North American Office Products Awards 2012 (NAOPA)

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North American Office Products Awards 2012 (NAOPA)

Event website: https://www.eventsforce.net/naopa2012

Start date: 12 July 2012

End date: 12 July 2012

Location: Washington, DC


NAOPA 2012 Shortlist

Best Product - Core Office Products
3M - 3M Privacy Screen Protector
Avery Dennison - See-Through Sticky Notes
Imprint Plus - The Mighty Badge
Newell Rubbermaid - Paper Mate InkJoy
SentrySafe - Guardian Storage Box

Best Product - Cleaning and Breakroom
Dyson - Dyson Airblade hand dryer
GOJO - LTX and ADX Dispensers and soap formulations
Hoover - Hoover Insight
Kimberly-Clark Professional - Kleenex Cool Touch Facial Tissue
Rubbermaid Commercial Products - Rubbermaid HYGEN Clean Water System Filter Bucket

Best Product - Technology Products
ACCO Brands - Stack-and-Shred 500X
Brother International - Brother DSmobile 700D
Hewlett-Packard - TopShot LaserJet Pro M275
Logitech - Wireless Solar Keyboard K750
Newell Rubbermaid/DYMO - LabelManager 500TS

Best Product - Furniture
Deflecto - Millionaire Wall - Decorative Wall Panels
Iceberg - Clarity TOO Glass Dry Erase Boards
Mayline Group - e5
MooreCo - Agility Tables
Office Star Products - SPACE 829 Series

Environmentally-friendly Product of the Year
3M - Scotch Magic Greener Tape 812-6PC38
Bi-silque - MasterVision EARTH Boards- Dry Erase & Bulletin
Dyson - Dyson Airblade hand dryer
Eco-Products - BlueStripe Post-Consumer Recycled Content Polystyrene Hot Cup Lids and Cutlery
Safco - Cava Urth

Product Innovation of the Year
Deflecto - Millionaire Wall - Decorative Wall Panels
Fellowes - Fellowes® Tilt ‘n Slide ProTM Keyboard Manager
Imprint Plus - The Mighty Badge
Plantronics - Savi W740
Rubbermaid Commercial Products - Rubbermaid HYGEN Clean Water System Filter Bucket

Overall Product of the Year
No shortlist - winner to be announced on the night



DEADLINE FOR ENTRIES FRIDAY 24TH FEBRUARY 2012

Following the success of the previous North American Office Products Awards (NAOPA) in 2010 and 2011, the organiser OPI is delighted to announce the third annual awards program for North American manufacturers, which encourages innovation and recognises vendors that are working to deliver real value to the dealer community.

These awards, which have already been widely acclaimed as the Gold Standard within the industry, will be presented at SP Richards’ 2012 Advantage Business Conference (ABC) in Washington.

The awards presentation will be the highlight of a special gala dinner – the largest such gathering in the North American office products industry – held on the evening of the ABC trade show and will be attended by vendors, dealers, dealer group personnel, the trade press and SP Richards attendees.

• ABC Trade Show (expo) – Thursday 12 July, 2012, during the day

• NAOPA Awards Presentation and Dinner – Thursday 12 July, 2012, evening

How to enter
The entry process is very straightforward and you will not be required to complete onerous applications forms or demonstrate entire new product launch campaigns. There is just a simple online entry form for each category.

Why enter?
SP Richards’ ABC is the largest annual event for North American dealers and attracts over 3,000 attendees every year. The winners and shortlisted companies of the NAOPA will enjoy a heightened profile both at the ABC and beyond including:

• The winners will be announced at a special gala dinner on 12 July, the evening of the expo.

• Shortlisted products will enjoy greater visibility at the expo, as well as through additional signage to be displayed within vendor booths.

• Winners will also be announced at Friday's general session.

• In addition, the shortlist will be announced in OPI magazine and on opi.net. The winners will also be included in a special feature article in OPI magazine as well as online.

Award winners will therefore receive the highest recognition amongst their dealer customers.


Award Categories
There will be seven awards presented at the third NAOPA in July 2012.
• Best Product - Core office products
• Best Product - Furniture
• Best Product - Technology products
• Best Product - Cleaning & Breakroom
• Product Innovation of the Year
• Environmentally-friendly Product of the Year
• Overall Product of the Year

Presentation Dinner
The presentation to award winners will take place during a spectacular dinner on Thursday 12 July 2012 for over 2,000 dealers, vendors and other industry executives. In addition to being a glittering evening with fantastic entertainment, this will be an unrivalled networking opportunity after the very popular trade show.

More about OPI
As the leading magazine for the international industry, OPI brings a wealth of experience, industry knowledge and strong relationships with the North American dealer community and the vendors represented at the show. OPI has a strong tradition of launching office supplies awards evenings. OPI has hosted the European Office Products awards ceremony in Frankfurt for 12 years, and the Chinese OP awards in Shanghai, which launched in 2004.


More about S.P. Richards
SP Richards Company, headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia is one of the oldest organisations to grace the North American office supplies industry. Founded in 1848, and now a wholly-owned subsidiary of Genuine Parts Company (GPC:NYSE), it is one of North America's leading business products wholesalers, distributing over 50,000 business products to thousands of resellers through a network of 44 distribution centres.


