The Medilink UK Awards 2009 are the healthcare technology sector’s equivalent of the Oscars and celebrate cutting edge technologies, outstanding business achievements and international success and collaboration.

The company was awarded the Growth in Sector Award this week (Monday 16 March) at an event in London after beating off stiff competition from finalists Kingkraft Ltd from Sheffield and Gwent-based Penn Pharma.

Tynetec, which specialises in the design and manufacture of social alarms, telecare sensors and access control systems, impressed the judges with an increase in turnover of 29.8 per cent last year.

As a winner in the North East’s Business for Life Awards, hosted by Cels in December 2008, Tynetec won an automatic entry into the national Medilink award scheme. Other regional winners of the Business for Life awards IDS Ltd and Neural Pathways were runners-up in their categories of Export Achievement and Partnership with the NHS respectively.

Cels’ chief executive officer Mike Asher said:

“The healthcare industry in the North East is booming and I’m delighted that a local company has won this prestigious national award. Cels’ annual Business for Life awards ceremony has become an integral part of the industry calendar and now regional companies have the opportunity to raise their profile on a national platform as well as a local one.”

Tony Platten, managing director of Tynetec said: “Tynetec has a long tradition of developing innovative, market leading products that meet the needs of people in the community to enhance life and promote independent living. The Growth in Sector award demonstrates just how important this winning formula is and gives everyone at Tynetec a real sense of achievement. As a company that has been trading for 30 years achieving a growth award is quite something.”

Sponsored by Xiros Plc, the awards ceremony was held at Haberdashers’ Hall, London on Monday 16 March. The Medilink UK Awards 2009 are run in association with UK Trade & Investment, Health Technologies KTN, BERR (Department for Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, the NHS National Innovation Centre (NIC) and NIHR (National Institute for Health Research).

The nominees and winners for each of the five awards – Export Achievement, Innovation, Growth in Sector, Partnership with the NHS and Start Up – were selected by a panel of sector specialists from the 12 UK regions.

For more details about the Medilink UK Awards visit www.medilinkuk.com