2006
Cook Ireland was awarded Exporter of the Year Award 2006, after winning the Life Sciences Exporter Award. Life Sciences incorporates companies in the pharmaceutical, chemical and medical devices sector. Cook Ireland is a leader in the medical devices sector. S
Developing, manufacturing and marketing a diverse range of products for minimally invasive medical operations has put Cook Ireland as a key player in this fast growing key export sector.
Cook Ireland was awarded the top prize because of
- Their significant export sales increase in the past year to €75 Million and a doubling of exports over the past 4 years. Its products are exported to 37 countries worldwide.
- Accomplishing this through the development of previously non-existent markets, and capturing market share from other competitors in the marketplace.
- Their strategy required the bold move of developing a parallel in-house marketing capability, to supersede the sales marketing centre in the parent company in the USA.
Cook Ireland based in the National Technology Park in Limerick, specializes in Endoscopy, Urology, Women’s Health such as metallic stents and in-vitro fertilization procedures.
Cook Ireland CEO is Bill Doherty and marketing Manager is Simon Campion.
Special Merit Award
The judging panel for the Irish Exporters Association’s Export Industry Awards, chaired by Sir George Quigley, awarded a Special Merit Award to W. M. Magner Ltd., Clonmel, Co. Tipperary. The award was given in recognition of the unprecedented export growth that the company has experienced with its Magners Cider in recent times. Exports of Magners Cider this year are expected to reach €95 million, up from €40 million the previous year. Magners was launched in London early last year and has already become the best selling packaged long alcoholic drink in London. As a result of the enormous increase in exports the company will double the size of its plant in Clonmel over the next 18 months creating an additional 150 jobs bringing total employment in Clonmel to 750.
Sector Category Winners
There were a number of sector categories and the winners in each went forward for the Exporter of the Year Award. Following are the nominees and winners in each sector.
The First Flight Exporter Award recognises achievements of companies successful in entering export markets for the first time. The award was open to companies involved in the First Flight Export Programme organised by Enterprise Ireland and the Irish Exporters Association. Nominees were: Card Commerce of Dublin; Easy Dry of Dundalk, Co. Louth and Larkin Engineering Enterprises, Tuam, Co. Galway. The winner was Card Commerce Ltd. for its plastic card-based gift vouchers which it exports to the UK. E
xports already account for 45% of its turnover and the company has ambitious plans to expand to Nordic countries and Spain next year.
Emerging Markets Exporter Award 2006 award recognises exceptional performance by Irish companies in new, non-
traditional markets. Nominees were: Coillte Nurseries, Ballinatemple, Co Carlow; Foamalite Ltd., Lough
Gowna, Co. Cavan; Sofrimar Ltd., Kilmore Quay, Wexford; Parc Aviation, Dublin and RMI, Dublin. The winner was Foamalite Ltd. which manufactures high quality, versatile pvc foam sheets for use in a variety of applications. Some 95% of its production is currently exported and the company has created markets in Turkey, Russia and Poland and marketing plans call for further penetration of Eastern European markets.
Nominees for the Seafood Exporter Award 2006 were: Atlatanfish, Carnadonagh, Co. Donegal; Atlantic Dawn, Killybegs, Co. Donegal and Connemara Seafood, Westport, Co. Mayo. The winner was Connemara Seafoods, an Irish-owned family business which processes shellfish products into value added products such as frozen mussels in a variety of sauces.
Nominees for the Irish Food and Drink Exporter Award 2006 were: J & L Grubb Ltd., Fethard, Co. Tipperary; The Irish Chocolate Company Ltd., Dublin; Magners, Clonmel, Co. Tipperary; Monaghan Mushrooms, Tyholland, Co. Monaghan and Lily O’Briens, Newbridge, Co. Kildare. The winner was Lily O’Briens, a company that currently employs 100 people and sells its range of chocolates around the world. Main markets include Britain, the USA, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the Netherlands and Belgium.
