ECOAT22 Brewer Award Winners Announced!

Dr. George E.F. Brewer is generally credited with the original idea of electrodeposition of paint through his work and research during the late 1950s at Ford Motor Company. By loaning his name to this prestigious award given during the ECOAT Conference, recipients stand out among the best in the field of electrocoating.

Additionally, The Electrocoat Association has created a new award, The Lifetime Achievement Award, for those who have dedicated most of their career to the electrocoating industry to present solutions to industry problems and create an environment of innovation for new participants to learn. This award will be nominated by the industry and the award presented at the ECOAT Conference in event years.

Finally, we honored one of our own. Anne Von Moll is retiring this year from her work at Gardner Business Media and has been a part of The Electrocoat Association since 1998. If you have ever attended ECOAT or been part of The Electrocoat Association, you’ve likely interfaced with Von Moll as she has worked on every ECOAT Conference since she started at Gardner Business Media. Von Moll was presented with a Service Award in recognition of her service to the Electrocoat Industry and The Electrocoat Association at ECOAT22.

The 2022 Brewer Award and Lifetime Achievement Award Winners were presented with their awards at ECOAT22 at the Omni ChampionsGate in Orlando, Florida on April 20^th. Please join us in congratulating this year’s winners!

Rex Krohn, John Deere – Market Promotion of Electrocoat Technology

Krohn is the Manager of Enterprise Facilities Services at Deere & Co. in Moline, IL. He leads the Paint Materials group responsible for innovation, specifications, standard processes, and qualification of paint and painters. Rex Krohn leads the Paint Process Engineering group, responsible for designing and constructing new and renovated paint systems. In 2020, he took on additional responsibility for the Enterprise Facilities Competencies – Electrical, Mechanical, Environmental, Civil, and Structural Engineering. He began his career with John Deere in 2000 and has held positions at the WWHQ, Harvester Works, Waterloo Works, and at the John Deere Engine Works. Prior to joining John Deere, he held multiple manufacturing and materials engineering positions in the paint/coatings industry.

Krohn holds a B.S. degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Illinois, an M.S. degree in Systems Engineering from Iowa State University, and an MBA from the University of Iowa. 

Gary Orosz, PPG – Application of Electrocoat Technology

Orosz has over 25 years of experience in the electrocoat industry, all with PPG. In his current role, he supports the successful integration of PPG’s electrocoat and pretreatment products into new and existing systems by providing process and design specifications, engineering reviews, cost justification models, pilot system design and testing, and training to end users of electrocoat. He served on the Board of Directors for The Electrocoat Association from 2014 to 2019 and remains an active participant in the Association.

Before joining PPG, Orosz graduated from The Pennsylvania State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering. He currently resides near Pittsburgh, PA with his wife and two children.

Chad Andreae, Therma-Tron-X Inc. – Development of Electrocoat Technology

Andreae holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering (BSME) from the Milwaukee School of Engineering (MSOE). He is a member of the Chemical Coaters Association (CCAI), The Electrocoat Association, and the Powder Coat Association (PCI).

He began his career as a Maintenance Engineer at Bemis Company in New London, WI, a manufacturer of flexible packaging materials. After leaving Bemis Company, he was hired as a Mechanical Engineer at Kimberly-Clark Corporation in Neenah, WI. In 2004, he left Kimberly-Clark and joined TTX as a Design Engineer. It did not take TTX management long to see that his knowledge and expertise were needed to usher the company into a new era of business. Since moving to Sales in 2010, TTX’s business has grown exponentially.

As V.P. of Sales, Andreae works with a small team of sales engineers to develop customized solutions for clients in need of complete paint finishing lines and water and wastewater treatment systems. He is an innovative designer, a tough negotiator, and a savvy communicator for TTX. Beyond sales, he takes his place with his father and brother leading TTX in daily operations throughout the company. As an industry leader, he enjoys giving technical presentations and holds multiple patents. He is a third-generation descendent of the over fifty-year-old family-owned business.

David Myers, Modine Manufacturing – Lifetime Achievement Award

David Myers began his career in the finishing industry in 1973 as a superintendent for an industrial contractor. He was introduced to electrocoating when installing a system for PPG Elcoat Systems. Myers was intrigued by the process and, when approached by PPG about joining the team as a Project Manager, he accepted. He worked closely with the PPG materials and product development teams to design and build complete electrocoat systems. PPG eventually sold the Elcoat Systems division and Myers returned to Tennessee to fabricate, install, and provide start-up and maintenance services for himself and several major finishing equipment suppliers.

After 15 years, Myers was invited by Mr. Lee Case at Elcoat Systems to assist in specifying and designing electrocoating systems and ancillary equipment. After another 3 years, Myers was approached by Milbank Systems to help them enter the electrocoating systems market. Myers accepted and remained at Milbank for approximately 10 years and left while in the position of Vice President of Operations.

While at Milbank, Myers was asked to develop an electrocoating system for AST to process very large HVAC and refrigeration heat exchangers. After the success of the first system, he was invited by AST Electrofin to help with a new facility and another full system. Myers joined the team and built their Texas facility and assumed responsibilities for the company’s coating systems design and management and the Site Manager of the Texas facility. Myers later became Director of Operations for the company and managed the building of two new electrocoating facilities in Ramos, Mexico, and San Vito, Italy. He also assisted with opening three spray-applied facilities – two on the west coast and one in Florida.

During Myer’s long career, he started attending the ECOAT Conference in 1984 and has continued to attend every conference since, and even was a recipient of the George E.F. Brewer award at the 2010 ECOAT Conference. In 1997, he was one of the Founding Members of The Electrocoat Association and has served on the Board of Directors since its founding and has held many Director positions, including President of The Association on three occasions.