2025 Fieldays Innovation Awards | Terms and Conditions

1. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

1.1 The Fieldays Innovation Awards (Awards) are open to individuals, organisations, or groups.  Individual entrants must either be New Zealand citizens or permanent residents to qualify.  Organisations must be New Zealand registered and have a place of business in New Zealand to qualify for entry unless NZ National Fieldays Society Incorporated (Fieldays) exercises its discretion to issue an exception to enable an overseas entrant.   

1.2 Notwithstanding the above, the Young Innovator of the Year Award is only open to individuals 19 years of age and under.  All entrants who indicate they are under the age of 20 will be considered for this award. 

2. TIMELINES

2.1 Entries must be received in full online through the online entry form on the Fieldays website by the deadlines stipulated on the form.  Fieldays is not responsible for inaccuracies in the details which are submitted by the entrants.   

2.2 Late entries may not be accepted.  Fieldays is not responsible for entries which are lost, damaged, corrupt, inaccessible, or late due to computer, network, or telecommunications failure.   

2.3 Award finalists will be contacted and invoiced when the application is accepted.  Final confirmation will be sent upon receiving payment.  Winners of the Young Innovator, Prototype, Early Stage, and Growth & Scale Awards will be presented during the Fieldays event. The people’s choice award will be awarded soon after Fieldays.

2.4 Fieldays reserves the right to change or otherwise extend the timeline outlined in this clause without notice, including the dates of entry, the announcement of finalists and the Awards evening.  

3. ENTRY CONDITIONS

3.1 By entering, entrants accept these Terms and Conditions and agree to be bound by them, and to comply with the reasonable instructions of Fieldays.   

3.2 Entries must have a strong Primary Sector element, and the application must be accompanied by photographs of the innovation being entered (Innovation) sufficient to meet Fieldays' minimum viability requirements.  

3.3 Fieldays is under no obligation to accept any entry.  If Fieldays has concerns regarding the innovation status of all or part of an Innovation it reserves the right to refuse entry on this basis alone, without having to provide proof of this concern to the entrants.   

3.4 Entrants must pay an entry fee as specified by Fieldays if their entry is accepted for consideration for the Awards.  

3.5 An entry to the Awards may be in respect of one of the following categories:  

• Prototype 
• Early-Stage 
• Growth & Scale  

3.6 Fieldays must be satisfied that an entry is in the correct category before judging begins.  Fieldays have the right to move entries into other categories if they believe they have been entered in the incorrect category.  

3.7 The entrant agrees to take full responsibility for the content of the entry, and they further agree to complete hazard identification in accordance with Fieldays requirements.   

3.8 As innovation is a dynamic arena, entrants may provide additional information regarding their entry after being accepted into the awards, but prior to the judging process.  The cut-off for this will be the entry cut-off.  This additional information can be emailed to the awards coordinator to be attached to the entry.  No deletion or editing of previously entered information will be possible. 

3.9 To enter the awards in the same category twice , the entry will need to meet the entry criteria and have had significant changes made from the previous entry – e.g., a substantial change/pivot/development. 

3.10 To enter the awards in a different category across successive years, the entry will need to meet the entry criteria for that category and display progress/development from the previous year’s entry. 

3.11 Entries that do not comply with these terms and conditions may be disqualified.  Any entries that are illegible or incomplete, or contain offensive, fraudulent, or unlawful content may be disqualified.  Entries must not invade the publicity rights or privacy of any person, living or deceased, or otherwise infringe upon any individual’s personal or proprietary rights.   

3.12 Fieldays reserves the right to exclude entrants, withhold, or request return of prizes, for violation of any of these terms and conditions, or if Entrants are behaving in a manner deemed unprofessional by Fieldays.  If any amount is unduly paid to a winner or if recovery is justified under these terms and conditions, the winner undertakes to repay Fieldays the sum in question on any terms and by any date it may specify.   

3.13 Fieldays reserves the right to cancel the Awards or individual award categories within the Awards at any time for any reason.    

3.14 Fieldays' decisions are final in all matters relating to this competition and no correspondence will be entered into.   

3.15 All entrants undertake to promote their entry into the awards through their own channels, including but not exclusive to website, newsletters, social media, and local press.    

3.16 If selected as a winner in any category, the entrant undertakes to promote their award through their own channels including but not exclusive to website, newsletters, social media, and local press.  On this occasion, Fieldays will furnish the entrant with official collateral to do so.  

4. JUDGING

4.1 First-Round Judging will occur in May. At the end of which, a short-list of Finalists will be named for each category

4.2 Finalist Judging may occur online pre-Fieldays (at the discretion of the Head Judge for each category) and will occur in person on the Wednesday of Fieldays. Finalists are expected to make themselves available for judging.

