Smarter Surfaces Awards

SFA Exporter of the Year

Smarter Surfaces™ was announced as ‘Exporter of the Year’ at the SFA awards 2020.  The SFA Awards, now in their sixteenth year, celebrate small businesses for their achievements in Ireland and also the contribution they make to the Irish business sector. The exporter category highlights businesses with a proven track record in export who can demonstrate their success. 96% of Smarter Surfaces orders are to export markets so by winning this award they highlighted the successes of both the company and their employees.

Active Office Award – Top Product

Smarter Surfaces™ Smart Magnetic Whiteboard Wallpaper – Low Sheen, our magnetic, whiteboard and projection wallpaper, is the winner of the 2018 Active Office Award. This award celebrates office products that help improve the working experience.

Products are scored based on five factors; motivation, design, movement, practicality and senses. Smarter Surfaces was revealed as the Active Office Award winner at Orgatec in October 2018. Products were displayed at the Eurocres stand and an expert panel of judges examined each of the short listed products in turn before announcing Smart Magnetic Whiteboard Wallpaper – Low Sheen as the winner.

EOPA Product of the Year

Smarter Surfaces™ was shortlisted as a finalist for FM Product of the Year, in the Facilities Management category of the European Office Products Awards 2014. The company triumphed against some tough competition from nominees such as Nestlé and Kimberly-Clark Professional and went on to take home the prestigious award at a black-tie dinner which took place in Amsterdam in February.

The winning product – Smart Wall Paint, is our dry-erase/whiteboard paint, which caught the judging panels imagination. The panel – a variety of industry professionals, felt Smart Wall Paint was “something a bit different” and a great new product for the office products sector.

Docklands Innovation Awards sponsored by Price Waterhouse Cooper

Smarter Surfaces™ founder Ronan Clarke, received €10,000 for the Best Investment Proposal at the Docklands Innovation Awards ceremony for our first product Smart Wall Paint – a dry-erase/whiteboard paint.

The awards were held at the Price Waterhouse Cooper headquarters in Dublin and Ronan battled stiff competition from two other finalists having been shortlisted from more than 100 applicants across the country. He pitched his investment proposals on-stage on the night and was questioned by an experienced panel of judges on his business plans.

The Chairperson of the judging panel was Shay Garvey of Frontline Ventures and other members of the panel included Noel Crawford, IBM Innovation Centre and Jean O’Sullivan, Enterprise Ireland.

Emerging Small Exporter

The Export Industry Awards, held by the Irish Exporters Association (IEA) in association with HSBC bank, recognise the remarkable achievements of companies working in the export industry.

Smarter Surfaces™ was awarded for its abilities to export products globally and was named Emerging Small Exporter at the awards ceremony.

Global customers served by the company include organisations such as Google, SAP, Microsoft, Tesco, Marks & Spencer, NBC Universal, Vodafone and Virgin Media, as well as many small businesses.

David Manley Business Category

Smarter Surfaces™ founder Ronan Clarke has been awarded a David Manley Award, within the Business category. The aim of the David Manley Emerging Entrepreneur Awards is to recognise and nurture the enterprising spirit in Business, the Arts and in Social and Community.

Speaking on the win, Cairín O’Connor, Development Director of the Docklands Innovation Park said, Smart Wall Paint (now known as Smarter Surfaces) is an example of innovation and a good team combined with the ambition to grow business steadily’, as she congratulated the company on their win.