The Business Council of Alabama and the Alabama Technology Network announced the 2018 Manufacturer of the Year (MOTY) winners on Wednesday.
The winners were announced during an awards luncheon ceremony at the Alabama Activity Center in Montgomery, Ala. Awards were broken down into large, medium, and small manufacturer categories.
This years winner are:
- Large Manufacturer of the Year (400 or more employees): ADTRAN Inc., Huntsville
- Medium Manufacturer of the Year (100 to 399 employees): Birmingham Fastener & Supply Inc., Birmingham
- Small Manufacturer of the Year (1 to 99 employees): Ecovery LLC, Loxley
Governor Kay Ivey was the keynote speaker for the ceremony.
“From automobiles to aerospace to everyday products and equipment, whether for our own use or for export around the globe, Alabama’s manufacturers create high-quality jobs and produce substantial economic benefits,” Ivey said. “Our manufacturers are very important to us and we are committed to helping them succeed and thrive.”
Each year, the MOTY awards recognize manufacturing enterprises in Alabama who exhibit excellence in leadership, performance, profitability, and workforce relations.
An independent panel of judges select the winners based on their performance in several categories including: customer focus, operating excellence, employee commitment, profitable growth, continuous improvement, and investment in training and retraining.
BCA Chairman Perry Hand, chairman of Volkert Inc. recognized MOTY finalists for 2018.
“The annual Manufacturer of the Year Awards seek to honor Alabama manufacturers – from the largest
industrial employers to the smallest businesses – for displaying efficiency, safety, and excellence in their
products and the process for making them,” said William J. Canary, president and CEO of the BCA. “Quite
simply, manufacturing is an economic engine powering the state’s economy.”
ATN Executive Director Keith Phillips said; “The companies acknowledged today represent the best in Alabama manufacturing and the use of technology. Now in its 19th year, the Alabama Technology Network and the Business Council of Alabama are honored to salute Alabama’s best manufacturers for their valuable participation in not only the state’s economy but also the economies of their employees and the suppliers who do business with them.”
More about the 2018 Manufacturers of the Year
- ADTRAN Inc.: Since its creation in 1985, ADTRAN Inc. in Huntsville, Ala. has been a worldwide leader in the information and communications technology industry. After AT&Ts divestiture of the Regional Bell Operating Companies, ADTRAN founder Mark C. Smith saw an opportunity to supply network equipment to the new Regional Bell businesses and thousands of independent telephone companies.
From an initial seven employees to a workforce of almost 2,200 today, including 1,500 in Huntsville, ADTRAN serves more than 2,400 customers in 68 countries. The publicly traded company has shown consistent revenue growth, devises ways to cut costs, supports employee education and career development, encourages and supports community involvement, and supports more than 200 organizations. ADTRAN is a two-time winner, having won a MOTY award in 2010.
- Birmingham Fastener & Supply Inc.: Birmingham Fastener & Supply Inc. has successfully built a manufacturing company by valuing customers and people, providing quality products with customer service, and emphasizing development of its people. Founded by the late Howard P. Tinney in 1980, Birmingham Fastener & Supply is the South’s largest and most diversified fastener supplier. It makes and distributes fasteners for structural steel fabrication, metal building manufacturers, transportation, water works and utilities, original equipment manufacturers, agricultural equipment manufacturers, construction and maintenance, and repair and operations industries. Birmingham Fastener & Supply provides two scholarships a year through Wallace State Community College, education assistance to employees, and partners with Workshops Inc. that focuses on training people with disabilities.
- Ecovery LLC: Ecovery LLC in Loxley was formed in 2008 by Larry Sloan and Walter Norris originally to recycle and process electronic waste such as computers, televisions, and cell phones. In 2013, the company shifted to processing primarily copper and aluminum radiators from commercial and residential HVAC units. Ecovery LLC separates, shreds, and re-packages the pure raw material to fit customer needs. Ecovery also melts aluminum flakes from the shredding operation and mixes it with other scrap to produce recycled secondary ingots. Ecovery has two plants that employed 66 men and women in 2017.
