Chamber members recognised with Queen's Award honours

Four Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce members are among the Midlands firms to be honoured with the Queen 's Award for Enterprise, it was announced today.

The Chamber members who have received awards - all for excellence in International Trade - are:

• Perinatal Institute, Birmingham - not for profit social enterprise whose GAP programme for safer monitoring the baby 's growth in the womb has helped to reduce UK stillbirths to their lowest levels.
• GuyKat Solutions Ltd, Birmingham - a professional services agency focusing on corporate learning and development.
• KMB Shipping, Dudley - transport solutions firm that has helped thousands of businesses with their imports and exports.
• 3P innovation, Warwick - high-tech engineering company which works collaboratively with global pharma and medical device businesses to help develop their new products, devices and production processes.

The awards are widely recognised as the highest commendation available to business, honouring leading UK companies who exemplify entrepreneurial skills and attitudes through innovation, international trade, sustainable development and promoting opportunity through social mobility.

The Perinatal Institute has been recognised for its international work in promoting safe pregnancy.

Founded by Professor Jason Gardosi (pictured) in 2013 the not-for-profit organisation has already won multiple awards including a 2016 Queens Award for its work supporting the NHS.

Its GAP programme for safer monitoring the baby 's growth in the womb has helped to reduce UK stillbirths to their lowest ever levels.

This award was given for exporting the same principles for mothers and babies internationally.

The programme includes on-line software (GROW App) which can adjust the growth of the baby according to the individual mother 's characteristics, including her ethnic origin. Previously, a one-size-fits-all approach resulted in less effective methods in monitoring the baby 's growth during pregnancy.

The global version of the software can adjust for over 120 ethnic groups.

The customised charts together with training are being introduced in an increasing number of local maternity centres internationally, including in Germany, the Middle East, India, Malaysia and Australasia. In New Zealand, where the GAP programme is funded as a national initiative, it has already resulted in demonstrable improvements in patient safety.

“This Award is a welcome recognition of the need to consider patient safety globally. Local circumstances vary but the focus needs to be the same: to improve patient safety ” said Professor Gardosi.

GuyKat, a Birmingham-based eLearning agency, doubled revenue between 2019 and 2020 with 70 per cent of sales coming from outside of the UK.

Full-permanent staff increased from 25 to 40, including the opening of an office in Tampa, Florida.

The business helps clients teach online things that historically they would have taught in person.

Guy McEvoy, GuyKat 's CEO, said: “I did a little jig when I found out. We realised early on that any digital company needs a global mindset.

“If you think of your market as ''the Midlands ' or 'the UK ', that 's fine - but thinking of 'the world ' obviously gives so much more opportunity.

“Technology makes geography incidental. We saw demand in North America and have been proud to help turn that into jobs here in Birmingham. It 's great for a company like us to get this sort of recognition. ”

Since the company began trading in 1987, KMB Shipping has helped thousands of businesses with their imports and exports, adapting to incorporate changing legislations, rules and regulations.

In the last year, with the end of the Brexit transition period, the firm has expanded its Customs department and is helping hundreds of customers daily to navigate the new declaration requirements.

Director Paul Hull said: “We are absolutely delighted to be recognised with such a prestigious award. It is a huge honour, and testament to all the hard work our team puts in on a daily basis.

“It 's been an exceptionally tough year for us all, but this achievement makes it all the more rewarding, it 's just the motivation we need to go even further to help our customers trade internationally. ”

3P innovation is celebrating a second Queen 's Award, having been recognised for innovation last year.

Founder and managing director, Tom Bailey said: “In a year that has been challenging for everyone, the team at 3P innovation have worked harder than ever to achieve remarkable international growth.

“This has provided us with further security and stability in an ever-changing market affected by Covid, and it 's great to see that UK innovation and international growth within the manufacturing sector are being recognised by the Queen 's Awards. ”

Entry to the 2022 Awards open on May 1, 2021 and close on September 9, 2021. To apply and for more information, click here.