MACNY honorees share visions, philanthropic pursuits

CNY Business Journal (1996+), Apr 27, 2007 by Palmateer, Paige

SYRACUSE - Chester Amond, Ronald Ruzic, and Milt Stevenson, Sr. - this year's Manufacturers Association of Central New York (MACNY) Wall of Fame nominees - each have storied histories in the area's manufacturing industry.

According to MACNY, each nominee is required to be a top officer of a manufacturing firm, a contributor to the region's economic vitality, an innovator in management, and a philanthropic contributor.

Chester Amond

Chester Amond received his undergraduate degree in education at Kent State University and taught school before deciding to join the Reliance Electric Co. which manufactured electric motors - in his hometown of Ashtabula, Ohio.

"I started in industrial engineering and moved into management," Amond says.

After taking positions as assistant plant manager with the Veeder-Root Co. in Altoona, Pa. and corporate staff executive with ITT in Manhattan, Amond joined Lyncourtbased Syracuse China in 1972.

"My initial interview was with Bob Tiese, who became CEO right after Canadian Pacific bought Syracuse China," Amond says.

"He wanted someone without a history in the ceramic industry."

Amond says he "...took the art away and put science in," the processes at Syracuse China. During his 19 years with the company - serving as president of the Will and Baumer Division; president, CEO, and chairman of Syracuse China; and president, chairman, and CEO of Canadian Pacific Inc. Amond improved information processes.

"When I was with Reliance, I started as an engineer, modernizing the paper systems," Amond says. "Part of my management philosophy over the years is the company that manages its information the best, will be the best."

A self-proclaimed computer nut, Amond also strongly feels that a leader should give back to the community he lives in.

Among his numerous accomplishments, Amond is a past board member of MACNY, the Metropolitan Development Association of Syracuse and Central New York (MDA), and the Greater Syracuse Chamber of Commerce, past trustee and chairman of the Everson Museum of Art, and 1983 recipient of the Music Man of the Year award from the Syracuse Symphony Guild.

Amond also worked with the Rescue Mission for over 30 years, organizing one of its first capital drives in Syracuse. He also served as director of the Soap Box Derby, a national race held in Akron, Ohio.

"Once I get involved, I don't go halfway," Amond says. "Time is way too important."

Ronald Ruzic

Ronald Ruzic - past group president of BorgWarner Morse TEC Corporation - shares Amond's interest in community involvement.

Ruzic served as board member of the Community Arts Partnership, Guilford Mills Inc., Citation Corporation, and Leadership Tompkins-a leadership-development program offered by the Tompkins County Chamber of Commerce.

Ruzic also supported Ithaca College, Cayuga Medical Center, and Tompkins Cortland Community College through Morse TEC's philanthropy program.

After receiving his engineering degree from the United States Merchant Marine Academy, Ruzic worked for IBM in Kingston, N.Y. and built aircraft on Long Island in his spare time.

A friend working for Morse TEC - a corporation specializing in automotives, chemicals, and plastics - begged Ruzic to join the company, which he did in 1968 as a senior manufacturing engineer. Ruzic rose through the ranks, becoming vice president of Morse TEC's Ithaca operations in 1983, president of Morse TEC in 1989, and BorgWarner Inc. Group president in 1999, before retiring in 2004.

During his years with Morse TEC, Ruzic oversaw great changes at the company - restructuring into a private company in 1987, going public again in 1993, and acquiring the BW Turbo System Unit in 1999.

Today, Morse TEC is part of BorgWarner, Inc., a Detroitbased automotive-parts company with more than 43 locations in 14 countries worldwide.

BorgWarner (NYSE: BWA) generates over $4.5 billion in annual revenue, compared to just under $1 billion 12 to 15 years ago.

Ruzic says the key to the revenue growth was the company's return to its roots as an automotive business.

"We were a very large and diversified corporation in the 1980s," Ruzic explains. "However, the stock was not performing as expected and management took a leveraged buyout, selling off the aircraft, chemical, and industrial divisions of the company."

Currently, Ruzic lives in Hilton Head, S.C. He is an avid golfer - working hard to fix his slice.

Milt Stevenson, Sr.

During his free time, Milt Stevenson, Sr. enjoys traveling to his cottage on Charleston Lake in Ontario, Canada. He also enjoys everything to do with Syracuse University (SU), from the athletic department to the engineering department.

"My wife and I met at the university and we enjoy going to the lectures, and the awards programs, and just seeing the things that the students do," Stevenson says.

Stevenson is a staunch supporter of SU and serves as a member of the board of trustees. He is also active with the MDA, the United Way of Central New York, the-American Heart Walk, and the Syracuse Symphony Orchestra.