Nine of the most exceptional and innovative life sciences and medtech companies and industry collaborations from across the Midlands have been recognised as winners of the Medilink Midlands Business Awards 2024.

We were excited to see that four of the winners and three of the runners up have worked with Health Innovation East Midlands to develop their products, grow their business or to access funding.

Held at the prestigious Athena in Leicester, the Business Awards 2024 brought together over 200 guests from across the life sciences and medtech sectors in the Midlands.

In celebration of Medilink Midlands’ 20th anniversary, it awarded a £5,000 prize to the ‘winner of winners’ which was presented on the night to Cytecom, winner of the Delivering Innovation into Health and Care award, sponsored by HORIBA. The Coventry-based company is developing a rapid diagnostic test using its cutting-edge optical electrophysiology technology to reduce the time for targeted antibiotic selection from days to seconds.

Winning organisations from seven of the categories will be go forward for the Medilink UK National Awards, taking place on 11 July 2024 in London.

Tim Robinson, Commercial Director, Health Innovation East Midlands said: “It was fantastic to celebrate the incredible innovations and achievements of life sciences businesses in the region – and see so many companies that we have supported on their journey so far, pick up awards. Congratulations to them all.”

If you would like to speak to our Commercial Team about the support they can provide – visit https://healthinnovation-em.org.uk/contact-us

The full line-up of winners and highly commended in the 2024 Awards, are:

Advances in Digital Healthcare (sponsored by Shakespeare Martineau)

Winner: Black Space Technology Ltd - Based at Birmingham Innovation Campus, the company specialises in scalable and future-proofed mobile telemedicine and telehealth solutions.

Highly commended: Select Research

Delivering Innovation into Health and Care (sponsored by HORIBA)

Winner: Cytecom

Highly commended: Informed Genomics

Export Achievement (sponsored by JensonR+)

Winner: Cellomatics Biosciences – a Nottingham-based contract research organisation

Highly commended: Salts Healthcare

Innovation (sponsored by TBAT Innovation)

Winner: Bioxhale – a Leicester-based advanced breath-testing company

Highly commended: Neurotherapeutics

One to Watch (selected by Medilink Midlands’ independent judging panel)

Winner: Ademen Ltd - Warwickshire-based Ademen Ltd, develops breakthrough sensors for gut monitoring, supporting management of IBS and IBD bowel conditions and post-surgery recovery.

Outstanding Achievement (sponsored by Charnwood Campus and CPW)

Winner: Upperton Pharma Solutions - recognising Upperton’s construction of a new 50,000 sq ft pharmaceutical development and manufacturing facility in ten months.

Highly commended: Clinitouch by Spirit Health

Partnership between Academia and Business (sponsored by Arise Innovation Hubs and the Medical Technology Research Centre of Anglia Ruskin University)

Winner: Healthcare Technologies Institute (HTI), School of Chemical Engineering, College of Engineering and Physical Sciences, University of Birmingham (UoB) and Salts Healthcare recognising HTI and Salts Healthcare’s collaborative research to discover new medical device innovations

Highly commended: Faculty of Science/School of Psychology University of Nottingham (UoN) & Neurotherapeutics

Start-Up (sponsored by Pioneer Group)

Winner: MESOX Ltd - Birmingham’s MESOX Ltd is transforming pharmaceutical formulation with its game-changing carrier technologies

Highly commended: VUIT Data Labs Ltd

Sustainability (sponsored by Mills & Reeve LLP)

Winner: Pennine Healthcare – a Derby-based manufacturer and distributor of single-use, sterile and non-sterile ward and theatre consumables and custom procedure packs. The award recognises Pennine Healthcare’s commitment to addressing the net zero and sustainability challenges affecting the NHS and wider medtech community

Highly commended: Zanzo Facilities Management