Eco-friendly Derby toilet company honoured with prestigious King's Award

HSG has received a King's Award for Enterprise

A Derby firm that produces water-saving toilet devices for venues and companies has received a prestigious award with royal recognition.

HSG, based in Pride Park, has been given the King's Award for Enterprise for "excellence in innovation".

Simon Rice, founder and managing director, is "completely over the moon" with the firm's award win.

The family-owned company won a Queen's Award for Innovation in 2018 but it expired last year.

It said it received the award in recognition of a urinal system which saved over one billion litres of water a year.

'It means everything'

It said the new award recognised further developments in toilet flushing technologies designed to "help support a more sustainable planet".

Mr Rice said: "It means everything. It's the highest accolade a UK business can achieve, it's like winning an MBE but for businesses."

"We're completely over the moon," he added.

"Last time [after winning the Queen's Award] I went to Buckingham Palace and I actually met Prince Charles, as he was at the time.

"I spoke to him at the time about water conservation, and it ended up through that conversation getting our product into Buckingham Palace."

Nationally, 252 firms were handed the King's Award for Enterprise on Monday.

Other Derbyshire firms to receive the prestigious award include Whitehouse Construction in Ashbourne, McGhee Investments in Belper and Midland Lead in Woodville, near Swadlincote.

All award winners will be invited to a royal reception later in the year.