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Over 380 industry leaders recently gathered at Hardwick Hall Hotel to celebrate the outstanding achievements of the region’s process sector at the North East of England Process Industry Cluster’s (NEPIC) Annual Industry Awards 2024.

Building on its 18-year history, this year 15 awards were presented to well-deserving winners across 10 categories, with a total prize fund of £23,000.

£16,000 of which will be donated to North East schools to support local STEM projects, building ever-closer links between industry and academia to ensure the sector continues to thrive through the next generation of local talent.

This year’s winners included:

Apprentice Awards

Eleanor King (Conoco Phillips), Joshua Cosby (px Group), Luke Pearson-Turner (GSK).

Young Achiever Awards

Niall Douglas (Johnson Procurement Solutions), Ben Watson (CF Fertilisers UK), Rebecca Ball (Wood), George Whitwick (Sembcorp Energy UK).

Environmental Award for North East Primary Schools

Bede Community Primary School Gateshead.

Corporate Environmental Award

CATS Terminal/Wood.

Small Business of the Year

IAMTech.

Apprenticeship Employer of the Year

Sembcorp Energy UK.

 Communities & Reputation Award

Just Williams.

Engineering Firm of the Year

Labman Automation.

Innovation Award

Sembcorp Energy UK.

Outstanding Contribution

Tony Jester (Altrad).

The evening was also attended by keynote speaker Stephen Elliott, chief executive of the Chemical Industries Association who said: “The chemical industry is one of the biggest manufacturing exporters this country has. We cannot do what we do on a national level without an effective regional presence – and no one provides that better than NEPIC for a sector that has more than 1,400 companies, generating £26 billion of annual sales and providing work for almost 200,000 people.”

Speaking on the event, interim CEO at NEPIC, Joanne Fryett said: “Each year the calibre of applicants continues to blow us away, it really is a testament to the exceptional businesses and employees represented within the NEPIC network.”

“We are honoured to be able to bring these awards to the region every year and celebrate the excellence in our industry, not only that of individuals who have a long-standing history here, but also the new emerging talent within the sector.”