Nominees for the Software and International Services Exporter Award 2006 were: Aviation Services Ltd., Daon Ltd, ECDL Foundation, Fineos Corporation, the Percana Group – all from Dublin and Safegard Systems, Bray, Co. Wicklow. The winner was Fineos Corporation for its innovative software solutions for the insurance and banking sectors. The company employs over 225 people and had a turnover in excess of €22 last year.
Nominees for the Industrial Product Exporter Award 2006 were: Dromone Engineering Ltd., Oldcastle, Co. Meath; Fintec, Tullyvannon, Co. Tyrone; FLI Environmental, Waterford and Grascare Machinery Ltd., Ballyhaunis, Co. Mayo. The winner was Dromone Engineering Ltd. which designs, manufactures and markets a range of attachments for the agriculture and construction sectors. The company sells its products and services in 22 different countries including the UK, France, the USA, Canada, and Spain.
Nominees for the Consumer Goods Exporter Award 2006 were: Horseware Products Ltd., Dundalk, Co. Louth; Kayfoam Woolfson, Dublin; Model Nursery Liners, Horseleap, Co. Westmeath. The winner was Kayfoam Woolfson for its use of memory foam technology developed by NASA in providing mattresses that ensure a comfortable sleep. The company has export sales of some €30 million.
The Life Sciences Exporter Award 2006 is a new category which recognises the importance of this fast growing sector. The nominees were: Cook Ireland, Limerick; Genzyme Ireland Ltd., Wexford and Medentech Ltd., Waterford. The winner was Cook Ireland which went on to be named Exporter of the Year 2006.
The Innovation Exporter Award 2006 recognises companies that make significant contributions to the exporting sector resulting in a new technology, product or service being introduced. The nominees were: Citigroup Europe plc, Dublin; Smart Glass International, Dublin and Qumas, Cork. The winner was Qumas for its compliance solution framework that enables organisations to achieve a continuous sate of compliance on a single platform. The company’s latest development is aimed at start-up companies in the Life Sciences sector allowing them to protect their intellectual property by moving from paper-based systems to electronic ones.
The Multinational Exporter Award 2006 is a category that recognises the role of multinational companies in contributing to Ireland’s impressive export performance. Nominees for this award were: Dell, Limerick; Irish Distillers, Dublin and Stryker Orthopeadics, Cork and Limerick. The winner was Dell which came to Ireland in 1990. It employs 4,500 people and exports to 93 countries worldwide with an annual turnover of US$12 billion. Dell is currently the number one IT supplier in Ireland. In the past 12 months it has increased its Irish Operation Sales by 20% to €12.9 billion.
Nominees for the Short Sea Shipping Award 2006 were: Burke Shipping Group, Dublin; DFDS Container Line, Dublin; Dublin Ferryport Terminal, Eucon Shipping and Transport, Dublin and Stenaline, Dublin. The winner was DFDS Container Line, formerly Norfolkline Container Division, for providing direct port-to-port shipping schedules thus reducing transit times that could stand up to stiff competition from the roll on/roll off operators. The company, working closely with Iarnroid Eireann, has recently re-established a rail link between Ballina and Waterford Port.
Nominees for the Logistics Company of the Year Award 2006 were: DHL Exel Supply Chain; Geodis Ireland; International Warehousing and Transport and TDG Ireland Ltd. The winner was International Warehousing and Transport (IWT) an Irish company with offices in Dublin, Belfast, Cork and Rotterdam IWT offers total logistics and freight management solutions to exporters and importers and numbers among its clients companies such as Coca Cola, Diageo and C&C.
The Irish Exporters Association gratefully acknowledges the sponsorship of Bank of Ireland Global Markets, Bord Bía, Bord Iascaigh Mhara (BIM), Dublin Port Company, Enterprise Ireland, Forfás, and the Irish Maritime Development Office.
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