Robert A. Curry Sr., President, Chief Executive Officer and Director of California Cartage Company, an industry leader in trucking, warehousing and deconsolidation, has been selected to receive the 2014 Connie Award to be presented on the West Coast by the Containerization & Intermodal Institute (CII).
The industry-wide dinner event honoring Mr. Curry will be held on Tuesday, September 23, in conjunction with the annual meeting of the Intermodal Association of North America (IANA) at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Long Beach, Calif.
In addition, CII will present its Lifetime Achievement Award to Dr. Geraldine Knatz, immediate past Executive Director of the Port of Los Angeles.
Connie recipients are recognized with the prestigious award for significant influence on containerization in world trade and transportation and are honored for innovative spirit in their careers and at their respective companies, as well as for their positive influence on the industries they serve. Following a tour of duty in the Air Force in 1954, Bob Curry joined CalCartage, a family business founded by his father in 1944. His 60-year career with the company has seen phenomenal growth that coincided with the inauguration of containerization in cargo shipping.
California Cartage today own and operate eight logistics companies with a fleet 1,200 owner-operators and 3.5 million square feet of warehouse space. The operations are spread throughout nine states and Mexico. Mr. Curry embraced the Clean Truck Program of the Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles, choosing in his words to become part of the solution. His companies now use over 700 clean trucks driven by independent owner operators. He has clean diesel, LNG, and CNG natural gas vehicles in the fleet and is planning on testing battery-operated tractors. In 2010 the Long Beach Chamber of Commerce named Robert Curry "Entrepreneur of the Year" for his leadership and vision.
CII, founded in 1960, has been presenting the Connie Award since 1972 and it has become the most coveted honor in the field of containerization and its ancillary industries. Among some 40 recipients to date are John McLaurin, Richard Steinke, Matthew Cox, Rick Gabrielson, James McKenna, Paul F. Richardson, Robert McEllrath, Ronald Widdows, Jon Hemingway, Thomas B. Crowley Sr., Malcom McLean and Evergreen Group Chairman Dr. Y. F. Chang.
"Bob Curry was the odds-on favorite for this year's Connie," said Michael DiVirgilio, CII President. "His commitment to our business, his innovative spirit in running California Cartage and his oversight of California Cartage's remarkable growth and response to industry needs have made him a superb recipient. In addition, Dr. Knatz's superb leadership within North America's largest port district makes it an honor for us to honor her."
Besides her leadership at the Port of LA where she became first female executive director in January 2006, she previously served as the managing director of the neighboring Port of Long Beach. As the number two executive at the Port of Long Beach, she oversaw a $2.3 billion capital improvement program and spearheaded a number of environmental initiatives, including development of the Green Port Policy. Moving the Port of Los Angeles forward with an agenda that focuses on responsible Port growth and environmental leadership is an aggressive goal that Dr. Knatz tackled from day one. She retired from LA in 2014 and returned to the school where she earned two doctorate degrees, the University of Southern California, as a professor. She is also immediate past chairman of the International Association of Ports and Harbors.
At the Connie Award event, CII will also carry out its industry education mission by presenting scholarships to students studying logistics. Any company can sponsor a named scholarship through CII, which has had more than half a million dollars given for higher education under its auspices since 1992.
The Connie Award Dinner in California is being held in conjunction with IANA's EXPO for the first time. EXPO is the must-attend North American intermodal supply chain event. It is where the industry's products and services are showcased and the industry's issues and challenges are examined.
The CII Connie Awards dinner is $225 per ticket and seating is limited. Sponsorships for event, scholarship opportunities and tickets are available. For more information, contact Barbara Yeninas, executive director at (732) 817-9131 or [email protected]. Reservations can also be made by IANA attendees through IANA.
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