Video Insight
Hear about the awards ceremony and the importance of celebrating eco-innovations from the Eco-I North West team, student researchers, business partners and keynote speaker Wayne Hemingway MBE.
Eco-I North West | 2023 Eco-Innovation Awards
The Eco-I NW project team were joined by collaborative business partners, academics, researchers and students at a celebratory awards event.
Much has been achieved over the last 3 years and the volume of collaborative research being undertaken across the North West is substantial. The universities of Lancaster, Central Lancashire, Cumbria, Liverpool, Liverpool John Moores and Manchester Metropolitan showcased business success stories through the Eco-Innovation Awards event whilst giving further opportunity for the worlds of business and academia to network together.
The awards ceremony took place at the Museum of Science and Industry, Manchester, on the evening of 18th May 2023 and included a talk by guest speaker Wayne Hemingway MBE.
To find out the latest updates post-event, read Lancaster University's press release.
Official pictures taken at the event can be found in this album and will be available for up to one month after the event.
2023 Eco-Innovation Award winners
As announced at the awards ceremony, our 2023 winners are:
Best concept in development - City Centre Commercials
CCC aims to upscale patented technology through a pilot plant to manufacture clay-free unfired bricks. The novel Geobricks are created using geopolymer technology to process clay filter cake, wastes generated after producing recycled aggregates from construction, demolition, and excavation wastes The use of the technology will transform a waste stream into a valuable construction material with reduced emissions.
Carbon journey award - Silverwoods Waste Management
Silverwood Waste Management Ltd are a waste management company based in Altham, specialising in recovering industrial waste in agriculture. The company was nominated for this award for an innovative project on carbon capture using Cement Bypass Dust (CBD) on agricultural soil. Using CBD on agricultural soils replaces the use of virgin quarried fertiliser. The company is committed to achieving 100% Net Zero within two years.
Community champion - Relic Plastic
Relic Plastic CIC challenge the conventional notion of waste by collecting post-consumer plastic, as well as industrial waste or offcuts from local businesses and turn them into high quality handmade products.
Most impactful business innovation - Used Kitchen Exchange
Used Kitchen Exchange Ltd 's vision to be the preferred sustainable choice for home interiors has helped them to develop an innovative plug and play circular economy model to reduce waste and emissions associated with kitchen installation.
Most promising new business - The Rebuild Site
The Rebuild Site CIC aims to address issues of surplus waste on construction sites and encourage the adoption of circular economy principles within the construction industry. They have developed a business model to identify potential barriers in diverting surplus construction materials from downcycling and landfill as a first step towards surplus material reuse. This has developed into Rebuild undertaking regular collections from construction sites via an annual subscription fee, the opening of a retail space to sell surplus materials at a reduced cost, 30 community groups being provided with free construction materials and overall diverting 100+ tonnes of materials from landfill (so far).
Most impactful researcher: Undergraduate - Lee Ollerenshaw; Postgraduate - Matthew Bond
Undergraduate - Lee Ollerenshaw, ELE Advanced Technologies Working with ELE Advanced Technologies. Lee is and ELE are creating a Net Zero Roadmap and reducing waste and carbon in advanced manufacturing processes including grinding and electric discharge machining. Postgraduate - Matthew Bond, REPIC Working with REPIC – the UK’s largest waste electrical compliance scheme on lifecycle analysis and optimisation modelling for carbon reduction of waste electricals across the industry.
The Eco-Innovation Awards gave participating SME’s the opportunity to celebrate their innovative R&D which is big in ambition but low in carbon.
The awards were open to people and businesses involved in Eco-I NW projects. The 2023 awards categories, assessment criteria and shortlisted nominees are detailed in the menu below:
Award Categories Accordion
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Most promising new business
Award Shortlist
- Enturi
- The Rebuild Site CIC
- Norvic Modular Systems
Detail
Presented by the University of Liverpool, the award for most promising new business looks to acknowledge and highlight a new business that has shown an exceptional commitment and ambition in adopting low carbon technologies and processes through their engagement with the Eco-I NW project. We encourage new businesses to nominate themselves and celebrate their commitment and ambition in the low carbon space.
Criteria
- Applicant businesses should have been incorporated for 12 months or less at the point they engaged with Eco-I NW'
- Applications should demonstrate business ambitions in the innovation and low carbon space'
- Businesses should be able to evidence that they are on a trajectory to make genuine progress towards key milestones in the next 12 months. These milestones may be the launch of a new product/service, increase in turnover/staff, promising and large-scale R&D, entering new markets/territories,
- Applicants should be collaborative in nature and have equitable partnerships,
- Applications should evidence what has been achieved to date.
Applications are closed.
Read more about how we score the Most promising new business award
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Most impactful business innovation
Award Shortlist
- Used Kitchen Exchange Ltd
- Flutter Shutter LTD
- Automedi
- OPEN Media
Detail
Presented by Manchester Metropolitan University, the award for Most Impactful Business Innovation is designed to celebrate the achievements of Eco-I NW alumni businesses who have gone the extra mile in terms of having a positive impact on society and the environment. This award is for businesses who have had the ambition and courage to do something different, and who have had great success at doing it. We encourage submissions from any of our alumni businesses who think that they have achieved something significant from their work on the project.
Criteria
- Applicants should be working on an exciting innovation which is impactful on the environment and society,
- Innovations should be scalable and/or widely applicable across sectors or geographies,
- Applications should demonstrate successful collaborations which have developed a new low carbon product, service or process and/or longer-term partnership,
- Innovations should have a significant geographical reach and longevity,
- Impact should already be taking place,
- Applicants should be ambitious in terms of ambition and strategy, with information given on projected impact for the next 5 years (in terms of products to market, services offered, carbon savings),
- Any aspired or realised growth should be detailed.
