JOHANNESBURG, November 25 /PRNewswire/ -- Twenty-two top international and local companies were honoured at Frost Sullivan's second annual African Excellence Awards Banquet held last night at the Hilton Sandton Hotel. The awards were made to companies showcasing leading ideas and innovation across a variety of sectors.

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The awards were made to companies demonstrating leadership in markets including Kenya, Ghana, Tanzania, Nigeria and South Africa. The sectors covered were energy, healthcare, industrial automation, security, food technology, facilities management, water and wastewater treatment and ICT.

The companies that received awards have shown innovation, competitiveness and leadership in meeting the particular demands of doing business in Africa, said Frost Sullivan Partner and Director of African Operations Phil Howarth. The products and services that we recognised should be applauded as examples of how to manage business in the current economic climate.

The keynote address for the evening was delivered by Kobus Meiring, CEO of Optimal Energy. He focused on innovation in an African context.

The event culminated in awards being presented to the following organisations demonstrating best practices in their respective disciplines:

SEW EURODRIVE: 2008 Frost Sullivan South African Gearboxes Geared Motors Market Leadership Award

Bytes Systems Integration: 2009 Frost Sullivan South African Manufacturing Execution Systems Competitive Strategy Award

Matrikon Moore: 2009 Frost Sullivan South African Total Industrial Automation Control Solutions System Integrator Company of the Year Award

Hansen Transmissions: 2009 Frost Sullivan South African Helical Gearboxes Market Leadership Award

Siemens Enterprise Communications: 2009 Frost Sullivan South African Contact Centre Technology Product Line Strategy Award

IDtek Solutions: 2009 Frost Sullivan South African Security Systems Services Product Line Strategy Award

Symrise: 2009 Frost Sullivan South African Food Additives Technology Leadership Award

Barloword Equipment Energy: 2009 Frost Sullivan South African Mining Industry Customer Value Enhancement Award

Contact Solutions: 2009 Frost Sullivan Nigerian Contact Centre Vertical Market Penetration Leadership Award

Songas: 2008 Frost Sullivan Tanzania Electricity Technology Leadership Award

Interactive Intelligence: 2009 Frost Sullivan South African Contact Centre Technology Leadership Award

TFMC: 2008 Frost Sullivan South African Facilities Management Market Leadership Award

Sentonics Technology Distribution: 2009 Frost Sullivan South African Security Systems Services Customer Value Enhancement Award

VWS Envig: 2008 Frost Sullivan South African Water and Wastewater Services Market Leadership Award

JNC International: 2009 Frost Sullivan West African Medical Device Customer Service Leadership Award

LaGray Chemical Company: 2009 Frost Sullivan Ghanaian Pharmaceutical Industry Innovation Advancement Award

Cipla Medpro: 2009 Frost Sullivan Company of the Year in the Generic Pharmaceuticals Market

Mokasi Medical Systems: 2009 Frost Sullivan Tanzanian Medical Imaging Customer Service Leadership Award

Surgipharm Kenya: 2009 Frost Sullivan Kenyan Advanced Wound Care Customer Service Leadership Award

Medika SA: 2009 Frost Sullivan South African Advanced Wound Care Technology Leadership Award

FireID: 2009 Frost Sullivan African Mobile Two Factor Authentication Solutions New Product Innovation Award

Jireh Technologies: 2009 Frost Sullivan South African Broadband Emerging Company Award

Our long-established awards programme honours companies that have demonstrated a unique approach to doing business in their markets, said Howarth. Frost Sullivan celebrates these ideas and strategies that drive corporate growth.

Frost Sullivan's Best Practices Awards recognise companies in a variety of regional and global markets for demonstrating outstanding achievements and superior performance in areas such as leadership, technological innovation, customer service, and strategic product development. Industry analysts compare market participants and measure performance through in-depth interviews, analysis, and extensive secondary research to identify best practices in the industry.

About Frost Sullivan

Frost Sullivan, the Growth Partnership Company, partners with clients to accelerate their growth. The company's TEAM Research, Growth Consulting and Growth Team Membership empower clients to create a growth-focused culture that generates, evaluates and implements effective growth strategies. Frost Sullivan employs over 45 years of experience in partnering with Global 1000 companies, emerging businesses and the investment community from 40 offices on six continents. For more information about Frost Sullivan's Growth Partnerships, visit http://www.frost.com.

Contact: Patrick Cairns Corporate Communications P: +27-18-464-2402 M: +27-83-258-4219 E: patrick.cairns@frost.com

SOURCE: Frost SOURCE: Sullivan

CONTACT: Patrick Cairns, Corporate Communications of Frost Sullivan,+27-18-464-2402, mobile, +27-83-258-4219, patrick.cairns@frost.com