effort that has gone into it from the whole team here at Beanies. The award means that we can really fly the flag for Britain - and Darlington - around the world to showcase our amazing range of coffee.”
Qinov8, based in Shildon, County Durham, receives a Queen’s Award for innovation, thanks to its pioneering product Aquapea.
The company developed the product in 2016, which is capable of repairing water leaks from inside the pipe without excavating or exposing the pipe. The novel approach was inspired by an experiment blowing tissue paper through a Bic pen, and Aquapea is now fully approved to be used in potable water supplies and offers global benefits, helping to tackle climate change and water scarcity.
Founder Michael Quinn said: “Winning the Queen’s Award for Enterprise means so much to Qinov8. Within the water industry this will allow us to be on the same stage as the big innovation companies, to showcase our present and future technologies for the UK and International markets, helping us to continue developing new products capable of saving water and reducing the carbon footprint.”
Finally Osbit, based in Riding Mill, Northumberland, wins an innovation award for its offshore vessel, deck mounted, Intervention Tension Frame (ITF), enabling efficient and safe activities in the maintenance or closure of wells. The firm has been supplying specialist energy services to the offshore oil and gas and renewable energy industries since 2010, and it has taken on more than 40 new employees following its acquisition by Venterra Group last October.
A spokeswoman for Osbit said: “We are absolutely delighted to receive a Queen’s Award for Innovation which is a wonderful acknowledgment of our team’s skills and ingenuity. Innovation has always been at the core of what we do and to be recognised for this, at the highest level, is a huge achievement for Osbit.”
Her Majesty’s Lord Lieutenants will be presenting the awards to businesses locally throughout the year.
