Worldwide Advanced Materials & Manufacturing Awards

Advanced materials and manufacturing sits at the root of almost every other innovation category. The lightweight composite that makes an electric aircraft viable, the solid-state electrolyte that enables the next generation of battery, the bio-derived polymer that replaces a petrochemical packaging material, the additive manufacturing process that produces a titanium orthopaedic implant to patient-specific geometry — none of these is a supporting technology. Each is a primary innovation in its own right, and each creates the conditions for advances that would otherwise be impossible.

The DaVinci Awards® recognises the full spectrum of this field: from the discovery and characterization of novel materials to the engineering of manufacturing processes capable of producing them at scale; from the nanoscale engineering of surfaces and thin films to large-format additive manufacturing; from the smart materials that respond to their environment to the intelligent factory systems that produce conventional materials with new levels of precision and efficiency.

Entries are welcomed from materials scientists, process engineers, manufacturers, research teams and product developers at any stage of the commercialization journey. This is from early-stage material discovery with demonstrated laboratory performance, to processes operating at volume in production environments. The DaVinci Awards® is equally interested in platform materials that enable multiple downstream applications and in purpose-built materials developed for a specific engineering challenge.

If your innovation changes what can be made, how it is made, or what performance is achievable at a given weight, temperature or cost — a DaVinci Award® could be yours.

The DaVinci Awards® recognises outstanding feats of human ingenuity and engineering excellence in advanced materials and manufacturing. Entries are welcomed from individuals, teams, startups and established enterprises based anywhere in the world. Areas of interest include, but are certainly not limited to:

Advanced materials innovation requires judges to understand science as well as engineering, and process as well as product. Show the thinking behind your innovation: what materials science or manufacturing challenge was addressed, why existing materials or processes were insufficient, and what technical decisions led to your breakthrough. Entries that demonstrate genuine scientific or engineering originality — a novel synthesis route, a new process architecture, a material property combination that was previously unachievable — score strongly on this criterion. Where relevant, characterization data, performance benchmarks against existing materials, or process efficiency comparisons will help judges assess the significance of the advance. This is a technically rigorous category, and submissions are evaluated by judges with domain expertise in materials science and manufacturing engineering.

Advanced materials rarely reach the end consumer directly. They are most often the enabling layer beneath a product, structure or system that could not otherwise exist or perform as it does. Clearly explain the downstream application your material or process enables, and why existing solutions were inadequate. What performance is now achievable that was previously impossible? What weight, cost, temperature resistance, conductivity, biodegradability or other property has been unlocked? If your innovation is a manufacturing process, explain what precision, yield, throughput or material efficiency it achieves relative to existing methods. Quantified performance data — mechanical properties, energy consumption, production yield, unit cost at volume — is particularly valued and should be provided where available. Judges are equally interested in the human and environmental implications of the problem solved: materials that replace hazardous substances, enable safer structures, or dramatically reduce manufacturing waste tell a compelling story.

A material discovered in a laboratory is a scientific achievement. A material manufactured reliably at industrial scale is an engineering one, and the latter is what the DaVinci Awards® is principally interested in recognizing. Describe the current stage of your innovation’s commercial readiness: laboratory demonstration, pilot production, limited commercial supply, or full-scale manufacturing. Explain the path to scale: what process engineering, supply chain development or capital investment is required, and what progress has already been made. For platform materials or manufacturing processes with broad applicability, describe the range of downstream industries or products that could benefit. Entries that demonstrate a credible understanding of the industrialization challenge, and tangible progress toward meeting it, will score strongly here. The DaVinci Awards® is interested in innovations with lasting significance: materials and processes that will still be in use, and still influencing what can be built, decades from now.

Winners may make full use of The DaVinci Awards® hallmark of excellence, linked to your level of accreditation, on all relevant materials.

All winners also receive a DaVinci Awards® trophy, and substantial press opportunities working in partnership with our editorial team. Find out more.