CLEVELAND, Ohio — Garland Industries, Inc. has been named a Silver ESOP Award winner by The ESOP Association for their work in sustaining their ESOP for more than 25 years. In the last two decades, Garland has become one of the most successful employee-owned companies in North America and is one of 49 corporate members of the Association to be honored in 2012 with a Silver ESOP Award.

“Our success is directly attributed to our employee owners who continuously go that extra mile for our customers, ensuring the continued growth and success of Garland. Wehave always believed that the only way to build lasting success is to help our customers succeed,” commented David Sokol, president of Garland Industries, Inc.

As a Silver ESOP Award recipient, Garland was recognized at The ESOP Association’s Annual Conference held in Washington, D.C. earlier this year. To be named a SilverESOP Award winner, a company must be a member of The ESOP Association and have an ESOP in place for 25 years or more. This is the fifth year the Silver ESOP Awards have been presented by the Association.

“We believe strongly in the power of employee ownership and are pleased to have not only our company but our employees recognized for their efforts,” said Charles Ripepi, Garland’s chief financial officer.

The ESOP Association is the national trade association for companies with employee stock ownership plans and the leading voice in America for employee ownership. The core cause of the ESOP Association is the belief that employee ownership will improve American competitiveness, increase productivity through greater employee participation, and strengthen our free enterprise economy.

For more information, visit www.garlandco.com.