A SUFFOLK company whose technology is the secret behind top quality television coverage around the world was yesterday presented with the Queen’s Award for Enterprise.

Bury St Edmunds-based Vinten, part of the Camera Dynamics division of the Vitec Group, was honoured in the Innovation category of the awards, announced in April, for the development of its Perfect Balance system for steadying the image from moving cameras.

Lord Tollemache, the Lord Lieutenant of Suffolk, presented the company with its trophy and official citation at a ceremony held at its site in Western Way, Bury.

The technology, first introduced in the mid-1980s and continually refined since, has made Vinten a world leader in the supply of broadcast camera supports, with its products being widely used in sports coverage and for other TV shows including, in the UK, The X Factor.

Congratulating the company on its achievement, Lord Tollemache said: “Millions of people watching television all over the world probably have no concept that what they are watching is so perfect because of Vinten’s Perfect Balance products.”

The award coincides with Vinten’s centenary year, with the business having been formed in London in 1910 by William Vinten, whose son, Bill, was present at yesterday’s ceremony.

The company moved to Bury in 1962 and currently employs around 200 people in the town.

Accepting the award, Vinten managing director Roger Wilson said: “This outstanding recognition is a fitting tribute to the continuing success of the Vinten brand and its employees as it celebrates its 100th anniversary, an unprecedented achievement in its own right in the film and television industry.”