Applications are closed.
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Carbon journey award
Award Shortlist
- Silverwoods Waste Management
- The Yan at the Broadrayne
- RKMS Group
Detail
Presented by the University of Central Lancashire, this award recognises an initiative which has delivered a substantial (and relative) carbon saving. Applications should be from ambitious projects already underway and ideally with carbon savings already being realised. Longer term projections will be considered if the application demonstrates the validity of carbon saving predictions.
Criteria
- Ideally this will relate to realised carbon reductions following one of our project interventions. Forecast reductions could be considered.
- Does the project clearly show a true pursuit of net-zero/low carbon outcomes?
- Will the project make a significant and long term carbon saving on its target sector/community/geography?
Applications are now closed.
Read more about how we score Most impactful business innovation award
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Best concept in development
Award Shortlist
- City Centre Commercials Ltd
- Diversegrafix
- Enturi Solutions Ltd
- Eco.lure
- Designed Network Solutions Ltd
Detail
Presented by Liverpool John Moores University, the award for best concept in development is open to all eligible SMEs that have collaborated on a Research & Development project with an Eco-I NW partner university. The award celebrates original thinking and innovative ideas, and businesses with the passion and commitment to drive concepts through from initial idea to a marketable product that is impactful, scalable and widely applicable.
Criteria
- Applications should explain how the product/service/technology is innovative and ambitious. What makes it different to alternatives already available?
- Applications should detail future plans including further R&D requirements such as testing or prototyping, as well as any growth aspirations,
- Concepts do not need to be launched but should be working through technology readiness levels,
- Innovations should be scalable and widely applicable.
Applications are now closed.
Read more about how we score Best concept in development award
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Community champion
Award Shortlist
- Relic Plastic CIC
- Charge my Street
- Atkinsons Coffee Roasters
Detail
Presented by the University of Cumbria, the community champion award looks to highlight the exceptional work of a business, project or researcher working at the community level. The award celebrates community action and engagement that drives impactful and innovative carbon-saving activity. We encourage applicants to put themselves forward to celebrate their success in driving innovation in their local area and being a carbon-saving champion of the community.
Criteria
- Suitable for a business/individual who tirelessly pushes the low carbon agenda and seeks to enact change over many years of effort,
- Applications should evidence any links made with the local business community, schools and wider community groups,
- Applications should showcase what work has been done to support communities in lowering their carbon emissions,
- Any local, regional or national impacts on jobs, economy, carbon awareness should be detailed.
Applications are now closed.
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Most impactful postgraduate/undergraduate researcher
Award Shortlist
Undergraduate
- Lee Ollerenshaw - ELE Advanced Technologies
- Haaris Moynihan - Rapid IT
Postgraduate
- Matthew Bond - REPIC
- Matt Healey - Brathay Trust
- Jack Brennand - Barker & Bland
- Iman Hussain - NAQTS
Detail
Presented by Lancaster University, two awards are available in this category, one for a postgraduate (PhD or Master's by Research) researcher, and one for an undergraduate student. Applicants should have worked alongside an Eco-I NW business on a collaborative research project. This award highlights outstanding researchers and students who have positively engaged and contributed to the Eco-I NW programme. We encourage applicants to put themselves forward to celebrate their success and commitment to their research.
Criteria
- Project successes and challenges should be discussed as part of the application,
- Where possible the applicant should evidence going ‘above and beyond’ initial expectations, either in terms of the research delivered or commitment to wider Eco-I NW programme activities such as giving presentations, attending events, providing case studies etc.,
- Project supervisors or company partners should be available to verify claims made in the application,
- Application should demonstrate strong stakeholder management, bringing together business and academic colleagues to maintain relationships with project partners.
Applications are now closed.
Read more about how we score Most impactful postgraduate/undergraduate researcher award.
The Eco-Innovation awards were free to enter
Applications were scored by a panel of senior members of the Eco-I North West partnership institutions, the universities of Lancaster, Central Lancashire, Cumbria, Liverpool, Liverpool John Moores and Manchester Metropolitan. Winners were presented with a 3D printed award created using recycled waste plastic and were invited to join post-event press releases and coverage.
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Key Dates
- Applications opened on the 1st March 2023
- Deadline for applications was the 5th April 2023 - Extended to the 16th April 2023
- Shortlisted finalists have been announced, select the awards from the list above to see the shortlists
- Winners were announced on the 18th May 2023 at the Eco-Innovation Awards ceremony and are detailed above on this page
Bringing business and research together
The awards offered the opportunity for Eco-I researchers and businesses to network and share achievements
Wayne Hemingway MBE
Keynote speaker Wayne Hemingway MBE shared his lifelong passion for reused clothes and his current projects Hemingway Design and Charity Supermarket
Award Celebrations
The award announcements and evening activities were entertained with live music by the Lancaster University alumni band Atomic Brass
Awards Presentations
Each award was presented by a different partner university with each nominee project being highlighted for their achievements.
Awards Presentations
Award winners were invited on stage to receive their award trophy.
Awards Presentations
The awards offered an opportunity for attendees to network and celebrate the achievements facilitated by the Eco-I NW project.
Meet 2022 winner - Typhon Treatment Systems
Typhon has collaborated with the Eco-I NW project to further develop an innovative and low-energy LED water treatment system. Find out more about the 2022 awards here:
Eco-I NW Awards 2022