South Coast Tech Awards 2023: winners celebrate
An impressively strong line-up of businesses across 13 categories was honoured at this year’s South Coast Tech Awards.
The ceremony returned to the Hilton at the Ageas Bowl, where 250 guests celebrated the cream of the region’s technology talent.
Richard Thompson, Managing Director at The Business Magazine, said: “A few years ago, tech was never a sector that you could say was synonymous with Southampton and the South Coast. But that has changed.”
He pointed out that Southampton has established itself as a growing UK tech hub. In a recent national survey, Southampton came 5th in a list of 23 technology hotspots in the country, ahead even of Cambridge.
Thompson continued: “The city and surrounding area have seen the emergence of home-grown digital companies – and down the coast in Bournemouth the number of tech start-ups in the past few years has also put Dorset firmly on the hotspot map.”
This year’s event was supported by headline sponsor Spectrum IT Recruitment (South) as well as category sponsors James Cowper Kreston, Gresham House Ventures, BGF, Blake Morgan LLP, BDB Pitmans, BDO LLP, AllPoints Fibre, Evelyn Partners, Infinigate Cloud, BizNews and the University of Southampton Science Park.
Back by popular demand to host the ceremony with only a touch of seriousness was Lucy Porter, the comedian, podcaster, playwright and BBC Radio 4 regular.
This year, the awards supported Wessex Cancer Support, which supports local people affected by cancer. On the night, generous guests donated £3,000 to the charity.
And the winners are…
Cyber Security Company of the Year
Celebrating the vendors, distributors and resellers working to keep us all safe online.
Winner: Vizst Technology
“About two years ago we merged three companies and have spent the last 18 months re-positioning the business with a focus on cyber security. We have made a lot of internal changes to allow that to happen and have been honing our offering around cyber security. We have a strong leadership team with CEO Richard Betts plus a flat management structure, so everyone has the autonomy to make changes in their areas quickly when they need to.” Gemma Roalf, Head of Marketing, Vizst Technology
Highly Commended: CloudTech24
Finalists:
• Beyond Encryption
• HB Tech
• Tailor Made Technologies
Tech Start Up of the Year
Recognising the best of the new wave of startups in the south coast region.
Winner: Renovos Biologics
“I joined the company as I was impressed with the tenacity of CEO Agnieszka Janeczek. Fundraising in the UK is not easy and a lesser person would have quit, but she didn't. She left academia and took the technology she had developed into clinical use. In the last year, we have made huge progress technically, secured serious new IP and achieved encouraging trial results. We have developed a relationship with a trade investor that helped secure Innovate UK funding. We are now moving from start-up mode to proper company mode. We are making the business an investible proposition.” James Otter, Chair, Renovos Biologics
Finalists:
• AddTime Ltd
• CanSense Group Ltd
• FaultFixers
Innovative Tech Company of the Year
A company that has shown a commitment to innovation and has the ability to make a lasting impact in their field.
Winner: TouchNetix
“We have spent five years developing our own silicon for touch technology, which is a relatively short time in this business. Our customer base is automotive, medical and industry. Once they see what you can do things ramp up pretty quickly, so we are massively optimistic. It has been tough finding really good talent to come and join a semi start-up business but we are getting more recruits coming along and choosing to invest in a career with us.” George East, Managing Director, TouchNetix
Finalists:
• CanSense Group
• Lifelight
• Loop Technology
• Paqua
• Renovos Biologics
• Universal Collaboration Research
Emerging Tech Company of the Year
A company that has shown significant promise and potential for growth and has the ability to make a lasting impact in its field.
Winner: Filament AI
“Having a large customer base with recurring revenues has been really important for us. Our existing customer base has helped us to form and shape our product, which has given us a head start in the way we can build our product out. Also, we know it serves customers’ needs. We took our first round of investment funding in April 2023, which was really exciting as it unlocks new opportunities and enables us to make new hires.” Dr James Ravenscroft, Chief Technology Officer, and Alex Horsfield, Head of Data Engineering, Filament AI
Finalists:
• CanSense Group Ltd
• KOIOS Master Data Limited
• Lifestyle Clarity
• Optima Electric Yachts
Sustainable Tech Company of the Year
A company contributing to the growing push for sustainable practices and business, while reducing the impact of business on the environment.
Winner: Kelda Showers
“We are on a mission to deliver the best sustainable showers that use the least amount of water. They help to reduce hot water use and reduce carbon emissions. We are at the point now of taking this into the house-building sector. It's a global opportunity for us to make a real difference. We are working with UK national house builders to help them meet their targets on carbon emissions and reducing water usage. This is just the start for us. Our air-powered technology is very scalable so there are many more opportunities ahead.” Paul Ravnbo-West, Marketing Director, Kelda Showers
Highly Commended: Paqua
Finalists:
• Optima Electric Yachts
• RAD Propulsion
Tech Employer of the Year
A company that has shown a commitment to its employees and has the ability to attract and retain top talent in the industry.
