Every year around 200 British companies are recognized by the Queen for their outstanding contribution to industry, and this year Focusrite Audio Engineering Ltd. is proud to be the recipient of its fourth prestigious Queen’s Award, this time for Innovation. Focusrite was chosen for its second-generation Scarlett range of USB audio interfaces featuring the virtual absence of undesirable latency (delay) – an innovation that was introduced to the market in 2016, to great acclaim.
Phil Dudderidge, Focusrite’s Chairman, said: “We’re delighted to receive this award for Scarlett. Whilst the second generation of the Scarlett range still provides the user with the best value and feature sets in the market, we set out to push the boundaries of the USB 2.0 interface performance to deliver the lowest latency possible between the computer and the device. More musicians record their music using a Focusrite Scarlett than any other single brand of audio interface.”
“We are very pleased that the Queen's Award Office judges recognize the innovative nature and success of Scarlett Gen 2 and appreciate the importance of innovation in the professional audio industry.”
The Scarlett audio interfaces give musicians or producers the ability to connect microphones, instruments and other kinds of signals to a computer, which acts as a multitrack recording device with specialized software. This is the modern approach to record production. Scarlett's redesigned USB 2.0-compatible platform provides professional standards of audio performance at prices that are within reach of amateurs and professional alike. Scarlett products now represent an estimated 40% of all USB audio interfaces sold around the world, with approaching two million units sold.
Focusrite, established in 1989, has previously received two Queen’s Awards for International Trade, reflecting the global success of its products and notably the Scarlett ranges, first and second generation. The first Queen’s Award for Innovation was for the company’s Novation brand of controller software Automap. Focusrite Plc joined the AIM market in 2014.
The Queen's Awards for Enterprise are the U.K.'s most prestigious awards for business performance. The Awards are made each year by The Queen on the advice of the Prime Minister, who is assisted by an Advisory Committee that includes representatives of Government, industry and commerce, and the trade unions.
The awards are given to businesses that demonstrate “substantial improvement in business performance and commercial success, to levels that are outstanding for the size of the applicant's operations.”
