TEES TECH AWARDS 2026

FINALISTS

JAPAFLEX

Members of the NCB Hazcheck team received the trophy from Alt Labs’ Dan Watson.

WINNER

A system that helps keep shipping safe across the world is on the crest of a wave after a double success at the Tees Tech Awards 2026.

Darlington-based NCB Hazcheck’ s digital solution to identifying high-risk cargo on container ships snapped up the Tech For Good and the Innovation trophies at this year’ s awards.

And after receiving the Tech For Good prize from Dan Watson of Alt Labs, CIO Mike Durkin said it was great recognition for an operation not many people know about.

He said:“ We’ ve grown over the past 40 years to become a significant digital company in the maritime sector that no one’ s ever heard of – I always describe ourselves as the world’ s best kept secret!”

Originally known as Exis Technologies, it rebranded to NCB Hazcheck in 2018 after becoming part of the National Cargo Bureau( NCB) global not-for-profit collective of organisations.

Now with a 35-strong team but still proudly headquartered in Darlington, NCB Hazcheck was the first company to digitise the IMDG( International Maritime Dangerous Goods) code, which dictates how cargo is stowed safely on a vessel.

Mike told Tees Business:“ When you think a container ship can have 25,000 containers on it, it’ s important how those containers are stowed.

“ A lot of what we do is about screening for misdeclared or undeclared dangerous cargo. Around 80 % of all cargo goes through maritime and we screen 80 % of that.”

Mike explained how NCB Hazcheck’ s AI-bolstered tech has already prevented thousands of potential maritime fires this year.

He said:“ Bookings are made up of collected data points – cargo items such as the substance, quantity, weights, the shipper. We screen for anomalies in that and unusual behaviours, such as cargo not usually seen at a certain port in that quantity, or of that weight. Then we would flag that to the cargo carrier, the shipper, to say this is unusual, please investigate it.

“ We’ ve stopped 10,000 containers this year that could cause serious ship fires. And if a ship fire was to occur, that ship might only have 24 people on board but it’ s a risk to their lives and the ecosystem.

“ You’ re talking about years of families’ lives and livelihoods getting damaged due to what happens when that ship sinks – but we stop that from Darlington.”

As students and travellers arrive in the UK for education and work, many face loneliness and social isolation.

It’ s something Teesside University graduate Ajibola Agbaje experienced, motivating him to combine his tech skills and lived experience to develop the Japaflex app.

Embraced firstly by the Nigerian community but since welcomed by other international students too, it helps diasporans find friends, discover community groups and events, explore job opportunities and access relevant local recommendations through the power of AI and geo-fencing technology, set to a 20-mile radius.

Available on the Apple and Android stores, as well as at japaflex. com, it has more than 5,000 users and counting.

LABMAN AUTOMATION

PoCOsteo was an ambitious, EU-funded research project aiming to explore whether osteoporosis could be diagnosed and monitored quickly and accurately at the point of care.

Working with partners across Europe, Stokesley-based Labman helped develop prototype devices that combined genomics, biomarker testing and automated microfluidics into a single system – something never before achieved in this way.

Although PoCOsteo is not a commercial product and requires further work, the project succeeded in proving that this type of rapid, accessible diagnostic technology is scientifically and technically possible – an important step toward a future where osteoporosis can be identified earlier, monitored more easily and managed more effectively.

The voice of business in the Tees region | 141