The Construction & Demolition Recycling Association (CDRA) announced two new inductees to its prestigious C&D Hall of Fame in a Jan. 23 release. The association also announced who will take home its C&D Recycler of the Year and CDRA Member of the Year awards for 2018. The awards will be presented at C&D World 2018 Feb. 10-13 in Nashville.
C&D Hall of Fame
This C&D Hall of Fame is an institution that honors those prominent leaders and pioneers in the construction and demolition recycling industry who have made an extraordinary contribution and have earned the respect of the industry. The institution also stands to recognize the achievements of those who have shown the importance of promoting and defending sound recycling of C&D material, helping others pursue careers in the space and contributing to their communities.
The following are the two new inductees to the C&D Hall of Fame:
- Leonard Cherry—Cherry is president of the Houston-based Cherry Companies, a wide-ranging recycling and demolition firm that has 13 concrete recycling and stabilized materials sites. The company also processes asphalt shingles and tires. Cherry served on the board of the CDRA and is active in his local community.
- Ken Hoving—Hoving was president of K. Hoving Companies in West Chicago, Illinois, until its purchase by Lakeshore Recycling Systems, Morton, Grove, Illinois, where he stayed on as an executive until his recent retirement. A long-time member of the Chicago waste industry, Hoving built up the C&D recycling operation until it was the most modern one in the Chicago area, according to CDRA. He served on the CDRA board, including as member at large on the Executive Committee.
“Both of these gentlemen exemplify the best in the C&D recycling industry,” Troy Lautenbach, CDRA president, says. “Their service and innovation in the industry, as well as their work for the association and their communities, makes them deserving of this honor.”
C&D Recycler of the Year
The Operator of the Year award is meant to honor those recycling operations in the construction and demolition recycling industry who have made an extraordinary contribution to the industry through one or more of the following criteria:
• Advancing business operations that result in increased recycling percentages;
• Developing novel methods of marketing and conducting business;
• Fostering innovative practices in employer-employee relations;
• Ensuring safer operations;
• Protecting the environment; and
• Developing industry standards.
Recon Services, a full-service, multi-discipline recycling company in Austin, Texas, is the winner of this award. At its one site, the Recon Services facility provides concrete, mixed C&D, metals and shingle recycling, as well as roll-off service. Austin is a progressive city expecting the best in all types of recycling, and Recon is the only true full-service recycler in town, the CDRA says. Owner Walter Biel is open to innovation and installed the first-ever robotic sorting equipment on a C&D operation in North America. In addition, Recon is certified by the Recycling Certification Institute, providing its LEED customers an extra point no other company in Texas can.
CDRA Member of the Year
The Member of the Year award is selected based on extraordinary service to the mission of the organization and the C&D recycling industry during the previous 12-month period.
John Schumacher, senior vice president at the Schaumburg, Illinois-based Assurance Agency, is being recognized for the excellent work he did in creating the Safety Awards program for the CDRA.
The first Safety Awards will be handed out at C&D World 2018. All the other honors will be bestowed at that time, as well.