Innovation awards show advantages of R & D

The need to invest in research and development was emphasised yesterday at the launch of the National Innovation Awards.

The awards, part of the Government's 1999 Science, Technology and Innovation awareness programme, are co-sponsored by PricewaterhouseCoopers and The Irish Times.

Entrants should obtain an application form and make a written proposal by the May 21st deadline.

According to Ms Riona Sayers, operations manager of Enfer Scientific, the company which won the overall award last year, the resulting national recognition has been "hugely advantageous" in sourcing clients internationally.

Enfer, which has 20 employees, is an animal diagnostics screening company and the only one worldwide to have a post-mortem screening test for BSE, commonly known as mad cow disease.

The test allows cattle to be checked and results reported before the animal moves to the human food chain.

"Enfer would have spent somewhere in a region of £1 million developing the test over a two-year period," Ms Sayers said.

The test, which has received a quality standard ISO 9002 award, is one of four to have been selected by the European Commission in an extensive BSE test evaluation programme. The Minister of State for Science and Technology, Mr Noel Treacy, said access to the latest technological developments was a key factor in a firm's ability to be innovative.

Mr Louis O'Neill, chief executive and group managing director of The Irish Times, said science and technology were becoming increasingly influential in shaping society and the awards were one way of encouraging companies to innovate.

According to Forfas, the State policy adviser on science and technology, only 300 of 2,500 Irish-owned companies with 10 or more employees spend more than £100,000 annually on research and development (R&D).

Innovation awards will be given to three category winners - small business (employing fewer than 20 people), medium business (employing fewer than 50 people), and large business (employing more than 50 people) - which will each receive a £2,000 prize. In addition, the overall winner will receive £5,000, a specially designed trophy and will be profiled in The Irish Times.