Winner: Sumillion
“We are a vegan organisation that promotes the environmental as well as the health benefits. As we have grown we have attracted more people who are open-minded to this kind of change. We don't force it on people, so long as they respect the fact that we are a vegan company. It leads to a healthier way of life. We have a dedicated wellbeing manager, which is quite unusual for a smaller organisation. She is also a yoga teacher and gives staff free lessons. Our approach to wellbeing is engrained in everything we do.” Kelly Abrahams, Team Leader of Major Accounts, Sumillion
Finalists:
• Airsys Communications Technology
• AllPoints Fibre
• Beyond Encryption
• Blue Frontier
• I.T. Dev
Health Tech Company of the Year
The most innovative and impactful technology companies in the healthcare industry.
Winner: Lifelight
“I think it was the scale of our ambitions that helped us win this award. Our technology is designed to turn any smartphone into a blood pressure monitor that can detect hypertension. Around 1.3 billion people in the world have hypertension but only half know they have the condition. Our mission is to allow the other half to discover they have it and seek treatment. In the last 12 months, we have achieved the accuracy we need to get regulatory approvals, initially in the UK and Europe and next year we will extend this to the US and then the Far East and Middle East. It is already live in the UK with the NHS.” Laurence Pearce, CEO, and Gina Pelletier, Business Support, Lifelight
Finalists:
• CanSense Group
• DocHQ
• Glyconics
• Medilogic UK
Tech SME of the Year
SMEs that are forging new paths and, through new concepts and/or products, are standing out from the crowd.
Winner: Fresh Relevance
“It has been an important year for us, particularly our collaboration with the University of Portsmouth where we have undertaken a major AI project with them. This has been instrumental in creating some of the AI technology we use in our products that help our clients make more money from their websites. The company has grown to around 70 staff and about 350 clients. We have just been acquired by a publicly listed UK company that is the perfect partner who will provide a home in which we can take our product to the rest of the world.” Mike Austin, CEO and Co-founder, Fresh Relevance
Finalists:
• Blue Frontier
• First Option Software
• Optima Electric Yachts
High Growth Tech Company of the Year
A technology company that has experienced exceptional growth and success in recent years.
Winner: TEKEVER
“Our technology has been improving over the last 18 months or so and a lot of regulatory issues have been sorted out. We are now able to fly our unmanned systems in places we hadn’t been able to before. One of the highlights for us in the last year has been working with scientists to enable them to monitor whales, dolphins and other sea mammals. They have made discoveries about behaviours that are totally novel as they can now locate and monitor them over extended periods using our unmanned planes.” Paul Webb, Managing Director, Tekever
Finalists:
• 3R Recruitment
• Infinigate Cloud
• Vizst Technology
Marine/Port Tech Company of the Year
A company that has demonstrated a commitment to developing cutting-edge solutions that enhance safety, efficiency, and sustainability.
Winner: Optima Electric Yachts
“The electric boat market is growing rapidly but wide acceptance will be limited by the low range capability of the majority of electric boats, often no more than 25 miles. This is why we have developed a much more efficient vessel with a range of up to 150 miles. A highlight for us this year was launching our 10m demo boat and becoming the first electric boat to circumnavigate the Isle of Wight. Over the next 12 months, Optima needs to attract investors and partners to bring boats into production, starting with the e13 leisure boat and a 12-passenger water taxi. Winning this award helps to give us exposure and credibility.” David Kendall, CEO, Optima Electric Yachts
Finalists:
• Actisense
• RAD Propulsion
Science and Tech Company of the Year
A company who could demonstrate exceptional excellence at the intersection of science and technology.
Winner: Appello
“There’s a huge change going on in the telecare industry. We are focusing on digital technologies to keep vulnerable people in communities safe, especially the elderly, and also improve their wellbeing. We have a market lead in our industry with 50,000 digital connections.” Carl Atkey, CTO, Appello
Finalists:
• AccelerComm Ltd
• CanSense Group Ltd
• Glyconics
• Lifelight
Tech Leadership Team of the Year
A group of leaders within a technology company who have demonstrated exceptional vision, strategy, and execution.
Winner: Trusted Technology Partnership
“When the company recently became an Employee Ownership Trust our leadership team used this as a catalyst to improve the working environment for all of our 100 staff. A shareholding gives employees a feeling of ownership. Since the change in business model, our productivity has gone up and our customer satisfaction surveys have improved. As well as our management structure we have also put in place a colleague council with elected members, so employees have their own voice.” Pauline Gray, Managing Director, Trusted Technology Partnership
Special Recognition: Catholic Diocese of Portsmouth
Finalists:
• AccelerComm
• Paqua
South Coast Tech Company of the Year
Achievements of the company in innovation, sales and profitability, product development and/or contribution to the sector.
Winner: CV-Library
“Winning this award was an unexpected surprise. The company has invested a lot in the last year in our people. Before the Covid-19 pandemic, we recognised that we got some things wrong. Since then, we have really turned it around by putting people front and first in everything we do. We have also invested heavily in technology, especially AI and machine learning. We are in the middle of a programme to completely rewrite our whole platform. Our founder, Lee Biggins, maintains the energy and drive to move the business forward and that includes new opportunities outside the UK.” Derren Stroud, CFO, and Barney Ritchley, CTO, CV-Library
Highly Commended: Utilita Energy
Finalists:
• Absolar Solutions
• AllPoints Fibre
• Appello
• Trusted Technology Partnership
