A key safe company has won a King’s Award for Enterprise for its latest innovation.
The Key Safe Company, based in Worcester, received the honour in the innovation category for its ark Tamo key safe.
The awards are the UK’s most prestigious business honours and have now been running for 60 years.
Winners are entitled to use the King’s Awards emblem for the next five years.
The award was formally presented by Beatrice Grant, Lord-Lieutenant of Worcestershire, during a visit to the company’s headquarters at Nunnery Park, Hornhill Road.
The visit included a tour of the company’s facilities, a demonstration of its security technology, and the formal presentation of the King’s Award trophy.
Ms Grant said: “It is always an enormous honour to recognise fantastic businesses here in Worcestershire on behalf of His Majesty the King.
“I enjoyed being shown around The Key Safe Company, meeting many of the staff in the process and learning about their products.
“I can see immediately why The Key Safe Company has won this award, and against formidable competition from thousands of competing companies around the United Kingdom.
“The award represents the culmination of almost 30 years of British design, engineering and continuous improvement.
“Such success is a tribute not only to David’s leadership and management, but also to all of the staff who make up this successful team, without which no business can prosper.
“I congratulate The Key Safe Company and thank everyone for their work and wish the company continued success in the future.”
The Tamo key safe’s design allows each button to be used multiple times within a single code, creating more than 9.7 million possible combinations.
During the demonstration, three key safes were put through an “attack test” using a hammer.
Two competitor products failed within seconds, but the ark Tamo key safe remained locked and securely fastened to the wall throughout the test.
David Ogden, CEO and founder of The Key Safe Company, said: “It’s a very proud moment for us all.
“I’d like to thank the team for making this a reality.
“If it wasn’t for the team, our customers and us listening to our customers, this really wouldn’t have happened.
“We’re the best-kept secret, we genuinely do think that.
“It’s moments like this that make us all very proud.
“We’re extremely grateful for His Majesty’s recognition of our innovation and the development of our latest Tamo range of key safes.
“We’ve got five years of this recognition, and I think we can do Worcester proud.
“I want to give a huge thank you to everybody who came to celebrate with us.
“I’m always genuinely blown away by how the team behave and how they represent the business and the county at trade shows and events.
“We’ll be focusing on building on that, and hopefully growing this team and this business through this recognition.”
The Key Safe Company was founded in 1996 and now employs 27 people at its Worcester headquarters.
It specialises in secure key storage and access solutions, serving customers in the UK and abroad.
Its technology is used by homeowners, care providers, local authorities, emergency services, and businesses around the world.
To date, the company has sold more than three million units.