At their board meeting on May 7, Southwest Georgia Technical College (SWGTC) recognized Cleaver-Brooks (Thomasville Plant) as the Thomas County representative for the 2013 Manufacturer of the Year Award.

“Cleaver-Brooks is very proud of the efforts of the approximately 200 employees that made this nomination possible. Thanks to Southwest Georgia Technical College and the Thomasville-Thomas County Chamber of Commerce for the nomination, and for the continued relationship with our company,” commented Bill Lawing, Human Resources Manager at Cleaver-Brooks.

Each year as part of Manufacturing Appreciation Week, SWGTC works with local economic developers to select a company to nominate from each of its three service areas (Thomas, Grady and Mitchell counties). Nominations for this award are made based on three criteria: corporate responsibility, economic impact on Georgia, and workforce excellence.

Gary Pitts, SWGTC VP of Economic Development, commented, “Cleaver Brooks was once again nominated as Thomas County’s Manufacturer of the Year because of their support, involvement and participation in College and community activities. As a valuable corporate partner, Cleaver-Brooks can be counted on to assist where ever and whenever needed and we sincerely appreciate the positive impact that this outstanding company has demonstrated not only upon our community but on the local economy as well.”

Cleaver-Brooks’ Thomasville plant, which has been in operation for 82 years, is a manufacturer of boiler room products and systems. They have significant impact on the local economy for three main reasons: employment of over 200 people, support of local municipalities through the purchase of significant amounts of power and payment local taxes.

Cleaver-Brooks also strives to give back to its community and personnel. They support United Way of Thomas County, Relay for Life and community blood drives. Cleaver-Brooks makes it a priority to keep their workforce happy through various incentive programs. Employees with perfect attendance are rewarded with extra vacation time, and those with excellent safety records get “Cleaver Bucks” that can be spent at a designated website. They also maintain a very generous 401k program which matches dollar for dollar (up to 3 percent) of the employee’s contributions.

All SWGTC nominees competed with other Georgia companies for the honor of being selected as the Georgia Manufacturer of the Year. SWGTC considers each nominee to be a winner, and recognized them during a SWGTC board meeting where each company was presented with a plaque to acknowledge their accomplishments.

For information, call  229-225-4096 or visit  www.southwestgatech.edu.

Southwest Georgia Technical College is a unit of the Technical College System of Georgia.