Personnel Notes

In memoriam: Seymour Padnos

Seymour Padnos died at his home in Holland, Michigan, at the age of 99 July 9. At the time of his death, he was chair emeritus of Padnos, a scrap recycling company headquartered in Holland with multiple locations in Michigan and one in Indiana.

From a young age, Seymour Padnos worked in his parent’s recycling business, which today is named Padnos. He went on to serve the company as CEO and later as chairman for more than 60 years. Serving as chair emeritus until his death, he held the Padnos company near to his heart and remained engaged with the fine details to the very end, according to an announcement about his death issued by the company. Often when he was asked what kept him going, he would respond, “The company.”

For many years during his tenure at Padnos, he served as chairman of various national committees and was a board member of the Institute of Scrap Iron & Steel, the predecessor of the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI), Washington. Along with his brother Stuart Padnos, Seymour Padnos expanded the family company, which has gone on to welcome the third and fourth generations of family members to the business.

“Seymour Padnos was a man of vision and saw possibility where others saw obstacles,” the announcement states. “He led the effort to establish Holland as a commercial shipping harbor back in the 1940s, sought to expand the company’s operations to work with European and Asian customers during the 1960s and ’70s and initiated a national competition focused on product design for recyclability long before the concept was popular,” the announcement continues.

Seymour Padnos received many honors and awards during his lifetime, including a Lifetime Achievement Award from ISRI in 2014. He also received an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Grand Valley State University (GVSU), Grand Rapids, Michigan.

In the 1950s, he and Stuart Padnos established the Louis and Helen Padnos Foundation to honor their parents by giving back to the community.

Additionally, with his wife, he established the Esther and Seymour Padnos Foundation and was an early supporter of local institutions of higher education, which led to their donation to create the Padnos College of Engineering and Computing and the Padnos Hall of Science at GVSU.

Industrial Magnetics Inc. appoints regional manager

Boyne City, Michigan-based Industrial Magnetics Inc. (IMI), a manufacturer of magnetic products and systems for industrial applications, has announced the appointment of Aaron Evans as regional manager for the company’s western U.S. territory, which includes Arizona, Utah, central and Southern California and southern Nevada.

According to IMI, Evans has an extensive background in industrial distribution, including 15 years as an account manager with Kaman Distribution. He also has held management positions at various hydraulic and power transmission distributors and completed a number of factory trainings and certifications with companies such as Baldor Electric Motor, Timken Bearings and Drives Chain and The Belting Association.

“Until Aaron came on board, we had mostly managed the western USA from our [headquarters] in Michigan,” says Dennis O’Leary, chief business development officer at IMI. “We’re excited that our customers and channel partners there can now enjoy the benefit of face-to-face interaction with an IMI regional manager.

“We believe it’s what sets us apart from many other manufacturers in our space: an in-field regional manager working in concert with everyone in the chain to effectively deliver unique solutions,” O’Leary adds.

IMI designs and manufactures permanent magnetic and electromagnetic devices to meet its customers’ specific requirements in magnetic separation, material handling, work-holding and automated or robotic applications.

Call2Recycle president to retire

Carl Smith, president and CEO of Atlanta-based Call2Recycle, has announced plans to retire in 2021. Call2Recycle is a battery-manufacturer-led national stewardship organization.

Smith has served with Call2Recycle for 10 years.

“We look forward to celebrating Carl’s significant contributions to Call2Recycle and appreciate his ongoing stewardship while the board embarks on a national search to identify his successor,” Call2Recycle says of Smith’s retirement.

Call2Recycle’s board of directors has retained Koya Leadership Partners, an executive search firm, to lead the national recruitment for Call2Recycle’s next CEO and president. Individuals interested in the position can contact the Koya team at call2recycle@koyapartners.com.