Outstanding businesses win export awards

Fifteen Queensland businesses have been recognised and celebrated for their outstanding success and contribution to the state’s trade output at the Premier of Queensland’s Export Awards which were held at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre last night (Thursday 20 October 2016).

SmartCap Technologies has taken out the top prize of the evening – the Premier of Queensland’s Exporter of the Year Award – as well as the Health and Biotechnology award, for its wearable device which monitors fatigue and improves safety outcomes on mine sites and for long-haul drivers.

Representing Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk, State Development Minister Dr Anthony Lynham paid tribute to all the businesses that had made it into the finals. 

“These awards acknowledge the significant achievements that exporters have made to improving the State’s economic activity and boosting jobs,” Dr Lynham said.

“Queensland’s businesses have the innovation, expertise and professionalism to take on international markets, and it is important that we recognise their hard work and determination to succeed.

“For example Maroochydore-based Typefi Systems has come out of nowhere to win the Small Business Award which is a significant achievement for a regional entrant.

“Blast Movement Technologies won the Minerals and Energy Award and is a strong contender to win the same category at the Australian Export Awards, being held in Brisbane on 24 November, for the third year in a row, this would put it in the Australian Export Awards Hall of Fame.”

“But whether small or large, these businesses prove that they have what it takes to succeed on an increasingly competitive world stage.”

Chief Executive Officer of the Export Council of Australia (ECA) Lisa McAuley said as a leading advocate for international trade, the ECA, in conjunction with Trade and Investment Queensland, were honoured to manage this state-wide competition where nominees secure their reputation on the world stage.

“Acknowledging exporters is vital in building awareness of new market opportunities available to business owners,” Ms McAuley said.

“We are seeing more and more new companies that are exporting their goods and services with excellent results and now is the time to focus on how we can help build on Australia’s trade capabilities and encourage more companies to look at the global opportunities that are opening up.”

Annually exporters make a significant contribution to the Queensland economy, with goods exports worth $47 billion in the last financial year according to the latest figures.

Full list of winners by category:

• Agribusiness Award: Stockyard Pty. Ltd. (Jondaryan/Brisbane)
• Minerals and Energy Award: Blast Movement Technologies (Brisbane)
• Creative Industries Award: Cutting Edge (Brisbane)
• Education and Training Award: Cairns College of English and Business (Cairns)
• Environmental Solutions Award: Aqualuma LED Lighting (Gold Coast)
• E-Commerce Award: Grace Loves Lace (Gold Coast)
• Digital Technologies Award: Opmantek Ltd. (Gold Coast)
• Manufacturing Award: Aim Lab Automation Technologies Pty. Ltd. (Brisbane)
• Health and Biotechnology Award: SmartCap Technologies Pty. Ltd. (Brisbane)
• Business Services Award: Ferra Engineering Pty. Ltd.(Brisbane)
• Small Business Award: Typefi Systems Pty. Ltd. (Maroochydore)
• Regional Exporter Award: Evolve Skateboards Pty. Ltd. (Gold Coast)
• Dermot McManus Award for Innovation Award: Knotwood Pty. Ltd. (Stapylton)
• Richard Joel Award for Emerging Exporter Award: Gruntify (Brisbane)
• Tom Burns Award for Women in International Business Award: Queensland Food Corporation Pty. Ltd. (Brisbane)
• Premier of Queensland’s Export of the Year Award: SmartCap Technologies Pty. Ltd.

Agribusiness Award:

Stockyard Pty. Ltd. (Jondaryan/Brisbane) is a family-owned and operated business which consists of the Kerwee Feedlot located on the Darling Downs, and a beef export operation which ships its award-winning product to Japan, the Middle East, Korea and South East Asia.

Minerals and Energy Award:

Blast Movement Technologies (Brisbane) BMT has developed a patented method of measuring the movement of rock that occurs during blasting, enabling mines to track ore before and after the blast, so as to avoid valuable ore being  thrown away. Its  technology is becoming standard practice in most open-cut gold mines around the globe.

