NEWS & PRESS

Nurock crowned Merseyside innovation winner 2011

Knowsley-based Nurock, which has developed an innovative hydraulic concrete mixing system, has been crowned the winner of this year's Merseyside Innovation Awards, beating fellow finalists Weir and Carmichael, Human Recognition Systems and Learn About Finance.

The company will now receive a prize package worth £14,000, including a £10,000 cash prize and £4,000 worth of legal, business, accounting or design consultancy, as well as publicity for their idea.

The 16th Merseyside Innovation Awards took place this lunchtime at the Crowne Plaza in Liverpool. The awards were open to individuals or companies with fewer than 50 employees and were set up to recognise and reward the use of innovation to boost growth and profitability.

An esteemed panel of judges – including Ian Meadows, the chairman of RS Clare; Evolution's Jed Ashforth; and former Merseyside Innovation Awards winner Jobey Marlowe, who has taken a number of businesses from start-up to exit – had the task of whittling down entries to the final four.

The panel, plus the audience via a touchscreen voting system, were then responsible for deciding the overall winner, with Nurock coming out on top. Meadows said: "It was a very difficult decision, but we ultimately made the award to Nurock because of the impact this will have on their business."

The Merseyside Innovation Awards were established in 1996 and have gone from strength to strength. It is estimated that more than 500 companies have participated to date.

Brian McCann, chairman of the sponsor panel and founder of Vanguard Corporate Finance, said: "The awards have shown what a fertile breeding ground we have for new business ideas."

Previous winners have included manufacturing company Kleen and Green, soil inversion technology business Landlife Group and heating elements manufacturer 2D Heat.