PAST WINNER INTERVIEW
Sesanti
The Sesanti team with The Lord Lieutenant of Hampshire and his Deputy on presentation of our King’s Award
What made Sesanti apply for a King’s Award?
How did you find the application process?
AWARD CATEGORY: Innovation SIZE OF COMPANY: SME WHERE BASED: Andover, Hampshire TYPE OF BUSINESS: Design and manufacture of specialist electro-optic devices PROFILE: Peter Kyle-Henney JOB TITLE: Managing Director
We recognise the King’s Award to be the most prestigious award for innovation in the UK. However, the Award’s reach is far greater, and we believed it would enable us to get worldwide visibility for our innovation. What research did you do about the Awards/ application process?
The King’s Award application process is secure and we felt confident in sharing high-level intellectual property rights (IPR) with the assessment team through the evaluation phase. We did need to engage our auditors to complete their Accountants Report, but there was sufficient time for this.
Did you learn anything about your own company during the process? The biggest surprise was just how much the Award meant to our staff - there was a great feeling of achievement across the team when I announced we had won. When the Lord Lieutenant of Hampshire came to present the award we had a whole day of celebration at the factory with staff, customers and local dignitaries in attendance. It has engendered a feeling that we are at the top of our game.
We needed to be sure that our innovation could be described in sufficient detail to be properly considered yet protect the classified nature of the work we do. We sought advice from Awards Intelligence, who have assisted others in the application process, and they were very helpful whilst completing our written submission.
Company Background
Sesanti designs and manufactures high- performance specialist electro-optic devices from its site in Andover, Hampshire. Boasting more than 30 years’ experience in the military field, the company’s products are designed to incorporate the very latest military grade surveillance technology, including advanced Artificial Intelligence features. Significant investment in research and development enables Sesanti to deliver bespoke solutions for government use, both within the UK and overseas. State-of-the-art products for commercial asset protection, and search and rescue applications are also manufactured at the company’s Hampshire base. Though Sesanti has extensive supply chains reaching right across the globe, it is committed to using local suppliers wherever possible.
What planning did you do beforehand?
Before we started, we asked for advice on whether our innovation was likely to meet the benchmark for consideration, and whether the company was likely to be successful, i.e. whether our sales were sufficient, and whether any other measurement criteria on company performance would be applied.
Did you engage other team members?
The application was completed by myself and my Finance Director.
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