The Albany-Dougherty Economic Development Commission announced today the winners of the 2012 EDC Industry Awards, part of Albany-Dougherty Industry Celebration Week.

The winners of the 2012 EDC Industry Awards* are:

• Global Commerce: SASCO Chemical Group
• Economic Impact: Phoebe Putney Health System
• Excellence in Innovation: Central Monitoring
• Good Life City Award for corporate community citizenship: Gerdau Long Steel North America

“Albany-Dougherty Industry Celebration Week and the EDC Industry Awards celebrate the successes and contributions of Albany-Dougherty County’s existing industries,” said Ted Clem, CEcD, president of the Albany-Dougherty Economic Development Commission. “Existing industries account for about 80 percent of new jobs. It’s important that we recognize and that we thank our existing industries for the commitment they have made to our community.”

The purpose of the celebration week is three-fold: Expose residents to the variety of industries located in the community; create exposure for local industries; and honor the accomplishments of industries.

“One of the primary focuses of the EDC is to retain and expand existing industries,” Clem said. “To do this, it’s imperative that we – economic developers, the business community and residents – understand our industries and the roles they play in our economy.”

To highlight the importance of industries and the celebration week, Albany City Mayor Dorothy Hubbard and Dougherty County Commission Chairman Jeff “Bodine” Sinyard presented a joint proclamation.

2012 EDC Industry Awards: Criteria & Winners: 

Global Commerce: SASCO Chemical Group

Criteria

 The company’s primary market area(s)

• Global exports over the past three years
• Percentage of export sales as a percentage of total sales
• Utilization of federal/state export assistance programs or services from banks

When brothers Marc and Rusty Skalla bought the family chemical business in 2009, they had a dream: to go big.

The company was started in Albany in 1948 by Ernst Skalla, a German immigrant chemist who set up shop on Pine Avenue in downtown Albany with three workers. It was bought my brothers Lan and Randy Skalla in 1972; by then the company was focused mostly in the auto- and rubber-related industries.

Since the third-generation took the reigns, SASCO has expanded into new markets, revisited old industries, invested millions into an expanded corporate and manufacturing facility, purchased and designed new equipment, and has gone global.

In 2011, through assistance from the Albany-Dougherty Economic Development Commission and the Georgia Department of Economic Development, SASCO was able to make headway in numerous new markets, including Mexico.

Part of the strategy is “being a key player worldwide, instead of just in the United States and Canada, like we have been in the past. There’s a lot of concentration in Central and South America,” said SASCO COO Rusty Skalla.

In 2011, SASCO exports increased by 120 percent; exports to Mexico specifically increased by 2,700 percent.

“We shipped our first container to Venezuela last week, and we have some guys in Spain,” said Skalla, who estimates that 2012 exports will be “300-400 percent over” what they were last year.

With fresh leads, a new innovation and technology center and distributors throughout the world, SASCO’s at a turning point.

“We really have ourselves in a position to where we can grow and expand how we want to,” Skalla said.

Economic Impact: Phoebe Putney Health System

Criteria

• The number of years in operation at this location
• Economic impact of company on community and/or surrounding area
• Expansions within the past three (3) years
• Jobs created or retained and capital investment
• Increase in sales
• Other forms of growth

Phoebe Putney Health System has been asserting its place in Southwest Georgia for more than 100 years. What began as a small community hospital has, through thoughtful planning and strategy, grown into an organization that employs more than 5,000 and has care facilities throughout the region.

Twenty five years ago, the hospital board “really gave a mandate that the best possible care should be available right here at home,” said Jackie Ryan, the health system’s vice president of strategy. “In recent years, that strategy has meant putting services in place now throughout the South Georgia region.” 

The result of those services is a total annual economic impact of nearly $1.03 billion, with $895 million of that pumped into the local economy by Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital, the system’s flagship site.

Over the past 25 years, Phoebe has invested more than $200 million in main campus improvements involving property, equipment and facilities. Most recently, in 2011, it invested about $33 million, which was preceded by investments of $40 million and $52 million in 2010 and 2009, respectively.

