But for some, their blue-sky thinking has taken them to another level, and they have come up with truly novel, truly inventive new products and systems.

Mindsheet, based in Havant, raced ahead of their competitors with a high-speed, lightweight reconnaissance robot, to be used by soldiers in battle zones such as Iraq and Afghanistan.

The firm were out in force at the Guildhall, with five of its six staff at the event, with boss Raglan Tribe collecting the top award in the Innovation of the Year category.

He told The News their success was due to 'firing on all cylinders at all times.'

'We've worked really hard, and it's kind of all come up at the end,' he said. 'It was really hard to get in with the MoD, but now we're getting contracts... It's time to start saving some lives.'

Following close behind was lifesaving Hilsea firm McMurdo, with a number of creative modifications to one its popular emergency rescue beacons, allowing it to send a signal identifying the user's location down to a 62 metre square area - much more precise than ever before - and extending its battery life.

Boss Jeremy Harrison said: 'It's been good, thoroughly enjoyed it. One of the things about going in a small group is you get to share a table with someone different, and so tonight we've got to meet all the staff from the Holiday Inn.

'We've had a fantastic year, in fact.

'It's getting better all the time, and at this point that means bucking the trend we're seeing on TV.

ISD Computer Services was highly commended in the category, for its work on a marketing campaign management system called Maxim which collects data on the frequency with which customers use a product.

Nick Winslade, managing director, said: 'I'm chuffed to bits to get to the final, and it's great to get the highly commended.

'It's great to get recognised for hard work, especially since we're just a small husband and wife team, using contractors to help us.'