Pittsburgh, PA November 11, 2008 – The Better Business Bureau today announced the winners of the 2008 Torch Award for Marketplace Ethics. The businesses selected to receive this year's prestigious award are: AquaGuard Systems Inc., Pittsburgh, PA; Energy Swing Windows, Inc., Murrysville, PA; and NexTier Bank, Butler, PA.
There were two companies who received runner-up distinction: “A Better Choice” Inc., North Huntingdon, PA and Burns & Scalo, Inc., Pittsburgh, PA.
The Bureau, founded with a mission to see that all share in the opportunity of a fair and equitable marketplace, established this annual awards program to gain public recognition for local businesses that maintain a solid commitment to conducting their business practices in an ethical fashion.
"These companies were selected by an independent panel for their exceptional conduct in the marketplace," said Warren King, president Better Business Bureau. "Each winning company clearly demonstrates superior character on a daily basis and consistently exceeds marketplace standards for ethics in its relationships with customers, employees, suppliers, industry peers and the communities in which it does business.”
About the Winners:
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AquaGuard Systems, Inc. AquaGuard Systems, Inc. was founded in 1991. Tom Gallagher is the President and has been involved in the basement waterproofing and foundation repair industry for 21 years. AquaGuard has been a leader in the waterproofing industry and has developed into one of the area’s most highly regarded full-scale residential and commercial foundation repair and renovation companies.
“We are truly honored and humbled to have received the 2008 Torch Award for Marketplace Ethics. To receive this award validates our commitment to providing superior customer service. It is a privilege for us to be invited into a customer’s home. We are representatives of the community and with that privilege comes responsibility to conduct oneself with the highest ethical standards. These behaviors include, but are not limited to, treating customers the way you would want to be treated, giving customers a fair and honest price for work to be performed, and providing quality workmanship. These tenets are the three most important rules governing our business practices,” states Tom Gallagher.
Energy Swing Windows, Inc. The mission statement for
Energy Swing Windows is rooted in doing the right thing for their clients, employees, and the community alike. They are in business to improve the lives of their clients by working with them to solve their individual needs while providing them with high quality products. Their philosophy has remained constant during the last 12 years that Energy Swing Windows have been selling their unique products.
Mr. Darragh, co-owner of the company had this to say about winning the Torch Award:"The description of the qualities and guidelines that must be present in a company to be considered as a winner of the Torch Award is exactly the premise on which our company has rooted itself. Energy Swing Windows focuses more than 100 percent on customer relationships. We build our business one customer at a time, which is why 70% of our business comes from repeats and referrals. The fact that we have been recognized for all of the time and consideration we have put into this business makes it all worth it. We are absolutely thrilled to be a recipient of this award."
NexTier Bank
NexTier Bank has a rich history and tradition, and the safety, soundness and community involvement of NexTier have spanned more than 12 decades. Founded in 1878, NexTier is in its fourth generation of leadership by the Irvine family and its current leaders continue to carry out the mission of the bank’s founders. Today, S J. Irvine III is Chairman of the Board, Margaret Irvine Weir is President, and Donald Shamey is Chief Executive Officer. NexTier has 300 employees, 16 community offices, $500 million in assets, and serves the western Pennsylvania region with corporate offices in Butler and Wexford.
“When my great-grandfather founded the bank 130 years ago, we were known as
the Bank Built on a Handshake. I’m extremely proud that we’ve received this award
so many decades later since it means we’ve upheld our original values of integrity and honorable business practices. It also means that our customers, communities, associates and vendors can count on us as much today and tomorrow as they have in the past,” states Margaret Irvine Weir, President of NexTier Bank.
About the Runners-up:
“A Better Choice” Inc. “A Better Choice” Inc. is a family owned corporation and has been conducting business in Western Pennsylvania, Ohio, New York and West Virginia since 1997. They specialize in Basement Waterproofing, Foundation Repair, Game Room Finishing Systems and exclusive PG2K custom coatings.
