Concateno's Drugs of Abuse Testing Wins the Queen's Award for Enterprise

LONDON, April 21, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- Concateno ( http://www.concateno.com/index.php?cPath=147_152_297), Europe's leading drug and alcohol test provider, has been awarded the prestigious Queen's Award for Enterprise (http://www.queensawards.org.uk/business/business.html ) in recognition of its outstanding innovation and commercial performance.

The Queen's Award for Enterprise is the highest honour that can be bestowed upon a business and is the UK's top award for business performance. Awards are made by Her Majesty The Queen on the advice of the Prime Minister and his advisory committee, comprised of leading industry leaders and government representatives, for special contributions towards innovation and commercial success. A major contributing factor towards Concateno's award was its innovative oral fluid mobile drugs of abuse detection system, the Cozart(R) DDS(R), developed using world-leading technology.

Fiona Begley, Concateno's chief executive officer, said: "We are delighted and very proud to have won this award. The DDS is a truly innovative breakthrough in drug detection technology. Designed and built here in the UK by our own staff, the device has helped improve the efficiency of police officers, healthcare professionals and others around the world by significantly speeding up sample analysis at point of care."

Begley added: "Every day our customers have to make tough decisions on drug and alcohol misuse that can profoundly affect people's lives. Concateno provides an unparalleled breadth of advisory services and testing capabilities with an emphasis on quality and best practice so that our customers can rely on our tests when it matters most."

"Winning this Award is a great tribute to our staff - not only to the research and development teams but to everyone who has successfully helped to bring our products and services to market. Our remarkable team has developed a number of innovations to improve laboratory and testing techniques, and has quite literally led the world in achieving quality standards and customer services. They richly deserve the recognition the Queen's Award gives them."

As well as winning UK government contracts, such as for its use in the Home Office's (http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/) Drugs Intervention Programme ( http://drugs.homeoffice.gov.uk/drug-interventions-programme/index.html), Concateno's mobile drug testing devices have enjoyed significant international sales in Australia, Spain, Italy and other countries.

The Cozart(R) DDS(R) has heralded a major advance for countries with zero tolerance for motorists who drive with illicit drugs in their system. Traffic police in Australia, for example, have seen a dramatic drop in the number of drug driving convictions since roadside drug testing was introduced.

The light, portable product incorporates two innovations - an oral swab sample collector, which provides automatic indication of when sufficient oral fluid has been collected, and a reliable oral fluid test unit that includes digital readout and printer. It enables quick and accurate screening for up to six drugs, in-situ.

"We hope that the UK and other governments will also consider introducing legislation that will allow roadside drug testing, to support a campaign against motorists who take drugs that are known to impair driving skills, before they get behind the wheel." explained Karon Hawthorne, product manager for Concateno. "We have enough evidence to show that roadside drug testing alongside an educational awareness campaign can be extremely effective in reducing this road safety issue."

The Queens Award for Enterprise will be conferred on Her Majesty's birthday, April 21, 2010.

For more information regarding Concateno, or to arrange an interview with Concateno's CEO Fiona Begley, please contact:

    Carrie Lowe or Matt Trace
    Telephone: +44(0)1962-893-893
    Mobile: +44(0)7554-014-188 / +44(0)7828-663-988

SOURCE Concateno