The plaque was unveiled at a special ceremony on Friday 15 November at the Department of Engineering Science.
Dr Spranger completed a DPhil in Biomedical Engineering at the University of Oxford in 2014, focusing on modelling implanted medical devices, and is now founder and CEO of an award-winning medical startup, Oxford Heartbeat. She joins a network of over 200 Innovate UK Women in Innovation Award winners who are developing inspiring solutions to pressing societal, environmental, and economic challenges.
Speaking about her award, Dr Spranger said, “Oxford was the springboard from which Oxford Heartbeat was founded, so I am proud to have this award displayed at my alma mater. I hope it will inspire future generations of women to start their own business or get involved in groundbreaking science research.”
The Women in Innovation Award was created to improve the recognition of "remarkable women" and to inspire more girls into STEM. With only 35% of girls studying science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) subjects beyond GCSE1, there remains a marked imbalance of gender in these areas, impacting both education and industry. In response, Innovate UK (part of UK Research and Innovation) launched the Purple Plaques scheme in 2019. Mounted on the walls of educational premises, the Purple Plaques given to winners of the Women in Innovation Award serve as a lasting source of inspiration to future innovators and scientists.
Jonathan Grinbaud, Innovate UK Business Growth Project Manager, who was present at the unveiling, says, “Ventures like these [Oxford Heartbeat] are critical if we are to improve health outcomes in the country whilst pioneering the development and adoption of cutting-edge technologies. And these ventures are only possible if they are led by passionate, intelligent, courageous, and tenacious entrepreneurs such as Katerina”.
Oxford Heartbeat is bringing vital engineering innovation to hospitals via its medical device software, PreSize Neurovascular. PreSize is an AI-powered medical software suite for real-time planning of brain implant surgeries, enabling surgeons to select the best implant for each patient and significantly improve patient outcomes.
During her DPhil at Oxford, Dr Spranger did an extra course around Science Innovation at the Saïd Business School which taught her about the Lean Startup methodology. Dr Spranger emphasised the benefits of this additional training, saying, “The course at Saïd equipped me with crucial knowledge that helped me to envision what I wanted Oxford Heartbeat to become. There are so many amazing engineering technologies that might never be used in the real-world setting if they are not fit for purpose, so it was important to learn how to respond to user needs and the changing market circumstances. At Saïd I realised that in order to succeed, engineering companies must be built to be agile and adaptable.”
Dr Spranger is passionate about her subject and the benefits engineering innovation can bring in the real world. She was recently awarded the prestigious Princess Royal Silver Medal by the Royal Academy of Engineering, which celebrates ‘outstanding personal contribution to UK engineering by an early to mid-career engineer resulting in market exploitation’.
The plaque was unveiled by Dr Spranger alongside Engineering Science Head of Department Professor Clive Siviour, and Professor Jim Naismith, Head of the Mathematical, Physical and Life Sciences Division (MPLS) at the University of Oxford.
