First Round Finalists Announced Westhill

Two Westhill companies are among the list of first-round finalists in the Grampian Awards for Business Enterprise, announced today following a record-breaking number of nominations.

The diverse range of businesses across Grampian in competition to scoop a coveted award range from shell eggs suppliers, stud farms, gourmet fresh foods, charities, sports tournaments, to high-tech solutions for the oil and gas industry.

Paramount Care and Red Spider must now prepare a more detailed submission to go through to the second-round.

There has been a 65% increase in nominations for the awards which recognise business excellence in all sizes of enterprises across Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire. The Grampian Awards for Enterprise are organised by Enterprise North East Trust (Enterprise) and sponsored by The Royal Bank of Scotland and Business Gateway (supported by Scottish Enterprise Grampian).

Chris Travis, Chief Executive of Enterprise North East Trust (Enterprise), said, "We have been highly impressed with the calibre and quantity of entries this year which reflects the growing achievements and innovation of north east businesses and individuals.

"Bringing the entry system online for the first time and simplifying the entry process has also made it easier than ever for businesses to enter. This year 73% of entries were received online."

Stuart Heslop, Director of Commercial Banking for The Royal Bank of Scotland in Aberdeen, said, "The Royal Bank of Scotland is delighted to be supporting this event which celebrates Grampian businesses that have demonstrated a commitment to innovation, excellence and fostering an entrepreneurial spirit. Their business flair and dynamism makes them a role model for other businesses in the region.

"This is the fourth consecutive year of The Royal Bank of Scotland’s sponsorship of the awards and we have been pleased to see them grow in stature to the point where they are now established as the premier event on the Grampian business calendar."

The thirty-eight first-round finalists, selected from all over Aberdeenshire, must now prepare a more detailed submission to be judged by an expert panel to proceed to the next round.

There are six categories in the 2005 Grampian Awards for Business Enterprise. Winners receive a handcrafted trophy and the awards are one of the few held locally which have a cash prize in each category. All criteria are based on company age at 1 June 2005.

The first-round Grampian Awards for Business Enterprise finalists are:

Bugstop - Aberdeen Environmentally friendly barrier for crop pests.

Eat on the Green – Udny Green Restaurant

Cabeau Stud – Peterhead Horse breeder

FitNut – Inverurie Health awareness for organisations

Poseidon - Inverurie Precision waterjet cutting service

activitymix - Aberdeen Runs corporate sports tournaments

Cable Solutions - Ellon Offers electrical cable and connector solutions

Caledus - Aberdeen Oil and gas well products and services

Digit New Media - Inverurie Provides 3D visualisation for the design, mechanical and architectural sector

Haptogen - Aberdeen Antibody development company

Paramount Care - Westhill Home care company

Red Spider - Westhill Design, manufacture and supply of innovative downhole tools to the oil and gas industry

C&M – Aberdeen Onshore and offshore services

activpayroll - Aberdeen Helping organisations look after their employees payroll (check with Beverley)

CSL – Aberdeen Delivers subsea developments to the global oil and gas industry

Halliday and Lloyd - Montrose Provides gourmet fresh foods

Heavenly Pizzas - Aberdeen Independent pizza delivery operator

Optima – Aberdeen Provides project management and engineering consultancy work for oil rig cooling systems

Zeroth – Aberdeenshire Provides innovative solutions to overcome current and future technical challenges.

ANM – Inverurie Offer livestock marketing and auctioneering

Cornerstone - Aberdeen Charity providing care to special needs

Cyrenians – Aberdeen Voluntary organisation for the homeless

Farmlay - Fraserburgh Supply fresh shell eggs

Minto – Inverurie Provide high quality design and print solutions

PCL - Portlethen Provider of IT solutions

Caledus – Aberdeen Oil and gas well products and services

Dick Fleming - Aberdeen Corporate mobile phone and accessories

Haptogen - Aberdeen Antibody development company

Intelligent Home Systems – Peterhead Provides residential technology services

Offshore Hydrocarbons – Bridge of Don Commercialises Controlled Source Electromagnetic (CSEM) technology specifically for use in the hydrocarbon industry

Polyoil – Aberdeen Developed pioneering new technology for the oil and gas industry

Red Spider – Westhill Design, manufacture and supply of innovative downhole tools for the oil and gas industry

Christian Arno - Aberdeen Lingo 24

Ciaren Dreelan - Portlethen qServ

Ian Stuart - Inverurie Digit New Media

Graeme Anderson boxportable

Graeme Duncan - Aberdeen xtreme solutions

Jules Lancastle - Aberdeen activitymix

Second-round finalists will be announced in late March and will be invited to attend a black tie awards ceremony, to be held on 9^th June 2005, to see if they have won one of the coveted awards.

Ends

For more information contact:

Caroline Cull
Tricker PR
Telephone: 01224 646491
Mobile: 07795 522011
Fax: 01224 646492
Email: ccull@trickerpr.com