GOVEA 2020 Awards Ceremony - Celebrating our Export Champions

On 25 November 2020, we celebrated the Victorian businesses that were able to demonstrate resilience, innovation and adaptability to reimagine their business model through the challenges created by coronavirus (COVID-19).

Many of the businesses are being recognised on the global stage for exporting local skills, knowledge and expertise and Victoria continues to be recognised for its outstanding capabilities across all sectors.

Care Essentials

Care Essentials manufactures medical devices in Geelong used in surgeries for hypothermia prevention. They are market leaders in Australia and export to over 60 countries.

COVID-19 exposed vulnerability of importing critical healthcare products. To fulfil this market need, Care Essentials started manufacturing surgical masks with their facility was set up in Geelong in a record time of 2 weeks!

Care Essentials workforce has grown from 18 staff to over 60 in 2020, generating new jobs in regional Victoria, investing in technical capabilities and significantly expanding their operations.

E2Language

E2Language is a world leading EdTech company providing English education online. They have helped over 1 million students from over 140 countries prepare for English language tests.

In 2020, with schools closing globally, the need for a digital transformation became apparent. This month, E2Language announced a global partnership with Pearson PLC, the world’s largest publisher of education materials. Their online platform offers institutions around the world a comprehensive range of test preparation courses.

Ego Pharmaceuticals

Ego Pharmaceuticals has grown to become a world leader, producing a comprehensive dermatological skincare range for sale in Australia and around the world. Ego now has staff in 31 cities around the world across 13 nations.

To address the shortage of hand sanitiser in Australia during the pandemic, Ego Pharmaceuticals pivoted their business model to meet the increased needs of the Australian market during the peak of the pandemic.

With a focus on supply to essential health services was achieved Aqium sales have increased by nearly 150% in first half of 2020.

Gekko Systems

Gekko Systems is a global leader in mineral processing, providing fully integrated solutions to mining companies around the world.

Gekko Systems ability to be innovative and flexible has been fully demonstrated during 2020. The rapid implementation of a COVID safe action plan allowed the company to continue manufacturing in Ballarat continuing to fulfil orders from abroad.

Gekko also implemented a rapid development program for a new 'ventilator' product to assist the community in combatting the reported shortage of units for the treatment of COVID-19 patients. Seed funding for the development was obtained, the unit invented, and was then rapidly developed to be fully functional within 6 months.

GreyScan

GreyScan is a world class manufacturer of advanced detection tools designed to target a variety of materials including the full range of inorganic explosives materials.

With the closing of borders with COVID-19 pandemic, GreyScan's flagship product’s export sales went into hibernation.

This period allowed GreyScan to focus on its brand and position in the marketplace developing pharmaceutical product and the opening new opportunities in trace virus detection on surfaces and in breath testing. The COVID-19 research and development program generated significant media interest and enquiries from a number of potential international partners.

Hosico Engineering Group

Hosico Engineering Group (HEG) has been manufacturing complex high-quality parts and products in Victoria for more than 40 years.

In 2020, the company was approached by a number of new customers needing locally manufactured product in response to the COVID pandemic.

HEG was an early entrant to the Notus ventilator manufacturing consortium engaged to manufacture emergency ventilators for the Commonwealth Government. HEG assisted with initial prototyping and design for manufacture, locally manufacturing the majority of the plastic tools and parts for the ventilators in just 4 weeks and producing sub-assemblies on site.

Marand Precision Engineering

Marand designs, manufactures and sustains complex engineering products and automated systems across Aerospace, Defence, Rail and Energy industries.

In 2020, in addition to supporting customers despite experiencing fragile supply chains and logistics, Marand took the decision to apply their capabilities wherever applicable to support the national fight against the pandemic.

Marand teamed with Foodmach and subsequently Grey Innovation to manufacture equipment for face mask production and additionally produced assemblies for Notus ventilators. Marand achieved all its customer’s requirements and are proud to feel they assisted the national effort to keep Australians safe.

Planet Innovation

Planet Innovation is a health-tech innovation and commercialisation company.

Planet Innovation (PI) was determined to respond to the crisis and have a meaningful impact in the fight against COVID-19.

PI partnered with spin-out company, Lumos Diagnostics, to pivot their existing rapid test that can detect in 10-minutes if a patient has a viral infection. They identified that the test could be used for COVID-19 allowing viral positive patients to be identified and isolated, while more time-consuming lab-based tests could be conducted to see if the virus was COVID-19.

Senetas

Senetas is a leader in high-performance encryption cybersecurity solutions. Their all-Australian developed and manufactured cybersecurity products are trusted to protect much of the world’s most sensitive data and are used in more than 45 countries.

Senetas has completed valuable innovations in 2020, including the first ever quantum computing security solution and a specific security solution against threats arising from COVID-19’s 'work-from-home' requirements.

To protect export sales during COVID-19 – Senetas also developed and implemented new 'marketing automation' capabilities to maximise on-to-one sales partner and customer engagement.

Thank you to our GOVEA 2020 Applicants:

  • Airbiz
  • ANCA
  • Australasian Academy of Tennis Coaches PTY LTD
  • Australia China Business Council (Victoria)
  • AVT Australia
  • Buccheri Group
  • Christopher Boots
  • Coolon
  • Deakin University
  • DEK Technologies
  • Digital Ink Technologies
  • Directed Electronics
  • Don Kyatt Group of Companies
  • DPP Pharmaceuticals
  • Education Horizons Group
  • Elenium Automation Pty Ltd
  • Envirofluid
  • FanHub
  • GoProto
  • Hab Shifa Australia
  • Incitias
  • Mailguard
  • Moworks
  • Peerless Holdings Pty Ltd
  • Penso
  • Picnic Dairy Foods
  • Pinnacle Fresh
  • Rex Service
  • RUAG
  • Safir Tours Pty Ltd T/A 39 Degrees South
  • Seer Medical
  • Sontext
  • Sticky Balsamic Pty Ltd
  • Sunpower Renewables
  • Swinburne University
  • Swisse Wellness
  • Two Bulls