NORTH companies have been honoured by the Queen for their success in business.

They ranged from one employing four to another with a workforce of 108,600.

In the North-East, Amec, the international engineering services company with a base in Darlington, received The Queen's Award for International Trade, in recognition of its outstanding performance, principally in the oil, gas and processing industries over the past three years.

Amec's expansion in areas such as Azerbaijan, China, eastern Russia, the Gulf of Mexico, Kazakhstan, Saudi Arabia, the Philippines and West Africa, has resulted in a four-fold increase in export earnings for the company's UK-based operating subsidiary.

David Robson, chief executive, said: "I am delighted. We are all very proud of this achievement."

Uniquema, of Wilton, near Middlesbrough, won the sustainability award for a synthetic lubricant called Emkarate.

Seabait, of Northumberland, won both the international trade and sustainable development awards for its provision of frozen marine worms for use as aquaculture feed.

Other winners included:

* DuPont Teijin Films UK Limited, Wilton for its development in plastic card technology;

* Tracerco, part of Johnson Matthey, Billingham, Teesside for its systems for detecting oil and gas;

* McCain Foods, Scarborough, for its microwave chips and pizzas;

* Zetechtics, Kirkbymoorside, North Yorkshire, for its remote control underwater submersible.