SMMT Gears Up To Uncover The Nation's Best Automotive Innovation

The Award seeks out ideas, concepts and products that have the potential to leave a lasting impact on the UK automotive industry. Recognising innovations from a wide variety of disciplines spanning the automotive sector, it acknowledges the time, effort and investment that the UK motor industry dedicates to R&D and innovation.

This is an exciting time for UK automotive as the sector launches a wealth of new technologies to market as result of high-value investment in research and development projects, said Mike Baunton, SMMT Interim Chief Executive. SMMT's Award for Automotive Innovation is a platform to showcase the extraordinary talent that we have in the UK supporting this effort. The Award is recognition of just a few of our industry's successes, through which we can help to strengthen our global competitiveness in this sector and keep the UK at the pinnacle of technological advances.

The Award will be open for entries from Wednesday 13 June, and companies and individuals will have until 00:01 on Monday 16 September to submit their concepts and products for consideration by the judging panel.

Last year’s Award was won by Optare plc for its Optare Versa EV – the UK's first fully operational, full-sized, battery-powered electric bus. Shortlisted entries receive industry-wide recognition within one of the UK’s most diverse and vibrant sectors. The winner will be presented with the Award at SMMT’s 97th Annual Dinner on 26 November 2013 at Grosvenor House, Park Lane, in front of more than 1,000 senior industry delegates.

The UK is at the forefront of innovation with international brands investing more than £1.3 billion a year in R&D projects that push the boundaries of automotive technology. While SMMT scours the nation for the UK's best automotive innovation, you can tweet @SMMT and share your top automotive innovation or technology using the hashtag #UKAutoInnovation.

SMMT’s Award for Automotive Innovation 2013 is free to enter. For more information about the Award ahead of its launch, click here.