Awards

Using standardization in tandem with research, development and innovation projects is celebrated and recognised at a national and EU level. Here are some of the awards available to those who innovate with Standards development.

NSAI Standards Innovation Award

Since 2018, the ‘NSAI Standards Innovation Award’ is presented annually to an NSAI Standards Expert(s) and their organisation for having ‘embedded Standards development into their R&D or innovation processes’, in line with the national research and innovation strategy, ‘Innovation 2020’. The innovation award is presented along with two other long standing NSAI awards (the ‘1997 Award’ and ‘Caighdean Oir‘ award) during the annual ‘NSAI Standards Forum‘ event.  

The newer ‘NSAI Standards Innovation Award’ illustrates how ‘Standards + Innovation’ contributes to success in business or the public sector, to advancing innovations and to turning ideas into national and/or international socio-economic impact, and potentially increased international exports in the case of commercial organisations. In effect, our national innovation award identifies and formally recognises innovative enterprises, organisations (public or private), research & innovation institutions/centres, SMEs and start-ups that have used Standards development to help them to innovate successfully at national, European and/or international levels. 

Past Winners

• 2018: Sean McNulty, Chairman & Director at Dolmen (Design and Innovation consultancy).  Also Chair of NSAI's national mirror committee on ‘Innovation Management’ 
• 2019: Gerald Craddock & James Hubbard, Centre for Excellence in Universal Design at National Disability Authority.  Also Chair & member (respectively) of NSAI's national mirror committee on 'Universal Design'
• 2020: Dr Pamela Hussey & Dr Subhashas Das of the Centre eIntegrated Care in Dublin City University.  Fiona Delaney, founded and CEO of the start-up Origin Chain Networks and editor of ISO Use Case Standards on Blockchain & Distributed Ledger Technologies.
• 2021: Dr Steven Darby and team from the ‘Centre for Advanced Photonics and Process Analysis’ (CAPPA) in Munster Technological University.  Award for research that informed key new NSAI and European standards for community face coverings in the context of the COVID 19 pandemic.

European Standards+Innovation Awards

In 2019, CEN and CENELEC launched the Standards + Innovation Awards to acknowledge the important contribution of research and innovation to standardization and celebrating the contributions of researchers, innovators and entrepreneurs to standardization. Nominations for these awards comes from the CEN and CENELEC national members of the 34 EU Member States, candidate countries and EFTA Members.

An annual award is presented to a European Research / Innovation project (H2020 / Horizon Europe) who successfully contributes to standardization. A second award is given to an individual who successfully introduces her/his research outcome or innovation into standardization, thereby creating impact for her/his work.

You can learn more about the Standards + Innovation Awards, including past Irish nominees and winners, here. 

Past Irish Winners

• Fiona Delaney, Founder and CEO of Origin Chain Networks. Find out more here.