MBDA Italy has been awarded the 2010 "Imprese x Innovazione" by Confindustria as well as the "Premio dei Premi" established by the Italian government, following an intense selection and assessment phase lasting about eight months.

The "Imprese x Innovazione" award is organised every year by Confindustria (the Confederation of Italian Industry), in collaboration with APQI - Associazione Premio Qualità Italia (the Quality Award Association of Italy) and several experts in the field. It provides a major impetus towards spreading the culture of innovation as it involves the whole production system in Italy.

The selection phase was divided into three phases, followed by a final assessment carried out by a team of independent auditors. This assessment went into some depth in analysing the level of integration of specific areas related to innovation. These areas, appraised both for their approach and for the excellence of the results they achieved, included: leadership and innovation strategies; resources, technologies and innovation processes; efficient use of digital technologies; total quality management; internationalisation;

MBDA entered the competition, involving large, medium and small sized enterprises throughout Italy, taking advantage of its technical and technological expertise as well as its innovation programme that has been implemented within the company.

"This important and prestigious result stands as a well deserved recognition of the efforts made by the whole of MBDA Italy", said Antonio Perfetti, Managing Director of MBDA Italy and Executive Group Director Sales & Business Development MBDA. "The innovation processes introduced at all levels within MBDA are showing that we are moving in the right direction as far as the continuing innovation of the company is concerned".

The award is aimed at spreading those organisational and strategic models which promote growth through innovation. Similarly it looks to advance an entrepreneurial culture, providing a benchmark regarding excellence in the management of innovation, and improving a company’s performance through a self-diagnosis tool that allows the company to identify growth opportunities based on its innovation abilities.