ANNOUNCING THE 2026 SHORTLIST!

With entries now closed and shortlisting complete, the judging process for the eleventh annual Collaborate to Innovate Awards – the UK’s leading celebration of UK engineering collaboration – is now underway!

Every year without fail, C2I uncovers a remarkable array of innovative projects and initiatives from across the world of engineering, and this year’s crop of shortlisted entries continues that trend, providing a compelling illustration of the technologies and trends that are shaping our future and the role that UK engineers are playing at the forefront of some of the most critical technology developments of our times.

As in previous years, entries will be judged by a panel of some of the UK’s leading engineers, and the winners will be announced in Feb 2027 at a special awards party at One Great George Street, London.

Thanks to all of the teams who’ve taken time to put an entry forward. Commiserations If you didn’t make the cut this year and congratulations to all of this year’s shortlisted finalists, we look forward to seeing you in Westminster in February!


Jon Excell

Editor & Publisher – The Engineer


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2026 SHORTLIST

See who our finalists are

FAQS

All entries must be submitted by the entry deadline. Entries will not be considered fully submitted until the entrant proceeds to the final stage and submits their entry. A confirmation email will be received once complete.

Entries may be edited up until the point of 'submission'.

ENTRIES HAVE NOW CLOSED

No, entry into the awards is FREE

The Engineer Collaborate to Innovate Awards are open to any group, whether from academia or industry, that is - or has been - engaged in a successful collaborative engineering project.

The project must represent a collaboration between at least two teams from different organisations; teams may be from, for example, companies, universities or research organisations.

To attract entries from the widest possible and most cross-disciplinary range of participants, submissions are invited from projects addressing engineering challenges related to the following broad themes:

- Automotive
- Aerospace & Defence
- Energy
- Environment
- Healthcare & Medical
- Information, Data & Connectivity
- Manufacturing Technology
- STEM Initiative
- Young Innovator
- Wildcard

For the Young Innovator category we’re primarily looking for innovative projects. Evidence of collaboration is not essential.

Shortlisted projects will meet the following criteria:

- They must be genuinely Innovative (i.e. represent a new technology or a new application of technology
- They must be a true collaboration between 2 or more teams (i.e. not a collaboration between different teams from the same organisation)
- They must have an expected or demonstrable impact in their application area

At least one partner must have a presence in the UK.

Companies may enter more than one category as appropriate.

Unless stated otherwise in category criteria, the awards are judging performance from January 2025 to present; the project may be ongoing or completed within the last 15 months.

The judging panel reserves the right to move entries from one category to another if they feel it is more appropriate. However, they cannot be expected to routinely re-categorise incorrectly entered projects. The judges' decision is final.

Sponsors are not permitted to enter any category that they are sponsoring.

All submissions must be made online through the online entry portal and the requested information must be supplied within the entry form. Any information not provided via the online form will not be passed to the judges.

In all cases, the judges are looking for concise written submissions and your entry should cover as many of the listed criteria as possible.

Please keep the word count within the stipulations per category. Please note that the judging panel reserves the right to penalise entries exceeding the word limit.
Please read the relevant category criteria to establish what type of supporting material should be included.

Digital uploads may take a variety of formats e.g. PDF, Word, Excel, PowerPoint or jpeg file. Please ensure that uploaded logos, video and any supporting files follow the supporting material guidelines. Please note when uploading supporting material file names must not include any 'special' characters e.g. _ / ( ) & * " and please keep file names short.

Where websites/links form part of an entry, please ensure any URLs, access details, usernames and passwords needed for judging are supplied, that they work, and that they will continue to work until January 2027. Sites that cannot be viewed will be eliminated from the judging.

The events team are not responsible for retaining any supporting material for collection, unless the entrant specifically requests this by email.
Information provided in your entry form (including any supporting information) will be used by the judges to assess your entry.

Should you be shortlisted, the same content may also be published in whole or in part by The Engineer for event coverage.

If any particular information in your entry form is sensitive or not authorised for the public, please contact eventsteam@markallengroup.com with details immediately upon submission of your entry.

All entrants must supply all contact details as requested in the online form for a main point of contact we can approach should the entry require any further clarification.

In the event that your entry is shortlisted, all entry form details e.g. Main Partner name / Collaborating Partner names as completed in the online entry process will be used on Awards collateral (e.g. Website, Awards graphics, Awards Supplement, and in the event that your entry wins, on the trophy). Copy will adhere to the brand’s house style.

Please ensure that the information submitted is accurate and the correct companies are credited as appropriate. We accept no responsibility for any incorrectly submitted information.

Agreement of all parties involved in the project should be secured before entering.

Shortlisted entrants will be contacted once the judging has taken place and invited to attend the 25th February 2027 at One Great George Street in central London.

This event is by invitation only.

TESTIMONIALS

I just wanted to say a huge thank you for hosting the awards but also for allowing our girls from Freman college to attend with their parents. The girls had a great night and it was so lovely to see both children with an interest in STEM having an opportunity to highlight their work, but also a place where women and girls in a very male dominated industry were being celebrated!

Parent on behalf of Freman College

Winning a C2I award is an important, independent validation of how AVA has challenged the norms of engineering and construction. We have rethought how passenger bridges and lifts are designed and built. We’re a team of UK SMEs, all with a shared  vision - to collaborate and innovate, in order to achieve better outcomes for public infrastructure and the people who use it. The Engineer C2I awards celebrate that same vision, and AVA is proud to be among the winners.

Darren Falkingham Market Engagement Manager SCX

It’s been another excellent year collaborating with The Engineer, supporting the C2i Awards for the second year running and expanding our involvement this year through the Supplier Network. We look forward to strengthening this partnership further and building on that success at next year’s awards, particularly around advanced materials projects.

Enya Collier Product Marketing Manager LUCIDEON