Dairymaster took home the multinational of the year award at the Leaders Awards, an annual gathering of IT-based companies across the southwest of Ireland.

The awards celebrate excellence in innovation, business and technology and Dairymaster scooped the award ahead of other finalists - cloud computing firm VMWare and financial technology firm Fexco.

The awards are organised by industry bodies IT@Cork and KerrySciTech and the awards were presented by radio presenter Bobby Kerr at a ceremony in Cork on Friday night.

News that IT@Cork and KerySciTech are rebranding as Tech Industry Alliance was officially announced by Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform Michael McGrath.

'Thrilled'

Speaking after the announcement, Dairymaster CEO John Harty said: “We are thrilled to have won this awar; it's huge recognition for our great team of people.

"Key to our success is the diverse range of engineering skills and manufacturing capabilities employed across a broad range of disciplines all under one roof. I would like to thank John Daly for accepting the award on behalf of our team.”

The Irish Cattle Breeding Federation, based in Ballincollig, Co Cork, were also winners on the night, scooping the smart technology innovation award.