Staff report
The N.C. Association of County Commissioners has announced the winners of the 16th annual Ralph W. Ketner County Employees Productivity Awards, named for the Salisbury co-founder and chairman emeritus of Food Lion.
As head of Food Lion, Ketner gained a reputation for his innovative ways to lower prices and cut operational costs. He established and has financially supported the Productivity Awards program from the beginning.
Over its 16 years, the association’s awards program has identified 1,273 productivity improvements, representing a total savings of more than $96 million.
This year’s awards ceremony will be held at 8:30 a.m. Friday at the Crown Center in Fayetteville. Ketner has been invited to attend a Thursday night reception and the Friday awards program.
Here are the winners of the 2006-2007 awards, the counties they represent and the title of their improvements:
– Dale Meyer, Burke County, Workplace Safety & Risk Management.
– Chris Dobbins and team, Gaston County, Health Department Electronic Accreditation.
– Joe Will, Robert Peterson and Daniel Love, Gaston County, ACTION ’06 ó Automated Customer Tracking and Inventory Online Network.
– Cantina Lucas and team, Lee County, Customer Service 101 Training.
– Silvio Conte, Mecklenburg County, Residential Permits Tracking System.
– William D. Norris III, Onslow County, Soil and Water Service Improvement.
– Bess Hester-Whitt and team, Person County, “Be Well and Informed” ó County Wellness Program.
– Donnie Lee Dunkle, Rutherford County, Hydraulic Reconfiguration of Pan Electric System.
– Mark Burrows, Trish Hamilton and William Layton, Transylvania County, Retiree Resource Network Volunteers.
– Andy Davis, James Brown, Gary Strickland, Wilson County, Conversion of Surplus Ambulance into Service Truck.