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The International Card Manufacturers Association (ICMA) recently announced the winners of the prestigious Élan Awards of Excellence, which celebrate the pinnacle of design innovation, security and technical achievements in the global card industry.

Jeffrey Barnhart, ICMA founder and executive director, revealed the winners during a ceremony at ICMA’s Card Manufacturing and Personalization EXPO in Tampa, Florida on May 17.

“The Élan Awards of Excellence distinguish ICMA card manufacturers, suppliers and personalization/fulfillment members before their peers and customers as industry leaders,” said Barnhart. “An Élan Award showcases a company’s expertise in the global card industry. Winning can also lead a company down multiple paths to success including new business opportunities
and high-profile visibility.”

With entries from North America, the Middle East, Asia, Europe and other areas of the world, the Élan Awards of Excellence competition drives innovation within global card industry.

THE 2022 WINNERS AND FINALISTS ÉLAN AWARDS OF EXCELLENCE WINNERS ARE:

Best Supplier/Vendor New Product, Service or Innovation

Winner (tie): SPS for the EVC All-In-One by Ellipse, SPS and ABCorp

Winner (tie): Linxens for the Dynamic Security Code PRELAM® for ellipse

Finalist: Linxens for the Jet-Black EMV Module

Best Personalization & Fulfillment (P&F) Product, Service or Project

Winner: Giesecke+Devrient (China) Technologies Co., Ltd. for the China CITIC Bank American Express Game for Peace Irregular Shaped Card for China CITIC Bank Credit Card Center

Finalist: Giesecke+Devrient (China) Technologies Co. Ltd. for the ICBC Customized Card (Adorable Baby) for the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China

Finalist: Placard Pty Ltd for CommBank Neo for the Commonwealth Bank of Australia

MANUFACTURING EXCELLENCE AWARDS

Loyalty, Promotional and Gift Cards

Winner: Giesecke+Devrient (China) Technologies Co. Ltd. for the Starbucks Brand History Card for Starbucks

Finalist: Giesecke+Devrient (China) Technologies Co. Ltd. for the Starbucks Cherry Blossom Gift Card for Starbucks

Finalist: Goldpac Limited for the 22TM SVC SEASON MARBLE for Starbucks (China) Company Limited

Best ID and Access Control Cards

Winner: Canadian Bank Note Company, Limited for the New York State Enhanced Identifi cation Card for the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles

Finalist: Hengbao Co. Ltd. for the Wuyi Pass for the Jiangmen Wuyitong Smart Card Co. Ltd.

Finalist: Thales for the Colorado Driver License for the Colorado Department of Revenue

Best Secure Payment Card

Winner: Hengbao Co., Ltd for the China Construction Bank Moon and Stars Platinum Card in the Sunlight Series for China Construction Bank

Finalist: Giesecke+Devrient (China) Technologies Co., Ltd. for the ICBC Kirin Debit Card for Industrial and Commercial Bank of China

Finalist: Hengbao Co. Ltd. Tianjin-Hebei Integrated Interconnection Private Bank
Debit Card for China Minsheng Bank Co., Ltd. Tianjin Branch

Finalist: CompoSecure LLC Platinum Art Card x Kehinde Wiley for American Express

Unique Innovation Prototype

Winner: Giesecke+Devrient (China) Technologies Co. Ltd. for the Special-Shaped Chip Card

Finalist: CompoSecure LLC for the PointCard Atlas for Point

Finalist: Giesecke+Devrient (China) Technologies Co. Ltd. for the Built-In Holographic Dynamic Nano-Texture

Feature: Metal Cards

Winner: Thales for the Viseca Visa Platinum Metal Card for Viseca

Finalist: CompoSecure LLC for Sapphire Preferred for Chase

Finalist: CPI Card Group for Latitude for Rize

Feature: Environmentally Friendly Cards

Winner: CompoSecure, L.L.C. for Truist Wealth for Truist

Finalist: Goldpac Limited for the Bank of Shanghai Low Carbon Living Card for Bank of Shanghai

Finalist: Goldpac Limited for 22 SR KIT LAMY GREEN & 22 SR KIT LAMY BLACK for Starbucks (China) Company Limited

Feature: Biometric Cards

Winner: IDEMIA for Rocker Touch for Rocker

Unique Innovation

Winner: Goldpac Limited for the Bank of Guiyang Shuang Ying Men VIP Diamond
Debit Card - Private Banking Card for Bank of Guiyang

Finalist: IDEMIA for the Touch Card for Mastercard

Finalist: Giesecke+Devrient (China) Technologies Co., Ltd. for the Bank of Communications’ National-Charm Credit Card (Water Goddess Edition) for Bank of Communications

People’s Choice

Winner: Hengbao Co. Ltd. for the China Construction Bank Moon and Stars Platinum Card in the Sunlight Series for China Construction Bank

Finalist: IDEMIA for the Touch Card for Mastercard

Finalist: CPI Card Group for Reflect for Wells Fargo

Judging encompassed three categories: card suppliers, personalization and fulfillment and card manufacturing. David Tushie, ICMA standards representative, Brian Summerhayes of Barnes International, and Mike Walsh of SICPA SecurInk served as this year’s judges.

The next Élan Awards competition will open in January 2023 and winners will be announced during ICMA’s 2023 Card Manufacturing and Personalization EXPO. The in-person EXPO will take place from May 15-18, 2023 at the Renaissance Orlando at SeaWorld in Orlando, Florida.

To learn more about submitting an entry into next year’s competition, email info@icma.com. To learn more about the benefits of ICMA membership, visit ICMA.com.