NEXT week The Press launches it Business Awards, marking the 25th anniversary year of the competition. Business editor Laura Knowlson revisits the only firm in the city to have been named Business of the Year twice.

LAST year the Press Business Awards were their biggest yet with more than 400 people enjoying a black tie dinner and ceremony at York Racecourse to celebrate the local, national and international success of businesses across York and North Yorkshire.

The glitzy event, which has earned a reputation for being one of the social highlights on York business community's calendar, and sees 16 awards handed out in a variety of categories, has come a long way since its debut in 1991.

The inaugural Business Awards took the form of a modest prize giving in the reception area of the then Yorkshire Evening Press in Walmgate, and concentrated solely on small businesses, with the award handed to Advance Fire Services in Lawrence Street, run by Ken and Janet Lawn.

However the event soon grew, and the need for larger accommodation saw it move along the road to the Merchant Adventurers Hall in Fossgate, where it became a more glamorous affair.

After earning regional fame the Press Business Awards was enjoying record entries and record attendances, prompting its final move to the expanse of the Voltigeur Suit at York Racecourse.

After 25 years the awards have commended the dedicated entrepreneurialism behind hundreds of local businesses. However there has only been one in the history of the event that has done the double - and been named Overall Business of the Year twice.

BSC Filters first saw glory in the Business Awards of 1998, when the business, then based in Osbaldwick, was named Best Exporter, before taking the crown for Evening Press Business Venture of the Year at the reportedly "sparkling but tense" awards reception at the Evening Press offices.

The firm, which makes revolutionary microwave filters for the telecommunications and military industries, had seen staff numbers quadruple to 32 in three years, and was welcoming orders from Europe, Scandinavia and the US.

Then led by managing director Alan Corlett, BSC used computer-aided design machines which in just 15 minutes carved out gadgets individually worth hundreds or thousands of pounds, destined to block out and receive signals on giant telecom transmitters or in the cockpits of jet fighters.

In winning the award BSC, which was founded by Mr Colett in 1989, won the coveted winner's brass plaque, a cheque for £2,000, a further £1,000 worth of Evening Press advertising plus a £500 cheque for being Trainer of the Year.

In his victory speech of 1998 Mr Colett said: "Don't listen to all the media hype of a recession. Go for it! The secret of our company's success lies in its people. We have a marvellous team and we're all thrilled."

Just over ten year's later and BSC was once again taking home titles as the 2009 Press Business Awards, then held at York Racecourse, saw the firm win Growth Business of the Year, then Large Business of the Year, and finally Overall Business of the Year through the John Guy Memorial Award.

Judges described the firm's projects as being "worthy not just of praise, but of gratitude from the whole nation" as it worked on jamming devices "to reduce the effectiveness of roadside bombs which have taken such a heavy toll on our troops inAfghanistan."

Judges were impressed that in the process of designing and making complex microwave filters, diplexers and waveguide coaxial passive components, BSC had adopted "lean" techniques to increase output and margins with minimal increase in staff numbers.

By then BSC had a team of 50 employees, steered by managing director Martyn Lee, who collectively had worked to grow turnover of £4.4 million.

Since winning its awards BSC has been far from quiet. Just months after its success at the 2009 award the firm was bought out by multi-billion dollar US group Ceramic & Microwave Products (CMP) for an undisclosed sum.

With staff maintained in York following the deal, the firm has quietly been growing, with a workforce now employing 70 staff, and new and bigger premises in Clifton Moor.

Managing director Martyn Lee said: "This year marks the fifth anniversary of us being part of the US organisation and we're still going from strength to strength.

"We did have a down turn for a couple of years, but it was really just reflective of the down turn in defence spending following the end of hostilities in Afghanistan.

"There has been a change in defence spending from urgent operational requirements to more infrastructure base projects. That takes time, and was the real reason why we suffered a bit.

"We are still buoyant and nicely profitable and we intend to go forward. The outlook is quite bright.

"We are recruiting at the moment and we've got a very good projection.

"We've got some very exciting new products in development to take to market. They're very clever high tech products that are stimulating a lot of customer interest. We are expecting good things from them over the next couple of years."

Mr Lee described BSC being back on the growth path, with sights set on the even further afield for future growth.

He said: "Space and the commercial space market is somewhere where we see growth potential. It's a very difficult market to play in because its very demanding in terms of specification.

"As we go forwards there's a much more commercial approach being taken so we see bigger opportunities in that field.

"There's exciting times ahead, and we're proud to be preparing for them from our base in York.

"We extremely proud of the fact we are the only business in the city to have won the overall Press Business Award twice.

"The awards are held in very high regard in York and it means a lot to us to be part of them. Who knows, we may even one day be the first business to get a hat-trick!"