 Reinvesting in the community is also part of Phoebe’s philosophy. During the last few years, this has meant allocating 7 to 12 percent of net revenues into programs such as school nurses for the Dougherty County School System, jail inmate care, unfunded indigent and charity care, as well as equipment donations throughout Southwest Georgia. This reinvestment has totaled about $136 million in recent years. 

“That’s part of our responsibility as a not-for-profit health care delivery system,” Ryan said. “It’s also the community safety net.

“We do that by trying to manage expenses, as expertly as we possibly can, and you give the services. You create quality services that people choose to use, and then you manage your operations and your expenses so that you have the ability to reinvest into the health care system and the community and to give back.”

Phoebe’s inpatient numbers reached 21,000 in 2011, and patient contacts were upwards of 800,000. Of those who come to Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital for services, about 56 percent are not residents of Dougherty County, Ryan said, a figure that increased steadily every year.

Phoebe has an annual payroll of $233 million. Of its more than 5,000 employees, 1,009 are nurses and nearly 200 are physicians.

Excellence in Innovation: Central Monitoring

Criteria

• Work force excellence
• Breakthrough technology
• Innovative practices and procedures
• Clean energy programs
• Environmental improvements
• Company or industry awards recognizing excellence

Most people don’t associate product innovation with alarm companies. With Albany’s Central Monitoring, they should.

In early 2011, Central Monitoring had no way of assisting the farmers who were dealing with a surge of copper wire theft from irrigation pivots that was resulting in higher insurance premiums, increased deductibles and in some cases, canceled policies.

So Central Monitoring service manager Mike White got to tinkering, and over the next few months he designed, built, tested and tweaked an alarm system that would detect and notify the central station and the pivot owner when the span cable on the irrigation pivot was disturbed. Thus was born the trademarked and patent-pending Pivot Alarm.

The alarm is solar powered, monitors and protects the entire span of cable, and is resistant enough to stand the pressures of farming, such as dry, dusty fields, constant water spray and unpredictable outdoor conditions.

When the Pivot Alarm goes off, a text or e-mail alert is sent to the pivot owner, and dispatchers at Central Monitoring notify the appropriate authorities, which, using GPS technology, are provided with an areal map and turn-by-turn directions from the nearest main road to the pivot.

Today, the Pivot Alarm is the only available product designed specifically to detect, notify and deter irrigation span cable copper theft.

More than 200 Pivot Alarms have been installed throughout south Georgia and east Alabama. The Pivot Alarm is manufactured in Albany, and will be distributed worldwide.

Good Life City Award for Corporate Community Citizenship: Gerdau Long Steel North America

Criteria

• Community involvement programs
• Company-invested volunteerism
• Civic involvement programs
• Educational partnerships

At Gerdau Long Steel North America – a leader in mini-mill steel production and steel recycling in North America and one of the major suppliers of specialty long steel in the world – it’s not just about the bottom line; it’s about being a part of something larger.

That’s a corporate culture that’s driven from the top and promoted to the company’s more than 46,000 North America-based employees.

In Albany, Gerdau takes part in at least one community service project every quarter – everything from charity walks to canned food drives.

“It gives us a chance to give back, for employees to give back a portion of their time and their money to the community,” said Albany site manager Jeffery Clark. Of the 34 employed at Gerdau, about 50 percent actively participate in all events.

Most recently, 18 Gerdau employees participate in the local walk to support multiple sclerosis research and programs.

“One of my customers, his wife has MS, so we thought that we were able to hook up with them and get involved,” Clack said. “He supports us as a company, and we in turn support him and his wife and their battle with MS.”

Coming up, you’ll be able to spot the Gerdau team at the cancer walk.

“It helps spur team moral,” Clack said of volunteering as a team. “As we’re out there away from work involved in community events, it helps build a stronger relationship with employees. … It brings you together.”