“One Team, One Direction is our company motto,” states Richard Pack, President of “A Better Choice” Inc. “We all work together to satisfy our customers requests, needs, and many times, strong demands. We take great pride in our quality of workmanship and customer satisfaction. We are honored to be selected by the BBB and judges for the prestigious honor of Runner Up for the 2008 Torch Award for Marketplace Ethics and pledge to continue ethical behavior to our trusted customers.”
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Burns & Scalo
The
Burns & Scalo partnership began over five decades ago in 1956, when John T. Scalo and Richard “Duke” Burns shared a common vision: to be the very best at whatever they did. Beginning as a two-man residential roofing company, Burns & Scalo quickly grew into a successful operation comprised of several employees and an expanding fleet of vehicles and equipment.
As the company prospered, the partners began to invest in real estate beginning with small, single-and-double-unit apartment buildings. Realizing the potential growth of both the roofing business and real estate enterprise, two distinct corporate entities were formed: Burns & Scalo Roofing Company and Burns & Scalo Real Estate Services. In 2006, coinciding with the company’s 50th anniversary, Burns & Scalo launched a highly successful co-branding initiative bringing the two companies under one brand.
“Burns & Scalo is honored to receive the Torch Award from the Better Business Bureau. It is a distinct privilege to be acknowledged for this prestigious award and our hope to continue to live up to high standards which the Better Business Bureau represents,” said Jack and Jim Scalo.
About the BBB Torch Awards for Marketplace Ethics:
The panel of judges for the 2008 BBB Torch Awards was:
• Dr. Faith Bjalobok received her BA from Chatham College, a MA in Criminology from IUP, and a MA and Ph.D. in Philosophy from Duquesne. She is Fellow of Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics. She is an adjunct professor of philosophy at Duquesne and also teaches at Chatham University, Waynesburg University and West Virginia University specializing in ethics and applied ethics.
• Dr. Virginia Gerde is an Associate Professor at Duquesne University who teaches business ethics, strategy and sustainability, and information ethics at the undergraduate and graduate level. As the new Director of the Beard Center for Leadership in Ethics, she supports ethics in the business school curriculum and programs promoting integrity and ethics for the business community. She received her Ph.D. from Virginia Tech in Management and has published research in Business & Society, Business Strategy and the Environment, and Journal of Business Ethics. Her research examines environmental issues, corporate performance, and organization theory.
• Dr. Jim Weber is currently a Professor of Business Ethics and Management and the Senior Fellow and past Director of the Beard Center for Leadership in Ethics at Duquesne University. He received his Ph.D. in Business Administration from the University of Pittsburgh and M.B.A. from Saint Louis University. With the Beard Center, Dr. Weber is involved in developing ethics training seminars for business and community organizations and forums for discussions of critical ethical issues in business. His research interests include the assessment of values, moral reasoning and ethical behavior on both the individual and organizational levels. He has published numerous manuscripts in various management and business ethics journals and is the co-author of 12th edition of Business and Society: Stakeholders, Ethics, Public Policy.
The BBB Torch Award program is open to all for-profit companies (accredited and non-accredited businesses) who are located in the 28 county service area of Western Pennsylvania. Companies were evaluated against criteria that included commitment to and demonstration of ethical practices in the marketplace; high standards of behavior toward customers, employees, suppliers, shareholders and the communities in which they do business; long-term value of ethics policies to shareholders, customers and employees; and training and communications programs to assist employees in carrying out established ethics policies.
For more information on the 2008 BBB Torch Awards, visit the BBB website.
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About the BBB
BBB is an unbiased organization that sets and upholds high standards for fair and honest business behavior. Businesses that earn BBB accreditation contractually agree and adhere to the organization’s high standards of ethical business behavior. BBB provides objective advice, free business BBB Reliability ReportsTM and charity BBB Wise Giving ReportsTM, and educational information on topics affecting marketplace trust. To further promote trust, BBB also offers complaint and dispute resolution support for consumers and businesses when there is difference in viewpoints. The first BBB was founded in 1912. Today, 128 BBBs serve communities across the U.S. and Canada, evaluating and monitoring more than 3 million local and national businesses and charities. Please visit
www.bbb.org for more information about the BBB.
