MAW 2001 Manufacturer-of-the-Year Awards | ||
To view a video clip of CIBA Vision |
CIBA Vision Manufacturer-of-the-Year in the large-company category (employing more than 750 people) went to CIBA Vision Corporation, maker of contact lenses and other ophthalmic products. The company’s worldwide headquarters are in Atlanta, which has watched the company grow from a small startup company in 1980. Now CIBA Vision directs a global organization that employs more than 6,000 people. CIBA Vision is a unit of Novartis AG, a Swiss-based company whose core businesses include pharmaceuticals, consumer health, generics, and animal health. The company, which recently added a new manufacturing facility for two product lines, enjoyed a 13 percent increase in revenues in Georgia between FY99 and FY00. Dr. Glen Bradley accepted the award, noting that Georgia’s Department of Industry, Trade & Tourism was the company’s first contact with Georgia and has remained a sustaining supporter. He also commended Gov. Roy Barnes and Dr. Ken Breeden for strengthening and enhancing the state’s technical college system, and he pointed out that Quick Start has been involved in every stage of the company’s expansion. Bradley also praised Dr. Joe Hill, president of Lanier Technical College, for the school’s ongoing support. CIBA Vision employs 2,000 Georgians. | |
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view a video clip of Cessna from |
Cessna Aircraft Company Cessna Aircraft Company won this year’s Manufacturer-of-the-Year Award in the medium company category (150 to 750 employees). The well-known maker of aircraft, which is based in Wichita, Kan., makes detail parts and flight-control surfaces at its Columbus, Ga., facility. Cessna, a leading producer of small- and medium-size corporate jets, as well as numerous other aircraft, formed in 1927. The company first came to Georgia in the 1980s and has enjoyed a fruitful and positive relationship with the Columbus community, especially Columbus Technical College, which has been instrumental in assisting Cessna achieve its expansion goals in Georgia. Executive Vice President John Moore was on hand from Kansas to accept the award for President Charlie Johnson, who had to be out of the country. Moore commended the state on its superior quality of economic development, including QuickStart, and stated that Cessna had been reluctant to expand outside of its Kansas home until being introduced to Georgia’s economic development movers and shakers. | |
To view a video clip of Toccoa Metal |
Toccoa Metal Finishing Toccoa Metal Finishing won this year’s Manufacturer-of-the-Year Award in the small- company category (1 to 150 employees). The company is a “home grown” local business that started in 1988 as a small shop doing bright nickel-plating for local customers. Since then, Toccoa Metal Finishing has expanded dramatically, working with large companies across the country, such as BMW, Lucent Technologies, Kodak, and Lockheed. Services now include anodizing; copper plating; and tin, silver, and gold plating, as well as other specialty surfacing. Accepting the award for this year’s Manufacturer of the Year was the company’s president, David Weaver. Weaver thanked the numerous supporters of his company, including North Georgia Technical College, which has played a special role in the business’ success. He also noted that Quick Start helped “level the playing field and let us compete with the big guys.” TMF’s revenues increased by more than 50 percent between FY99 and FY00, and the company saw a 40 percent increase in its workforce during that same time period. Quick Start developed customized production training material for the company’s two largest plating lines. | |
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