VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwired - Apr 30, 2015) - The BC Technology Industry Association (BCTIA) today announced the finalists for the 2015 Technology Impact Awards (TIAs). Now in its 22^nd year, the TIAs shine a spotlight on British Columbia's tech industry, highlighting innovators in a cross-section of sectors including enterprise software, digital media, 3D scanning, health care and cleantech.

The 2015 Finalists serve a variety of global markets, illustrating the strength, diversity and increasing global reach of the BC technology industry, as well as the ability of local tech to 'shake up' traditional industries right here at home.

"We're proud to celebrate the successes of so many BC tech companies over the past year. The 2015 TIAs Finalists illustrate the diversity and increasing maturity of the BC tech industry," said BCTIA President Bill Tam. "Many of these companies are at the forefront of our industry already, leading the way in terms of global recognition," Tam added. "It's our job to help them grow and expand their reach, and recognition through the TIAs program is a great step in that direction."

The Technology Impact Awards honour companies in nine categories divided amongst three distinct groups: Technology, People and Company. The 2015 Finalists are:

Adoption of Technology

• Domain7 - www.domain7.com and Earls - www.earls.ca

• Rainforest Automation - www.rainforestautomation.com and BC Hydro - www.bchydro.com

• Traction on Demand - www.tractionondemand.com and Canlan Ice Sports - www.icesports.com

Most Promising Pre-Commercial Technology

• Arius Technology - www.ariustechnology.com

• Axine Water Technologies - www.axinewater.com

• ZincNyx Energy Solutions - www.zincnyx.com

Excellence in Product Innovation

• Delta-Q Technologies - www.delta-q.com

• iQmetrix - www.iqmetrix.com

• SunCentral - www.suncentralinc.com

• Tantalus Systems - www.tantalus.com

Community Engagement

• Left of the Dot Media Inc. - www.leftofthedot.com

• PaySavvy - www.paysavvy.com

• Traction on Demand - www.tractionondemand.com

Team of the Year

• ACL - www.acl.com

• Cooledge Lighting - www.cooledgelighting.com

• Copperleaf Technologies - www.copperleaf.com

Most Promising Startup

• FusionPipe Software Solutions - www.fusionpipe.com

• Jobcast Media - www.jobcast.net

• Optigo Networks - www.optigo.net

Emerging Company of the Year

• Cooledge Lighting - www.cooledgelighting.com

• UrtheCast - www.urthecast.com

Company of the Year

• Cymax - www.cymax.com

• Global Relay - www.globalrelay.com

• Sierra Wireless - www.sierrawireless.com

Other awards to be presented at the Technology Impact Awards Gala include:

Person of the Year: Awarded to an individual who has made a significant contribution to the BC technology industry during the past year. This contribution may be through paid or volunteer activities with a company, research institution, association, or non-profit agency.

All winners will be announced on June 4th, at the 2015 Technology Impact Awards, to be held at the Vancouver Convention Centre. Tickets to the gala are now on sale. The Early Bird Deadline is Friday, May 8. To learn more and purchase tickets, visit www.thetias.com.

About the BCTIA

The BC Technology Industry Association (BCTIA) supports the development, growth, and advancement of technology companies of all sizes, from every sector - to foster an ecosystem that expands the number of globally successful businesses in British Columbia and Canada. For over 20 years, the BCTIA has helped to grow BC's tech cluster of nearly 9,000 companies that today employs over 90,000 people and generates more than $23 billion in revenue. www.bctia.org @bctia