Creative Industries Award:

Cutting Edge (Brisbane) is a world-leading content provider, post-production facility and factual television production partner. Its  focus on growing its  business in Japan and China has allowed it to capitalise on opportunities in this region. Cutting Edge has secured diverse projects including US television series, international feature films and television commercials for the Australian studios.

Education and Training Award:

Cairns College of English and Business (Cairns) is an independent and internationally recognised education provider, attracting travelling students from around the globe who are keen to enhance their English, vocational and business learning while exploring North Queensland.

Environmental Solutions Award:

Aqualuma LED Lighting (Gold Coast) began operations in 2004 and has become a global authority on energy efficient lighting solutions. The business develops innovative underwater lighting solutions and efficient, sustainable lights for commercial and industrial applications. It has achieved massive international expansion across APAC, South-East Asia and the Middle East.

E-Commerce Award:

Grace Loves Lace (Gold Coast) was launched in 2011 and supplies the international and local bridal market with unique, luxury, wearable and accessible wedding dresses. The business has a cult-like following and has “The World’s Most Pinned Wedding Dress on Pinterest (over 2.5 million pins).

Digital Technologies Award:

Opmantek Ltd. (Gold Coast) is a world leader in the field of IT infrastructure management and audit software and has been the recipient of numerous international awards. More than 100,000 organisations in 130 countries now rely on its  software to provide critical network performance to their IT teams to assist them in detecting faults, reviewing current and historical data and predicting where future failures may occur.

Manufacturing Award:

Aim Lab Automation Technologies Pty. Ltd. (Brisbane) is a privately owned manufacturer of innovative robotic instrumentation that is used in pathology and industrial laboratories around the world. Its instrumentation is making the processing of large numbers of incoming samples easier through automation.

Premier of Queensland’s Exporter of the Year Award and Health and Biotechnology Award:

SmartCap Technologies Pty. Ltd. (Brisbane) is an award-winning technology company that has developed a wearable device to monitor fatigue. The business aims to save as many lives as possible by creating the most accurate and reliable products in the fatigue space.

Business Services Award:

Ferra Engineering Pty. Ltd. (Brisbane) is a privately owned local company which has transformed from servicing the local metal manufacturing industry into being a globally recognised leader in the supply of aerospace and defence systems.

Small Business Award:

Typefi Systems Pty. Ltd. (Maroochydore) is a world-leading provider of single-source automated publishing software that helps people around the world publish their content faster and in more formats. The user-friendly platform allows a customer to take a single source document and automatically render it in over 30 formats for print, online and mobile in under three minutes with 100 per cent accuracy.

Regional Exporter Award:

Evolve Skateboards Pty. Ltd. (Gold Coast) has been designing, manufacturing and selling electric skateboards since 2011. Most of their sales are completed online through their website however the business is now expanding into international retail chains, with a focus on establishing key flagship retailers for 2015/16.

Dermot McManus Award for Innovation:

Knotwood Pty. Ltd. (Stapylton) has gone from being a local finishing business to an award-winning exporter of wood-grain aluminium systems in Australia. It has created a system of aluminium profiles for outdoor applications that is resistant to fading, flaking and chipping, and has a realistic wood-grain finish.

Richard Joel Award for Emerging Exporter:

Gruntify (Brisbane), also known as "Instagram for business", is a mobile-to-web data capture and management platform, provided to clients as a white-labelled product  -  customisable for use in the government, utilities, healthcare, conservation industries and more. Quick capture of photos, videos, audio and data entry forms into the app is sent in real-time to the web-based data management platform. Data visualisation, mapping and workflows make for easy analysis, collaboration and decision-making.

Tom Burns Award for Women in International Business:

Queensland Food Corporation Pty. Ltd. (Murrarie) is a privately-owned, export award-winning agriculture food exporter that catches, processes and export premium Queensland fish, prawn, tuna, crabs and other fresh and frozen seafood to more than eight countries including Japan, China, United States, Hong Kong,  Taiwan and Singapore.

[ENDS]                       20 October 2016

Media Contact:          Benjamin Mulcahy 0419 562 389