VALDOSTA — Saft, a battery manufacturing company, was recognized by the city and county for being Supplier of the Year for The Boeing Company.

A factory floor full of Saft employees were present as Mayor John Gayle and County Chairman Bill Slaughter presented a proclamation declaring Thursday, June 13, “Saft Day.”

In the proclamation, the city and county officials recognized multiple employees who have been with the Valdosta branch for more than 43 years ago. 

Linda Sirmans and Sandy Sadler are both employees who were recognized in the proclamation. Both agreed that Saft is the best company to work for.

Sirmans and Sadler said they felt honored being mentioned by the city and county officials and were happy to put their life’s work into the company.

Sadler said she started working at the company located at 711 Gil Harbin Industrial Blvd. when she was 18 years old.

“They’re a great company, and they make you feel great to come to work every day,” Sadler said.

Saft employs more than 233 people in the city, and more than 50 percent of its employees have been at the company for more than 10 years.

During the proclamation, Gayle said Saft represents an elite group of more than 12,000 active Boeing suppliers in 57 countries around the world. It provides batteries to Boeing and Boeing Global Services through Aviall.

All Boeing batteries supplied by Saft are manufactured in Valdosta, and it has been a vital business and community partner in Valdosta and Lowndes County since 1975, officials said.

Slaughter said their selection for this award was based on stringent performance criteria for quality performance, delivery performance, cost, environment initiatives, customer service and technical expertise, the proclamation states.

Suppliers who receive the award provide competitive advantage by exceeding cost performance goals and objectives for the product.

Kirk Rosenlund, Saft site general manager, said winning the award means Valdosta’s site is the best out of the 12,000 other sites.

“It’s the biggest award we’ve ever received in this facility,” Rosenlund said. “We really pull together as a team.”

Thomas Lynn is a government and education reporter for The Valdosta Daily Times. He can be reached at (229)244-3400 ext. 1256