HARTSELLE, Ala – Cerrowire® took it to the top for its 100-Year Anniversary Celebration in Utah with festivities featuring dinner, awards, recognitions and family fun at 6,000 feet.
On July 16, the team from Ogden, Utah, gathered on scenic Mount Ogden with their families and coworkers at Snowbasin Resort to celebrate the milestone anniversary. Kids and adults played lawn games, competed in mini-golf, and posed for fun photo booth pics — all this between gondola rides up the mountain to an 8,716-foot elevation.
After dinner, presentations and surprise giveaways, employees got in a bonus activity. As a reward for hitting a plant-wide challenge goal, Plant Manager Kory Longhurst and Human Resources Manager Katie Malone each took turns in the dunk tank, while 10 employees had a chance to put them in the drink with lots of good-natured laughter.
100 Years of Growth
The copper wire manufacturer started business with humble beginnings in 1920 when a young immigrant named Hyman Cohn opened a small electrical equipment store in Brooklyn, NY. The company underwent significant growth and change; and in 1938, a large plant was built—the largest in New York at the time—on the site of what is now LaGuardia International Airport. The company was renamed Cerro Wire and Cable in 1954. The Marmon Group of Companies later bought it and moved operations to Hartselle, AL, its current headquarters. Marmon developed additional facilities in Ogden, UT; Crothersville, IN; and Carrollton, GA. In 2008, Warren Buffett, chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, acquired a majority interest in the Marmon Group. Today, Cerrowire is shipping copper wire and cable to distributor warehouses, large electrical contractors and home improvement stores across the country. The business has added timesaving features and innovations to the product line as well as developed other job site innovations for the electrical industry. Pushing ever further into new-product territory, Cerrowire is currently constructing a facility which will manufacture metal-clad cable (MC cable) in Alabama.
Looking Toward the Future
Stewart Smallwood, president of Cerrowire, recognized team members who had worked with the company for much of, if not, their entire careers. He lauded them for their commitment to Cerrowire and thanked all employees for the record growth the business has experienced in recent years.
He said, “All of you make Cerrowire a great place to work. I am proud of all of you and all that we have accomplished together.”
He continued, “Cerrowire is part of the rare group that has been producing and selling quality products for a century or more. The most important trait these companies share is a strong culture to make quality products and innovate what they make and how customers can use them. Let’s continue to build on the successes of the past century, energize that amazing team spirit you show every day, and inspire each other and the next generation to make a difference at work and in the community.”
