More than 400 people attended the 2015 Lehigh Valley Business of the Year Awards event at the ArtsQuest Center at SteelStacks.

The Lehigh Valley economy has seen record growth in recent years, and some of the businesses responsible for it were honored this week at the 2015 Lehigh Valley Business of the Year awards.

“When you look at the economic transformation that has occurred in the Lehigh Valley, it’s been tremendous,” Don Cunningham, President and CEO for the Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corporation (LVEDC), told a crowd of more than 400 people at the ArtsQuest Center in SteelStacks.

“It’s been tremendous because of you and your companies, so it’s highly appropriate that Lehigh Valley Business has gathered us here tonight to recognize the best among us,” Cunningham said. “We thank for you for what you do, and for creating jobs to grow the economy. We love being a partner with economic growth in the Lehigh Valley.”

Hosted by Lehigh Valley Business, with LVEDC serving as a premier sponsor, the prestigious Business of the Year event recognizes for-profit companies and executives for creating jobs, contributing to the community, and bolstering the region economically.

“We are in a room full of folks who measure success by talking about profits, employee satisfaction, and community service,” said David Schankweiler, CEO of Journal Multimedia, the parent company for LVB. “Tonight we honor 34 companies and five individuals who are doing something meaningful through hard work and tenacity, and have created some truly amazing business stories.”

Companies with a wide range of employees were honored at the event. The winners of the prestigious Business of the Year awards included INetU (101+ employees), an cloud-hosting company based in Hanover Township, Lehigh County; Bethlehem’s  Eastern Engineered Wood Products (36-100 employees); and Ideal Concepts Inc. (1-35 employees), an Allentown-based health and life insurance marketing and technology company.

Jay Sidhu, chairman and CEO of Customers Bank, was named Executive of the Year at the Lehigh Valley Business of the Year Awards.

Victaulic, a Forks Township-based developer and producer of mechanical pipe joining systems, was honored as Corporate Citizen of the Year, while the Netizen Corporation, a cybersecurity software company located in Upper Saucon Township, was named Emerging Business of the Year.

Additionally, Jay Sidhu, chairman and CEO of Customers Bank, was named Executive of the Year, while Mike Albarell of Albarell Electric, Mike Caruso of National Penn Insurance, and R. Chadwick Paul Jr. of Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania were inducted into the Lehigh Valley Business Hall of Fame.

Below is the full list of 2015 Business of the Year Finalists:

Business of the Year (1-35 employees)

• Chestnut Grove Resort
• ET&T Inc.
• Ideal Concepts Inc.
• Klunk & Millan Advertising
• Lehigh Mining and Navigation
• Levan Machine and Truck Equipment
• Linda Krisko Insurance & Financial

Business of the Year (36-100 employees)

• Burkholder’s HVAC
• Eastern Engineered Wood Products
• Gross McGinley LLP
• Liquid Interactive
• Majestic Fire Apparel
• Precise Graphix LLC
• Vistacom Inc.

Business of the Year (101-plus employees)

• Andesa Services
• Apprise Software Inc.
• Barry Isett and Associates
• Bennett Automotive Group
• BerkOne
• Fegley Enterprises Allentown & Bethlehem Brew Works
• INetU

Corporate Citizen of the Year

• ATAS International Inc.
• Berkshire Hathaway
• Cambridge-Lee Industries LLC
• DME
• Entrust Merchant Services – Mike Lichtenberger
• Meyer Jabara Hotel Group
• Victaulic

Emerging Business of the Year

• Amato Painting
• BOLTS Technologies Inc.
• Children’s Integrated Center for Success
• Feet First Podiatry
• Jaindl Properties LLC
• Jerdon Construction Services LLC
• Netizen Corporation