Aurora Specialty Textiles Group Wins Awards for Operational Excellence, Innovation and Continual Improvement

(Yorkville, Illinois, USA, May 5, 2021) For the second year in a row, Aurora Specialty Textiles Group has won awards for outstanding business and manufacturing practices from the Valley Industrial Association (VIA), which represents the manufacturing industry in the Fox Valley region of Illinois, a large industrial hub outside Chicago and a major Midwest manufacturing region.

This includes winning the award for Operational Excellence for the second year in a row for a company with 51 to 250 employees. VIA’s Excellence in Operations Award recognizes leadership in operational strategic planning and implementation.

The awards were announced April 28, 2021, at the annual VIA Spark Awards Benchmarking for Excellence celebration. In addition to Operational Excellence, Aurora won the awards for Innovation for a company of 51 to 250 employees and for Overall Most Improved.

The Innovation award recognizes companies that cultivate a culture of innovation and have an innovation process to engage employees, capture ideas, provide benefits for customers, as well as drive business initiatives.

Overall Most Improved celebrates continual improvement year after year in the areas of Safety, Workforce Development, Innovation, Culture, Operational Excellence and Social Responsibility. Aurora was most improved out of all of the companies, of all sizes, that vied for this award.

Aurora was also a finalist in the category for Social Responsibility, which reflects the company’s continual improvements and contributions in the areas of sustainability and corporate social responsibility.

“Even during a year of immense and unprecedented challenges, we managed to make improvements in Social Responsibility, Innovation, Operational Excellence, Safety, Culture and Workforce Development,” said Marcia Ayala, president of the company.

“The awards speak to the great employees we have at Aurora and our continuous focus on improvement,” she added. “The awards also demonstrate a consistent effort and focus throughout the Aurora organization. Thanks to all Aurora employees! I am very proud and appreciative.”

The awards announced April 28 are just the latest in a long list of accolades that Aurora has earned. In 2019 Aurora was recognized by the Sign Graphics Industry Association (SGIA) for excellence in implementing sustainability practices throughout their Yorkville plant. In 2019, Aurora was also recognized for its sustainability programs by the Yorkville Chamber of Commerce, which designated Aurora as a Green Connect business. In February of 2020, Aurora was the recipient of the Yorkville Chamber of Commerce annual Green Business of the Year award. And in 2020, Aurora won the VIA’s award for Operational Excellence.

“We look forward to the VIA benchmark results every year to evaluate how we compare to our peers and to help us define plans that address areas of improvement,” Ayala added. “A great deal can be learned about your business’ competitiveness through organizations, such as the VIA, which provides a wide range of resources for manufacturers related to learning best practices and sharing opportunities for improvement. Thanks to the VIA and to Aurora’s employees for making this possible.”

Aurora Specialty Textiles Group, Inc. is a global leader in coating, dyeing and finishing of both woven and non-woven fabrics. Based in Yorkville, Illinois, USA, the company has a 137-year tradition of innovation and in 2015 invested in a new state-of-the-art, wide-width coating and finishing line and a new facility that dramatically expanded their ability to serve customers. Products include digitally-printable textiles, specialty home products, tape-backing products, military textiles and technical textiles for a wide variety of industries. Aurora Specialty Textiles Group, Inc., is a Meridian Industries, Inc. company and ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 certified. Aurora is also an industry leader with regard to sustainable manufacturing practices and operational excellence. Aurora was a recipient of SGIA’s Sustainable Business Recognition Award in 2019 and the VIA Spark Award for Operational Excellence in 2020.

You can learn more about Aurora Specialty Textiles Group:

Online at www.auroratextile.com

On LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/aurora-specialty-textiles-group-inc-

Press Contact:
Glenna Musante
+1-919-604-7213

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