ACEEE Awards "Champions of Energy Efficiency in Industry"

Niagra Falls, New York — The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) named three Champions of Energy Efficiency today at its Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Industry. Presented to outstanding leaders involved with the industrial sector, the awards recognize leadership and accomplishment in the energy efficiency field. Winners were selected based on demonstrated excellence in program implementation, leadership, research and development, energy policy, private sector initiatives, and international initiatives. The 2009 winners are:

• Canadian Industry Program for Energy Conservation (CIPEC). For leadership in building government–industry partnerships to promote energy efficiency in manufacturing. CIPEC is a voluntary partnership between the Government of Canada and industry that brings together industry associations and companies representing more than 98 percent of all industrial energy use in Canada. Since 1975, CIPEC has been helping companies cut costs and increase profits. The enduring government–business partnership aspect of this program has been singled out by ACEEE's Board as a compelling model that offers significant opportunities for emulation.
• Tom Casten. For career-long leadership in the energy efficiency field, and innovation in promoting the recovery of wasted industrial energy. Casten's leadership in distributed energy has spanned more than 30 years, encompassing both successful business ventures (including his most recent start-up Recycled Energy Development), and advocacy and leadership in the energy efficiency and distributed energy community including leadership roles at International District Energy Association, U.S. Clean Heat and Power Association, World Alliance for Distributed Energy, and ACEEE. ACEEE's Board recognizes him as perhaps the most viable and effective advocate for clean distributed energy for the past three decades.
• American Iron and Steel Association (AISI). For leadership in energy efficiency research in manufacturing and support for sustainable energy policies in manufacturing. AISI is the voice of the North American steel industry representing about three-quarters of the industry’s capacity. In addition to its role as the industry’s advocate, AISI has coordinated an industry-led decades-long research and development effort partnered with the U.S. Department of Energy’s Industrial Technology Program that has led to important technology advances that have allowed the steel industry to dramatically increase its use of scrap feedstock and reduce its energy intensity. AISI has also emerged as a leading voice for manufacturing energy efficiency research, helping to organize and lead the Alliance for Material Manufacturing Excellence (AMMEX). ACEEE recognizes both the implemented results of AISI’s research effort and its leadership in expanding manufacturing research and development.

The 2009 “Champions” were nominated by their peers and selected by the Awards Committee of ACEEE’s Board of Directors. ACEEE received 56 nominations for this year’s Champions of Energy Efficiency in Industry Award. Selection criteria were based on the nominee’s impact, innovation, and leadership in the energy efficiency field. Read more about past years' awards.