DEADLINE FOR ENTRIES FRIDAY 30 MARCH

Award Categories


There will be seven awards presented at the NAOPA presentation dinner on 12 July 2012.

• Best Product - Core office products
• Best Product - Furniture
• Best Product - Technology products
• Best Product - Cleaning & Breakroom
• Product Innovation of the Year 
• Environmentally-friendly Product of the Year
• Overall Product of the Year


Categories in detail: 

Best Product (in four categories)

We will be looking for the best products. It might be a new product or one that has delivered strong revenue for many years. We want to see excellent product development and value for customers.

There will be four categories for the products

1. Core office supplies
2. Furniture
3. Technology products
4. Cleaning & Breakroom supplies

The judges will be looking for:

• Product innovation, design and functionality
• How the product has improved upon previous designs/models
• The benefits for the reseller and the consumer
• The level of marketing support, innovation and initiatives in promoting the products to the end-user


Innovation of the Year

Nothing determines the success of any industry more than innovation. It is the lifeblood of our sector and without it we become commoditized. These awards seek to discover the truly innovative products and ensure they receive the recognition they deserve. “Innovations” can include products, technology solutions, significant enhancements or supply chain innovations. 

The judges will be looking for:

  • Functionality
  • Design
  • Originality
  • Environmental attributes
  • Potential to generate revenue

Environmentally-friendly Product of the Year

The environment has become more than a buzzword and is far more worthy than simply lip service. Developing more environmentally-friendly products is an important enhancement that our industry’s consumers genuinely value. We will be looking for new initiatives in either products or systems that have been introduced over the last 12 months.

The judges will be looking for:

• Products and/or process developments with real environmental impact
• Evidence of initiatives to encourage a companywide green culture
• Supplier audits/independent accreditation


Overall Product of the Year

This award will aim to find the best overall product in our industry. The judges will be looking at product design, ergonomic attributes, green credentials, functionality, value, innovation, marketing support and packaging. This winner will be chosen by the judges from all the award entries. You do not need to enter this category.

 

ENTER from Thursday 8th December

 

ONLINE ENTRY OPENS ON THURSDAY 8 DECEMBER 2011

DEADLINE FOR ENTRIES FRIDAY 24 FEBRUARY 2011

 

How to Enter

The process is very straightforward and you are not required to complete onerous application forms or demonstrate entire new product launch campaigns.

There is a simple online process enabling you to easily submit details for each category you wish to enter. Just follow the simple online process. The online entry system will open on Thursday 8th December.

ENTER or go to this address in your browser:https://www.eventsforce.net/naopa2012

Once you have registered on the site you will receive a password and you will be able to log back into your submission and make adjustments at any time, up to the deadline.

If you have any queries about the entry process please email events@opi.net or telephone  011 44 207 841 2950      
  

 
Additional Entry Information

The Entry process

  • The North American Office Products Awards are open to any companies or individuals headquartered in North America or with a physical presence in North America.
  • The manufacturing process can take place elsewhere but the company must have a presence in the USA.
  • You can enter as many categories as you wish but entries must be made at the NAOPA web site.
  • The deadline for entries is 24 February 2012.
  • Please complete the online entry form by answering all the questions listed, providing as much relevant information as possible.
  • Only information provided on the entry form will be sent to the judges.
  • A product sample must be sent, on request, to Atlanta for the judges meeting. For large or high value products delivery and collection can be discussed with OPI.
  • Entries are treated in the strictest confidence.
  • Judges will not be allowed to adjudicate in any category where they may have a conflict of interest.


Judging Process

  • The judges reserve the right to switch submissions between categories if they feel it is appropriate.
  • The judges may decide not to bestow an award in a particular category.
  • The judges' decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into.
  • The shortlist will be announced by 11 May 2012.
  • Winners will be announced on 12 July 2012 at a special dinner function on the evening of the S.P. Richards' 2012 Advantage Business Conference (ABC) in Washington.

The judges are comprised of SPR category mangers, independent dealers, industry representatives and dealer groups.

Dennis Arnold
S.P. Richards Company

Eddie Baird
S.P. Richards Company

Janet Bell
OPI

Jerry Bircher
Express Office Products

Mike Foster
Is Group

Felicity Francis
OPI

Bryan Freund
IQ Office Products

Randy Garcia
Office Express Supply

Steve Glass
S.P. Richards Company

Steve Hilleard
OPI

Chip Hummel
Hummels Office Plus

Brian Kerr
Kerr Office Plus

Kevin Killimett
S.P. Richards Company

Sean Macey
Basics

Chuck Macpherson   
S.P. Richards Company

Ehren Madill   
E. Madill Office Company

Nelvia McGrath   
S.P. Richards Company

Pedro McMillan   
Pedro's Planet

Sam Moncada   
COPA

Robert Moore   
S.P. Richards Company

Michael Morris   
TriMega

DickNichols   
S.P. Richards Company

John Podsiadlik   
Detroit Pencil Company

Robert Ray   
ICC Business Products

Todd Sandoval   
Sandia Office Supply

Curt Small   
S.P. Richards Company

Joe Templet   
United Stationers/BSA

Charles Volkman   
BPGI

Chris Whiting   
S.P. Richards Company

Wesley Wittner   
A & W Office Supply, Inc.