A CARPET manufacturer has beaten off competition from around the world to win an award for innovation after long-term investment paid off.

Brockway Carpets, based off Spennells Valley Road, Kidderminster, clinched the British Wool Quality Award for Innovation, one of five categories open to any manufacturer that uses British wool in carpet products.

The company's new environmentally-friendly carpet-backing technology Envirobac, costing over £1 million , helped secure the honour.

Firms from Japan joined 80 other carpet manufacturers in the awards organised every two years by the British Wool Marketing Board, the industry's regulating body.

"We work very hard in promoting the quality of our carpets so we are delighted to have won some recognition," said deputy managing director Charles Annable.

He added: "It's a very competitive marketplace and a number of manufacturers in Kidderminster have fallen by the wayside. Any way to stand out is welcome."

Mr Annable put the firm's recent success - they also won awards in 1997 and 1999 - down to a skilled local workforce and investment in modern technology.

"We are confident about the future because we put our money where our mouth is," he said. "Our backing plant took four years to develop but now we have the most up-to-date process in the world.

"Cheaper imports means we cannot always compete on price so we concentrate on quality."