Created in 1991, the Wallonia Export Grand Prix recognises the efforts and successes of Walloon companies in foreign markets, contributing to the reputation of these companies and the brand image of Walloon products, services and expertise abroad. Once again this year, the Wallonia Export-Investment Agency received many quality applications but had to select just 5. Without further ado, here are the results of the jury.
'EU' Springboard Award
The company Pollet, specialising in the research, manufacture and sale of professional cleaning products which are effective, environmentally-friendly and biotechnological, walked away with the 'EU' Springboard Award.
This award is presented to a company whose average export turnover for the last three financial years has not yet reached 70% but which has stood out particularly due to its European Union performances.
Springboard Award for Large-Scale Exports
The company Ampacimon was presented with the Springboard Award for Large-Scale Exports.
This award is presented to a company whose average export turnover for the last three financial years has not yet reached 70% but which has stood out in particular due to its "large-scale export" performances, i.e. outside the European Union.
Created in 2010, Ampacimon has developed innovative systems that are used to equip electrical networks all over the world with "Dynamic Line Rating" (DLR) technology. "Dynamic Line Rating" is a new technology belonging to the "smart grid" world of innovations to actively manage electricity grids.
'EU' Export Award
The company Thales Alenia Space won the EU Export Award.
This award recognises a particularly worthy export company due to its performances in the European Union.
Thales Alenia Space in Belgium is number 1 in Belgium for electronic space applications for satellites and launchers, a world leader in power conditioning and distribution for satellites, the biggest supplier of electronics for European launchers and will be the only company in Europe automatically producing solar panels for satellites.
Award for Large-Scale Exports
Euresys was crowned with the Award for Large-Scale Exports
This award recognises a particularly worthy export company due to its performances outside the European Union.
Euresys is an SME based at the Sart Tilman Science Park in Liège. Since 1989, Euresys has developed image acquisition boards and image processing software for the industrial vision market.
Euresys' products are exported worldwide, from the parent company and subsidiaries in Singapore, Tokyo, Shanghai and California. The main applications concern quality control, particularly in the fields of electronics and semi-conductors.
Wallonia Export Grand Prix
And the winner is... (drum roll please!): LASEA won the Wallonia Export Grand Prix!
A company specialising in the manufacture of high precision laser machining (up to 0,2µm, which is 250 times finer than a human hair), Lasea is based in Liège, but has also had offices in Bordeaux since 2012 and more recently, opened two subsidiaries in the USA (2016) and Switzerland (2017).
With 250 machines installed on 4 continents and in 27 countries, it provides its innovative technology to the pharmaceutical, medical, electronics and watchmaking industries. Several of the Top 5 companies in the Swiss watchmaking industry feature among its customers.
LASEA also exports its machines to Australia for cochlear implants, to the USA for intra-ocular implants (IOLs) and even Switzerland for the manufacture of watches (decoration and movement parts). LASEA's exports represent 95% of its turnover, with 88% outside the EU.
The Wallonia Export Grand Prix recognises the company that has most substantially improved its performance and position in both the European Union and in terms of large-scale export.
Special Mention from the Jury
This year, the jury wanted to pay tribute to UCB!
For the 3rd time in the history of the competition, the jury decided to present an exceptional award to a company for the excellence of its export performances, not only over the 3 reference years, but also confirmed over many years.
The two previous companies to receive this award were GSK in 2008 and SONACA in 2016.
UCB is a Belgian biopharmaceutical company which is dedicated to the research and development of new drugs and innovative solutions for people suffering from serious diseases of the immune or central nervous system. Created in 1928, the company has constantly transformed and reinvented itself.
In the early 2000s, it specialised in biotechnology, making it a respectable and experienced 90-year-old company and a young biotech that offers patients new solutions.
Every year, UCB invests over 1 billion euros in R&D in order to find new solutions for patients.