On 21 April 2006, Her Majesty The Queen approved the Prime minister's recommendation that a Queen's Award for Enterprise be conferred on two Japanese companies in the International Trade category.

Olympus KeyMed received the Award in recognition of the company's success in deploying the commercial excellence gained within its UK domestic business to other international markets, resulting in impressive performance improvements. This achievement marked the second time that Olympus KeyMed had been honoured in this way, as two years previously the company had been given the Award in the Sustainable Development category . The company, which employs over 1200 people, is now one of Britain's largest suppliers of medical and industrial specialist equipment. It leads the market for flexible medical endoscopes, accounts for 25-30% of the market for rigid endoscopic surgery products and enjoys a 55% share of the industrial endoscopy market.

Michael Woodford MBE, Group Managing Director, expressed his delight at the company's achievement - not once, but twice: "It is rewarding that the culture and ethos of the organisation and its people, which is at the heart of our success, has been recognised in this way."

The other recipient of an Award was TRB Limited, a subsidiary of Tokai Rika. The company, which has a staff of around 200 people, assembles automotive switches for the UK, French and Turkish markets, and distributes switches made by the parent company to the rest of Europe. Some switches have also been sold through Toyota Brazil and Japan. TRB started trading in 2000 and is winning the Award for the first time for more than trebling its export earnings over three years to nearly £32.6 million per annum. Overseas sales now account for 85% of earnings. The company concentrates on selling high value added and specification switches for quality car manufacturers as well as offering technical design and engineering solutions, efficient parts delivery and after sales quality.

Managing Director Annesley Wright commented that the team at TRB were very proud to have their efforts publicly recognised in this way. In his view, the granting of the Award reflected the emphasis placed by the company on quality products and efficient processes.