ARLINGTON, VA — During its first virtual Annual Meeting on Nov. 12, the National Association of Chemical Distributors (NACD) announced the winners of the Distributor of the Year Award, the Affiliate of the Year Award, the Responsible Distribution Excellence Award, and the Employee of the Year.

The Distributor of the Year and Affiliate of the Year Awards recognize NACD distributor members and Affiliate members, respectively, who make significant contributions of time and talent for the betterment of the chemical distribution industry, who contribute special achievements in chemical distribution, or who provide outstanding service to fellow NACD members or Affiliates.

The Responsible Distribution Excellence Award is presented to companies that demonstrate a sustained and rigorous commitment to NACD Responsible Distribution^®, the association’s third-party-verified environmental health, safety and security program.

The Employee of the Year recognizes an association employee who excelled at serving the mission and objectives of the association as well as providing performance in service to the membership and fellow employees.

“Each year, NACD and our members are inspired by our award recipients,” said NACD President and CEO Eric R. Byer. “In a year with so many challenges posed to our industry, our country and our world, we are prouder than ever of these award recipients who not only met those challenges but also exceeded all our expectations.”

2020 Distributor of the Year Award was presented to Matthew Fridley of Brenntag North America. Fridley is Director of Safety and Security for Brenntag North America. He is the immediate past chair of the U.S. Chemical Sector Coordinating Council and a member of the U.S. delegation for chemical security at the G7 Summit and holds many other positions of responsibility in national and global organizations. Fridley played a key role in some of the most important issues facing the chemical distribution industry in 2020. Most critically, his leadership was integral to ensuring chemical distribution was recognized as an essential industry, and chemical distributors therefore were able to continue operations during the COVID-19 pandemic. He was also a lead coordinator of the successful effort on Capitol Hill to secure reauthorization of the Department of Homeland Security’s Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards program.

Dan McCusker of Datacor received the 2020 Affiliate of the Year Award. McCusker is Vice President of Sales at Datacor, which sells, supports and delivers the only ERP software designed specifically for the chemical distribution industry. McCusker’s dedication to the industry for the past 25 years has helped make hundreds of chemical distribution companies more successful by improving their operations. McCusker served as Chairman of the NACD ChemEdge Committee for two years and served on the NACD board during those years.

HS Services and TLC Ingredients received the 2020 Responsible Distribution Excellence Awards. An IMCD company, HS Services was formerly owned by HORN prior to its acquisition in 2018. HS Services joined NACD as a Chemical Handler Affiliate in 2015 and has consistently prioritized Responsible Distribution in every facet of its operations. Committed to improving its processes at all levels, HS Services’ electronic corrective and preventative action tracking system, CASE, ensures all employees can consistently access reports and customer profiles and submit non-compliance reports as well as customer complaints. Additionally, the company’s newly added temperature-controlled food-grade storage room, cybersecurity measures, and enhanced training at its facility demonstrate HS Services’ commitment to integrating Responsible Distribution at all levels of the company.

TLC Ingredients exemplifies a commitment to the continuous improvement of its company and to the tenets of Responsible Distribution through a variety of internal programs and initiatives. Focusing on regulatory requirements and compliance, TLC has a robust internal auditing program and has incorporated an extensive training process for new employees to ensure they have the resources and tools to be successful from day one. Additionally, TLC is extremely active when it comes to community outreach and supporting local first responders, as well as industry initiatives like its local Emergency Planning Committee and the Chemical Educational Foundation.

Aileen Smith Manzi received the 2020 NACD Employee of the Year. Manzi is Senior Manager, Communications, for NACD. She has been with the organization since 2018 and leads all of the association’s member communications, including the website, marketing collateral, social media and branding. Through the challenges brought on by the pandemic, Manzi ensured our members were provided with daily updates on regulatory and essential industry information to aid in keeping their operations open. She also worked diligently through ever changing event and program moves from in-person to virtual, keeping the membership engaged and informed.