12/6/21 – Madison, Connecticut, USA. – Robert “Bob” Xeller announced his retirement as a full-time employee as of the end of December, completing a career that traces back to his IBM days when he came to learn about the Association. He plans to continue on a limited basis that will end after the staging of Wire Expo 2022 next June in Dallas, Texas.

Xeller started with “Big Blue” after completing his degree in business administration at Wittenberg University in 1970. His career went in a different direction, but he moonlighted evenings with several prior IBM accounts supporting software changes of new installations. One client was the Association. Prior to this, all member/subscribers were handled through a service bureau and 80 column card maintenance. In 1987, then Executive Director Monk Munger asked him to help service the trade shows organized on the new computer systems.
Xeller became part of the Association’s trade events, helping organize the Interwire and Wire Expo trade shows. He became director of sales in 2001, and was a fixture at the event on the show floor.

Michael Webb, who as an account executive at Shepard Exposition Services worked with Xeller on Interwire events the past 20 years, said that it had been a privilege to do so. “I can honestly say he was one of my closest and most trusted friends. I will miss talking to him several times a week. Sometimes it was strictly work, but other times it was about family, household projects, vacations and whatever else what was going on. I wish him the best.”

Dane Armendariz, the WAI president in 2010, recalled that he first met Xeller attending his first Interwire long, long ago. “After sitting in on a committee meeting, I was wandering the streets of Atlanta and ran into Bob Xeller. He invited me to join him and the staff for dinner and a very long friendship began. He saved me that day from a dinner alone at McDonald’s.”
Armendariz said that he never saw Bob rattled. When a problem or issue came up, his reply was “We will take care of it,” and he would. “While we all know life and business move on, Bob’s knowledge, experience, and people skills will be hard if not impossible to replace. The good thing is he will always just be a phone call away. All the best, my friend.”

Xeller said that he treasures his years with the Association but looks forward to spending more time with family, which includes his wife of 50 years, Kathleen, their seven children and their spouses, and 15 grandchildren.

12/6/21 – Madison, Connecticut, USA. – Sales Manager Shannon Timme will replace departing Sales Director Xeller, who at year’s end will assume a reduced role and retire after Wire Expo 2022 next June.

Timme will be taking on new duties that will see her ensuring that the Association’s Interwire and Wire Expo trade shows continue to be quality events. She joined WAI as sales manager in October 2017, and during her time with the Association has been a very energetic presence, and not just in direct sales of ad space. She has crusaded for greater use of social media, cross-marketing, further improvements to wirenet.org, starting a WAI newsletter, supporting sponsorships, broadening the scope of the rate card, and more. She has also been very active as the WAI liaison to the WAI’s New England Chapter.

Prior to joining WAI, Timme worked for five years for Shore Publishing in Madison, Connecticut, where she was a senior multimedia specialist and a strategic advertising account manager. She has a daughter, Blair, who is in college, and a son, Nolan, who is in high school.

11/8/21 – Madison, Connecticut, USA. – Looking back, John Accorsi—whose term as WAI Chapter president ends this month—believes that the year nearly completed has been successful. Despite the disruption caused by Covid-19 that prevented its annual dinner from being held at the beginning of the year, he observed that much was accomplished.

The chapter continued its educational mission by hosting a webinar on post-pandemic legal liabilities for employers. The scholarship program remained on track, providing a total of five scholarships to deserving students, with the possibility of adding a sixth next year. The 2021 golf tournament, held in early September, had larger attendance and more company sponsors than in 2020. The chapter also updated its bylaws to make governance clearer for future board members.

“It has been an honor to lead the New England Chapter in 2021, following in the footsteps of many other dedicated volunteers before me,” Accorsi said. He added that hopefully the news and conditions will continue to get better. “With the vaccine rollout now well underway, most members appear comfortable and eager to attend events on a regional level. Our Board of Directors continues to work on enhancing its member benefits and programs and is looking forward to the year ahead.”

The focus is now on the 2022 annual meeting, which is scheduled for Feb. 24 at the Mohegan Sun Casino, where the chapter’s new officers will be announced. The January 2022 issue will have more details.

12/6/21 – The Prysmian Group announced that it ranks first with 87 points in the ELQ Electrical Components & Equipments on the Dow Jones Sustainability World index, according to the result of the 2021 annual review conducted by S&P Global CSA.
A press release said that Prysmian is the only pure cable maker included in the sustainability index at global level that covers more than 5,300 companies. “Prysmian Group CEO Valerio Battista said that the designation “recognizes our commitment in constantly improve the sustainability of our operations, supply chain and organization. Sustainability is also integrated as a fundamental part of our business growth strategy. We are strongly committed to support the transition to renewable energy resources as well as to a digitalized and decarbonized world, by making available the most advanced cables and optical fiber technology for power grids and telecom networks.”
Prysmian achieved the best results (100 points) in the following categories: Innovation Management, Environmental Reporting, Social Reporting, Talent Attraction & Retention, Materiality, Risk & Crisis Management and Occupational Health & Safety. Prysmian Group’s targets for reducing emissions was also approved recently by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).
The company also reported that it has become the first company in the cables sector to join the Responsible Mica Initiative (RMI), a non-profit coalition working to eliminate child labor and poor working conditions in mica supply chains.
A press release said that joining RMI is part of Prysmian’s Social Ambition targets and its commitment to improving the lives of people in the communities and local areas where it operates. “Prysmian Group uses a limited amount of mica in its products, in relation to the sector in which we operate,” said Prysmian Group Chief Operating Officer Massimo Battaini. “Our membership in the Responsible Mica Initiative is a step forward in ensuring the sustainability of our supply chain.”

11/4/21 – This iconic WAI program will be offered on Wednesday, Dec. 1 and Dec. 8. Registration for the event is $145 for WAI members, $175 for the new member special offer and $245 for non-members. For a full description of the presenters, and any updates, go to funwiremfg.heysummit.com.