The hand-held laser safety flare won both the Innovation Award in the safety product category and was voted overall winner in the Seawork Spirit of Innovation Awards.

Steve Groves, a director of Odeo Flare Ltd said: "We knew we had a strong innovative product with the laser Odeo Flare, but to win against such strong opposition was a fantastic recognition of the uniqueness of our product and a wonderful accolade from the industry."

Odeo Flare is an innovative hand held laser flare set to become an essential addition to safety equipment in the marine and outdoor activity sectors where a flare is essential. The battery powered laser flare offers enhanced safety with no heat, flames or explosive compounds and therefore a much safer alternative to the conventional hand held pyrotechnic distress flare.

The lasers provide a full hemisphere of light output while the variable speed of the rotating head ensures bright and random flashes. The light output is clearly visible from both the surface and air and has a minimum range of 3 miles.

Powered by 3 AA lithium batteries, the flare will operate for a minimum of five hours. If needed, the running time can be extended by simply changing the batteries. Traditional pyrotechnic flares normally last for approximately 1 minute before extinguishing. The Class 3R lasers used in Odeo Flares conform to EN 60825-1 regulations and are not dangerous to the user, rescuer, helicopter pilot or SAR equipment.

Odeo Flares are designed to work in the challenging environments found at sea, are completely waterproof and float if dropped overboard. The flares are safe to carry anywhere, even on aeroplanes.

Winning the Safety Innovation Award at Seawork 2012 confirms the place of the Odeo Flare as an important low cost addition to ships safety equipment and a serious step forward in the standards of safety at sea.