Unifrax Celebrates Seven Outstanding 2019 Core Values Role Models

March 8, 2019

The team from Unifrax ended this year’s 2019 Global Leadership Conference by celebrating during the first ever Unifrax Core Values Role Model Awards Celebration.   The night was dedicated to seven individuals who are visible role models who live the Unifrax Core Values on a daily basis.   Unifrax reintroduced their core values across the global company of 2,500+ employees worldwide in 2017.

“This night is all about these seven people who practice our values everyday,” said John Dandolph, President and CEO of Unifrax.  “We believe when the Core Values are part of all we do, we will achieve extraordinary results and have a positive impact on the whole organization. If we could all pause and look at these individuals and follow their example, imagine the company we will be,” said Dandolph.

Chosen from more than 55+ nominations from every country in the world, the winners honored were:

Joy Ye, Finance and HR Manager:   Joy joined Unifrax in 2005 as an accountant and has taken on progressively higher roles within the organization during her tenure. Joy was the first Chinese employee when she joined in 2005! She was promoted to her current role of Finance and HR Manager in 2010. Joy feels that Unifrax has given her a number of great opportunities to grow both personally and professionally in her 13 year career here. A Fun Fact about Joy is that she loves to sing in her spare time.

Mike Rivera, Line Operator, Tonawanda Pirson Manufacturing:  Mike joined Unifrax in 2018 at our Pirson Plant in Tonawanda as a Line Operator. Mike has over 12 years of manufacturing experience as a machine operator, mostly in die cutting and more recently as a multi-station coater.  Today, his responsibilities include preparing solution for spinning and working with the team to ensure the systems are working together to produce a quality product. When Mike is not working, he enjoys spending time and traveling with his family.

Suhas Patil, TM Commercial Leader, India:  Suhas started at RSI and SCI in 1992, and formally joined Unifrax when the businesses’ strategic partnership culminated with Unifrax purchasing both businesses. Suhas began his career in the field of Vacuum-forming in India in the early 1980s. After graduating and gaining valuable experience at Fireline, Inc. and Ferro Corporation, he joined RSI and SCI. Post acquisition, Suhas became Sales Manager for the Vacuum-Forming Business Unit of Unifrax. Last year, he accepted additional responsibility to be the Commercial Leader of Thermal Management for India Region. He has a B. S. in Chemical Engineering from Nagpur University (India) and MS in Chemical Engineering from Michigan Technological University.

Suhas was also recognized as this year’s prestigious Unifrax President’s Award recipient.  The President’s Award is given to the Unifrax employee who demonstrates the values in every facet of their lives in addition to positively impacting business growth and demonstrating outstanding business performance.

Bernadette Vinello, HR Manager, South Africa:  Bernadette joined Unifrax in 2006 as a Creditors Clerk in our South Africa Office and has proceeded to take on larger roles in her 13 year tenure with the Company. Bernadette is currently an HR Manager and has been in the role for 8 years. She loves working at Unifrax and the challenges of the plant environment and a global company. She completed her Bachelors Degree in HRM  in 2018  with 2 distinctions while working full-time and with the support of her family. She is  currently pursuing her MBA. Bernadette is married and has the best, most thoughtful 13 year old son Matthew. She is also the proud owner of 3 Jack Russel’s (one being a rescue dog), and is a very passionate fur mom as well.

Ranjit  Malli, FP&A Finance Manager (CHQ):  Ranjit joined Unifrax in 2011 as a Financial Analyst when Unifrax was still headquartered in Niagara Falls, NY. Ranjit is currently the FP&A Manager- Sales and Marketing for the EMT group. He has had the opportunity to hold a number of positions within the Company during his more than 7 years at Unifrax, including a number of project roles. Unifrax has become his family and friends in America. A fun fact about Ranjit is that he speaks a language without a script!

Daryl Clendenen, Operations Manager Ohio:  Daryl joined Unifrax in 2015 as Operations Manager for Ohio and has worked to bring the individual plants together as a team. Daryl began his career with Saint Gobain as a Process Engineer. He then spent nearly 25 years at Monofrax in Falconer, New York in a variety of positions, including global sales and a GM role. Daryl has a Bachelors degree in Ceramic Engineering from Alfred University. His wife Michele is a chemist at Tinken Steel.  They have one son, Connor who is currently at the University of Washington in Seattle pursuing his Masters degree.

Deb Myers, Director, Global Integrated Marketing Communications (CHQ):  Deb joined Unifrax initially in 1990, and then returned to the Company in 2017 for a total of 12 years contributing to the evolution of our marketing. Deb has worked in a marketing communication role for over 30 years.  She started out in advertising in Buffalo, and later joined Carborundum in 1990 working for the Fibers Division, Monofrax and Structural Ceramics.  She left Unifrax in 1999 to work with IBM.  She returned to Unifrax in 2017 with a breadth of skills in digital technology to lead the digital transformation of our marketing communication process.  She also worked on the original creation, design and launch campaign of the Unifrax name back in 1996.

Unifrax would like to congratulate and commend all of our 2019 nominees:

Margarita Wihelm– Germany/ KRD

Ken Miller- Corporate HQ

Ian Kilbride– South Africa

Mark Woodward- Rainford

Fernando Biasetti– Brazil

Andrea Skopcova– Teplice

Rodrigo Ferreira- Brazil

Jack McGrady– United Kingdom

Rogerio Gaspar- Brazil

Robert Greiner- Lauscha Germany

Rafael Rosalem– Brazil

Paul Scully- Corporate HQ

Erison Cassoli– Brazil

Marcus Hopping- Lauscha Germany

Kathrin Heinike– Germany/KRD

Gustavo Russo- Brazil

Giovanna Tevola Alves- Brazil

David Bestak– Teplice

Tom Lacki– Corporate HQ

Christopher McPhillips- Corporate HQ

Ceasar Alves- Brazil

Tobias Kleditzsch– Germany/KRD

Rafael Rosalem– Brazil

Daniel Kiss- Brazil

Alice Mason- France/Lorette

Radek Havlik– Teplice

Jiri Slach– Teplice

Pierre Charreyre– France/ Lorette

Olivier Cussonet– France/Ambert

Fredric Paret– France/Lorette

Ceasar Alves- Brazil

Tobias Kleditzsch– Germany/KRD

Rafael Rosalem– Brazil

Daniel Kiss- Brazil

Alice Mason- France/Lorette

Radek Havlik– Teplice

Jiri Slach– Teplice

Pierre Charreyre– France/ Lorette

Olivier Cussonet– France/Ambert

Fredric Paret– France/Lorette

Christiane Meyrieux– France/Lorette

Vera Brozkova– Teplice

Sylvie Mathevet– France/Ambert

Azziz Boutida– France/Lorette

Gerson Ferreira- Brazil

Neil Knapman– Rainford

Steffen Knoth– Lauscha Germany

Rob Campbell- US

Caterina Berg- Lauscha Germany

The Nine Unifrax Core Values
Workplace and Product Safety – Our #1 Priority
Ethics – We always do things the right way. No compromises.
People – We value and respect every employee and strive to help them achieve their personal and professional goals.
Meet our Commitments – We deliver on our promises to Employees, Customers, and our Investors. We set challenging goals and overcome obstacles to achieve results.
Customer Focus – We value long term relationships and put the customer’s perspective at the center of our discussions and decisions.
Innovation – We develop new and improved products that create value for our customers.
Continuous Improvement – We reduce waste, cost and complexity.
Teamwork – We collaborate globally to maximize results.
Speed and Agility – We quickly respond to opportunities and challenges.