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Technologická Inkubace

We know the winners of the SME EnterPRIZE competition

ECO TECH Startups
04.06. 2024
line-arrow We know the winners of the SME EnterPRIZE competition

For the fourth year, Generali Česká pojišt’ovna has been supporting sustainable entrepreneurship among sole traders, start-ups and micro, small and medium-sized enterprises with the SME EnterPRIZE competition. The first place in this year’s competition went to Green Future.cz, a company that focuses on building and operating a unique thermochemical plastic recycling technology. The winner in the category of start-ups was the company Biochar. It is dedicated to research, production and sale of biochar from waste wood.

The student award in the startup category went to the company IONT tech incubated in the Technology Incubation project.

Prague – Generali Česká pojišt’ovna has announced the results of the 4th. SME EnterPRIZE competition. Its aim is to reward and raise the profile of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, sole traders and start-ups that respect and promote the principles of sustainability in their business and thus have a positive impact on the environment. “ Supporting SMEs in their transformation towards sustainability is key to ensuring a better future for us all. At Generali Česká pojišt’ovna, we also support sustainable business through the SME EnterPRIZE competition. Every year I am very pleasantly surprised by how many exceptional businesses and start-ups with unique projects are operating in the Czech Republic.” Roman Juráš, CEO of Generali Česká pojišt’ovna, comments on the competition.

WINNERS AND FINALISTS WE ARE

Almost ninety companies and start-ups from all over the Czech Republic have registered for this year’s edition. They tried to convince the expert jury of the competition with their sustainable business strategy, innovations and sustainable business.

From the two preliminary rounds, ten companies advanced to the finals, from which the jury selected the following final ranking after personal interviews:

1st place: Green Future.cz, a.s.

2nd place: Refork SE

3rd place: Ameba Production, s.r.o.

The winners received funding to support their business, media visibility of their activities and, thanks to the international dimension of the competition, the opportunity to network and develop their business in foreign markets. In addition, one of the top three companies will represent Czech sustainable business at the European final of the competition, which will take place in Brussels, Belgium, in spring 2025. Its participation will be decided by the international jury of the competition.

The company that convinced the expert jury the most was Green Future.cz, a.s., which focuses on building and operating a unique technology of thermochemical recycling of plastics. This enables the processing and reuse of previously poorly or no recyclable plastics in an ecologically and economically advantageous operation. It converts plastic waste into so-called “recycled plastic”. It converts plastic into green oil, which is then used to produce plastic again. The resulting product of production is also an energy-harvesting gas. The entire technology operates without emissions, is noiseless and has no negative impact on its operating environment. It is thus possible to build recycling centres and the entire ecosystem around them in a decentralised way at district level. “ Green Future focuses on thermochemical recycling and can process plastic waste into raw material that can be used to make new plastics again. The by-product is recoverable energy gas and hydrogen. We were so impressed with this groundbreaking technology that we awarded it first place. And we firmly believe that success in the competition can help to further expand it and overcome bureaucratic hurdles. If it succeeds, it will revolutionise plastics recycling.” Helena Továrková, the jury chairwoman, explains the decision on the winner.

Second place went to the company Refork SE a company with patented MTI technology for the production of disposable cutlery and drinking straws made of 100% bio-based material, without chemical modification, free of traces of fossil resources and without micro plastics. Their products are 100% natural in composition, biodegradable and free of micro plastics. “The management of Refork impressed us not only with their fully degradable products, but also with the fact that they were able to successfully sell their business to Western European and Scandinavian countries. We were also impressed by how sustainability is reflected in their entire operation, which is energy and material efficient and water friendly,” specifies Helena Továrková.

In third place was the company Ameba Production, s.r.o. organizing for many years one of the biggest festivals in the Czech Republic – Rock for People. The festival is one of the pioneers in the field of sustainable events in the Czech Republic. “ Ameba Production and their Rock for People are at the cutting edge of how a festival can consider sustainability across the entire event and its grounds. They are taking a responsible approach to energy sources, waste prevention and recycling, visitor transport, and promoting biodiversity and green spaces on site. They also favour local food suppliers and encourage visitors to eat with the lowest possible carbon footprint. They are an inspiration and a model for festivals not only in this country, but across Europe,” says Helena Továrková.

On the shared 4.-10. The following companies were then (in alphabetical order):

  • Cementum, s.r.o.
  • CITY COMMUTERS s.r.o.
  • Greenwool.cz, s.r.o.
  • Ledasco, s.r.o.
  • Plastic guys, s.r.o.
  • Rekáva, s.r.o.
  • Zero Waste Solutions, s.r.o. – REkrabička a REkelímek

WINNER AND FINALISTS OF THE START-UP CATEGORY

Last year, the competition was also opened to start-ups. This area was created under the auspices of the CzechInvest agency, which has been supporting start-ups for more than 12 years. “In the Czech Republic, we have seen a significant increase in interest in sustainability among start-ups in recent years. That is why we are very pleased that for the second time we have been able to become an expert guarantor of this category in the competition and help to raise the profile of other interesting projects.” says Filip Krůta, manager of the EcoTech Hub of the Technology Incubation project of the CzechInvest agency and one of the judges of the start-up competition.

Ten start-ups with a variety of sustainable projects entered the competition. From these, the expert jury selected the top five and then chose the winner of this category. The first runner-up was Biochar s.r.o., from South Moravia. This start-up researches, produces and sells biochar from waste wood. Biochar is a waste material that improves soil, retains water and nutrients, breaks down toxic substances and can be used in concrete, polymers or fibres. In addition, it breaks down carbon, so it has negative emissions. The Biochar Plant produces it using unique British pyrolysis technology. In addition, they are intensively disseminating information about biochar and its potential applications in agriculture, industry, urban engineering and construction.

Other companies that made it into the top 5 start-ups were (in alphabetical order):

  • BLACK FOOD MARKET
  • IONT tech, s.r.o.
  • Let’s Earth, s.r.o.
  • Nextdrop, s.r.o.

STUDENT PRIZE IN THE START-UP CATEGORY

This year’s edition has expanded with a new student award in the category of start-ups. Every university student in the Czech Republic could vote for their favourite. They chose two winners – IONT tech, s.r.o. and Nextdrop, s.r.o. These start-ups received the same number of votes.

IONT tech, s.r.o. develops and manufactures charging stations for electric vehicles, electric bicycles and electric scooters. Everything from sketch to production is created locally, with the utmost attention to quality and sustainability. The materials they use are as circular as possible (stainless steel, glass, aluminium), others are chosen with an emphasis on recyclability (incl. The packaging of the products is made of single-use recycled cardboard. The design of the device itself is based on a modular architecture of electronics embedded in a body with an almost unlimited lifetime.

Company Nextdrop, s.r.o. helps protect objects from flooding and reduce water consumption. It creates smart solutions for the most efficient water management and water supply system of any size – from small houses to farms to cities. It owns a fully modular technology platform that combines hardware, software and the cloud, allowing you to monitor system parameters online while fully controlling the system via the cloud. Using data analytics algorithms, it instantly detects an accidental accident or long-term moderate leak and can automatically respond to the condition.

INTERNATIONAL DIMENSION

The Czech round of the competition is part of the international SME EnterPRIZE competition organised by the Generali insurance group. In addition to the Czech Republic, nine other European countries (Austria, Croatia, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Portugal, Slovenia and Spain) are participating in 2024.

Participants in each country can compete in three categories of sustainability where their business has a positive impact on the health and well-being of employees (and their families), the environment and community development.

Czech competition website: www.sme-enterprize.cz

International competition website: www.sme-enteprize.com

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