Geoptic Infrastructure Investigations Limited has been awarded a King’s Award for Enterprise in the Innovation category — which is considered the highest official honours for UK businesses. The award celebrates Geoptic’s pioneering use of cosmic ray muon imaging to assess and assure the condition of the UK’s infrastructure.
Founded in 2020, Geoptic is a spin-out from the University of Sheffield, Durham University, and St Mary’s University, Twickenham. The company was established following ground-breaking research by its academic founders, who were the first to demonstrate the practical potential of muon imaging for evaluating the condition of railway infrastructure—a sector where access, complexity, and safety concerns make conventional methods difficult or intrusive.
Since its inception, Geoptic has grown into a leading force in the commercialisation of muon imaging, working in partnership with a range of government agencies, infrastructure owners, and international collaborators. These partnerships have helped bring cutting-edge research out of the lab and into the field, where it is now being used to safeguard critical infrastructure assets around the world.
“Receiving a King’s Award for Enterprise is a tremendous honour and recognises the hard work and ingenuity of our entire team. Innovation and its impact is at the heart of everything we do and, in particular, this award acknowledges our work in making the UK's historic and complex infrastructure safer through cutting-edge science" explains Dr Chris Steer, Managing Director of Geoptic.
The King’s Awards for Enterprise, previously known as The Queen’s Awards for Enterprise, were renamed in 2023 to reflect His Majesty The King’s desire to continue the legacy of HM Queen Elizabeth II’s by recognising outstanding UK businesses. The Award programme, now in its 59th year, is the most prestigious business award in the United Kingdom. Geoptic will officially receive the award at a royal reception later this year and is now entitled to use the prestigious King’s Awards emblem for the next five years.