LISLE, Illinois – Quality Chekd Dairies announced the selection of Hiland Dairy Foods Company (Springfield, MO) as a finalist for the 2014 Irving B. Weber Distinguished Award for Quality Excellence. Named for Quality Chekd’s first board president, the invitation-only Weber Award is modeled after the esteemed Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award from the U.S. Department of Commerce.
“Management and the employees of Hiland Dairy are all dedicated to the continued success of our business,” said Ted Barlows, general sales manager. “It is an honor to be named a finalist for the prestigious Weber award as it symbolizes the hard work of everyone at Hiland Dairy.”
The Irving B. Weber Award recognizes those member dairies that have earned the highest annual scores from Quality Chekd in the areas of production quality, business ethics and leadership, customer satisfaction, marketing communications and staff development. Quality Chekd, a member-owned organization of independent dairy processors, will announce the winner at its 2014 QCS Leadership Conference being held April 27–April 30 at the Omni Hotel and Resort in Nashville, Tennessee.
Peter Horvath, president of Quality Chekd states that “To our members, this award is like winning a gold medal at the Olympics as it signifies the highest levels of performance. We congratulate Hiland Dairy on this noteworthy achievement.”
To be eligible for the Irving B. Weber Award, Quality Chekd member dairies must surpass requirements in each of the following categories: leadership and commitment to total quality improvement; human resource development and management; facility improvement projects; customer and employee satisfaction programs; inventory efficiencies and loss control programs; and outstanding plant sanitation.
Alqueria Dairy (Bogota, Colombia) and Umpqua Dairy Products Company (Roseburg, OR) are also being recognized as finalists for the Weber Award.
Source: Hiland Dairy Foods Co.