UK company wins prize for helping to end airport liquids ban

A small Oxfordshire-based company whose technology is helping to end the hand-baggage liquid ban at airports has won one of the UK’s most prestigious engineering prizes.

Cobalt Light Systems beat the engineering giant Rolls-Royce and the Qinetiq spin-out OptaSense to take home the MacRobert Award on Wednesday night. The prize seeks to recognise engineering excellence that can be profitable and generate social benefits.

The company won the prize for its technology that identifies the chemical composition of a substance sealed within containers or other barriers, such as skin.

Used initially for pharmaceutical companies to verify the content and quality of medicines, the technology is now being used by airports to phase out the hand-luggage liquid ban that frustrates millions of air passengers every day.

Since a failed terrorist bomb plot in 2006, passengers have been limited to carrying containers that hold 100ml of liquid.

Cobalt’s scanners – the Insight 100 system – have been deployed by 65 airports across Europe, including Heathrow and Gatwick, since January. They are able to analyse bottles of up to three litres and distinguish which contain harmful liquids without having to open them.

“This is in response to EU legislation to try to lift the restrictions on carrying liquid. It’s a phased implementation and the ultimate aim is to get back to pre-2006 where people are allowed to carry bottles of wine and whatever into the plane, provided it’s screened by technology,” said Paul Loeffen, chief executive of Cobalt.

Cobalt, founded in 2008 as a spin-off from the Science and Technology Facilities Council’s Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, is now working with STFC and two universities on research using the same technology that could provide on-the-spot diagnoses of breast cancer and bone diseases, such as osteoporosis.

“Cobalt’s engineers have made a substantial breakthrough of global significance,” said Ian Shott, chair of the Royal Academy of Engineering’s Enterprise Hub, who was among the judges. “I believe they are on the cusp of explosive growth, with the potential for multimillion-pound business offerings in at least two or three industry sectors.”

The company’s revenues have grown over the past year from £2.4m to £11.7m. It is aiming to increase these to between £20m and £25m within the next couple of years.

Previous winners of the MacRobert Award include Jaguar Land Rover, Microsoft Research, Inmarsat and Arup. The award, which has been running for 45 years, is administered by the Royal Academy of Engineering and carries a £50,000 cash prize.