4.3 Entrants will be made aware of the actual time of their judging with ample warning.

4.4 People’s Choice Award voting (judging) by the public will occur during Fieldays event in a manner of Fieldays’ choosing. All accepted participants displaying at the Fieldays event will be in the running for the People’s Choice Award.

5. SITE

5.1 Entrants agree that only the innovation may be displayed at their site within the Innovation Hub, and no other innovations may be displayed.  If it is impractical for the innovation to be displayed, the entrant must notify Fieldays as soon as possible, and instead use other means of displaying the innovation, such as photos, models, and prototypes, in a manner approved by Fieldays.   

5.2 Exhibitors who already have a confirmed site at Fieldays, and do not wish to have an additional site within the Innovation Hub, will pay a fee for entry into the awards only. 

5.3 Overseas-based innovators (who meet the entry criteria in clause 1.1) may enter the Innovation Award (Early-Stage and Growth & Scale categories). 

5.4 Prototype entrants are not permitted to sell any products from their site and must not conduct any promotional activities other than as approved by Fieldays.    

6. PRIVACY

6.1 By entering, all entrants, finalists and winners agree to allow and consent to Fieldays’ use of and right to reproduce, publish and if applicable, edit their names, photographs, images, all personal and other information (including general locations), and any videos and other audio-visual material and documents in any electronic medium, or written material and documents submitted by the entrants, finalists and winners.in relation to the Awards for purposes of Fieldays publicity, promotional and news purposes (including use in printed publications, editorial and PR activities, on internal and external websites, and any electronic medium whatsoever) related to the Awards.   

6.2 Any use by Fieldays shall be entirely within Fieldays discretion and Fieldays shall be under no obligation to use this material, documents, or information.   

7. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

7.1 Entrants must own the intellectual property rights, including the copyright in, or have permission to use and exhibit, the innovation and any materials submitted for the Awards.  Fieldays will not be responsible for breach of any copyright or other third-party intellectual property and proprietary rights by the entrants and/or the consequences of same.   

7.2 By entering, each entrant hereby warrants that they own or have permission to use and exhibit the intellectual property rights in the innovation and exhibit the innovation and any materials submitted for the Awards and in accordance with the requirements of the Awards, and that the entry does not or will not infringe any third party’s intellectual property and proprietary rights or rights or rights of publicity or privacy.   

7.3 Fieldays will use the entry form to collect the Innovation name, Company name, a brief description, and the location of the entrant to use in the promotion of the awards.

7.4 Other than as conferred by these Terms and Conditions, Fieldays will not acquire any ownership in the innovation or the intellectual property of the innovation or any materials submitted, and all such rights, title and interest will remain the property of the entrant.   

7.5 All intellectual property owned by Fieldays will continue to be owned by Fieldays, and entrants must not do anything, or allow anything to be done, to jeopardise Fieldays ownership of such intellectual property, and must not use Fieldays intellectual property without the prior written consent of Fieldays. 

7.6 Fieldays will gazette the event as an industrial or international exhibition with IPONZ. 

8. LIMITATION OF LIABILITY

8.1 By entering, entrants agree to abide by these Terms and Conditions and the decisions of Fieldays and release, indemnify, and hold harmless, Fieldays and their respective agents, representatives, officers, directors, and employees from and against any injuries, losses, damages, claims, actions, or any liability of any kind resulting from or arising from participation in the Awards or acceptance or usage of an award, to the extent of the entrants unlawful and/or unauthorised acts and/or omissions.   

8.2 Entrants agree that these Terms and Conditions, the Awards and entry to such is governed, interpreted, and enforced by the laws of New Zealand and by participating all entrants submit to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the Courts of New Zealand.  

8.3 Without otherwise limiting its rights, Fieldays reserves the right to seek, to the fullest extent permitted by law, damages and other remedies from any person attempting to damage any website or undermine the legitimate operation of the Awards. 

9. GENERAL

9.1 Entrants agree to submit any grievances or complaints in writing to Fieldays in the first instance, and to give Fieldays the reasonable opportunity to consider and/or resolve the complaint.   

9.2 Fieldays reserves the right to amend these Terms and Conditions or adapt and adjust the entry criteria for the categories, without notice in its sole discretion.  Such decisions shall be final.   

9.3 Fieldays reserves the right to alter the prize packages, prior to the awards ceremony, at its sole discretion. 

9.4 Fieldays reserves the right to alter the details of the awards ceremony at its sole discretion. 

9.5 For any determination required or stipulated in these Terms and Conditions Fieldays is the final arbiter to the fullest extent permitted by law.   

9.6 Any breach of the replies on the Innovation Award Application Form may result in the removal of your innovation from the show.