Media Contacts
As a member of the press, you'll find helpful Composites One contacts and resources below:
National and Local Contacts
- Composites One Media Relations Contact
Marcy Offner, Marketing Communications Manager, 800-621-8003, x4805 or email moffner@compositesone.com
- E-mail us or call 800-621-8003 - for help with stories related to a national or corporate issue.
Composites One
85 W.Algonquin Rd, Suite 600.
Arlington Heights, IL 60005
Media Resources
Non-Media Members
Press Kit
You want relevant information about Composites One. We want to help you get it faster. No need to wade through a lot of pages - below you'll find quick links to material you can use.
Composites One Mission Statement
Composites One will be valued by our customers as the most dynamic, innovative and dependable supplier of composite materials.
The Composites One Profile
History
Composites One is a LLC jointly owned by Great Lakes Synergy Corporation (GLS) and Cook Composites & Polymers (CCP). The assets of RP Associates, Composites Materials, Inc and GLS Composites Distribution Corporation combined to form the leading composites distributor in North America. Composites One is headquartered in Arlington Heights, Illinois.
Facts & Figures
Composites One has 33 locations throughout North America.
It is estimated that Composites One has sales in excess of $500 million. The company employs over 450 people nationwide. It serves over 10,000 customers annually with a product line that offers nearly 2000 different items form the industry’s leading suppliers.
Memberships
- ACMA
- ICPA
- National Precast Concrete Assoiciation
- National Society of Trenchless Technology
Photos
Executive Biographies
Steve Dehmlow is the Chairman & CEO of Great Lakes Synergy Corporation and the CEO of Composites One LLC.
Steve Dehmlow has been Chairman and CEO of Great Lakes Synergy Corporation (formerly known as GLS Corporation), a privately-held company headquartered in suburban Chicago, since 1996 and has been CEO of Composites One LLC since 1999. Great Lakes Synergy operates three separate businesses involved in plastics and chemicals.
In 1999, Mr. Dehmlow engineered the formation of Composites One LLC, a joint venture owned by Great Lakes Synergy and Cook Composites & Polymers. Created through the merger of 3 distribution companies in 1999 and expanded through four additional acquisitions, Composites One has 33 stocking locations and 4 public warehouses supplying composites materials to 10,000 customers who manufacture fiberglass reinforced plastics and composites for marine, consumer recreation, corrosion resistance, defense and transportation applications.
Great Lakes Synergy’s oldest operation, Great Lakes Terminal & Transport, has been providing chemicals and fuels trucking and logistics support services in the Midwestern US since 1947 and is one of the two original businesses of this third-generation family company which was founded by Mr. Dehmlow’s grandfather.
Prior to joining Great Lakes Synergy in 1981, Mr. Dehmlow started his career with Shell Chemicals after earning his Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from Tulane University in 1978. He also has a Masters in Management from Northwestern’s Kellogg Graduate School of Management.
Leon Garoufalis is the President and Chief Operating Officer for Composites One. He began his tenure with GLS Composites Distribution Corporation (which would later be part of the joint venture between GLS Corporation and CCP to form Composites One) in 1988 as a Resin Product Manager. Over the past 15 years he has held various sales, marketing and operations positions. Just prior to being named COO for Composites One, Garoufalis was Vice President of Sales for GLS Composites Distribution Corporation. He was later named President of Composites One. Prior to joining GLS, Garoufalis was employed by Koppers where he sold Polyester Resins. He holds an MBA from Loyola University.
Dick Holland is the Vice President of Business Development for Composites One. He began his business career with Owens Corning Fiberglas in 1966 in San Francisco and later moved to Los Angeles and from there to Toledo, OH. In 1970 he relocated back to the LA Area as Vice President of Sales for Kaiser Glass Fiber. In 1977, Holland went to work for the Erskine Johns Co. that later became part of CMI. CMI became part of the joint venture that formed Composites One in 1999.
Greg Shymske is the Vice President of Marketing for Composites One. He joined Owens Corning in sales in Minnesota in 1980. Over the next 20 years he held various sales and marketing leadership roles, including director of marketing for the Composites Division. In 2000 he joined Composites One as the North Region Sales Manager. He held that position until 2002, when he became the Director of Marketing. Mr. Shymske holds an undergraduate degree in business from Bowling Green University in Ohio, and a Masters in Business Law from Butler University in Minnesota.
Don Hairhoger is the Vice President of Operations for Composites One. With over 25 years of experience, Hairhoger began his career in the Industry in 1980 with Owens Corning as a sales rep in the Carolina's selling both resin and fiberglass reinforcements. He left OC in 1985 and started with Glascoat in the distribution business. He was employed as sales rep for Glascoat in the Carolina's until 1988 and was then asked to become the sales manager for Glascoat. Glascoat was later purchased by Springs and became Clark Schwebel Distribution, which later became CMI. CMI became part of the joint venture that formed Composites One in 1999. Recently, Hairhoger has served as General Manager for both the South and West Regions at Composites One and most recently as Vice President - Asia.
Andy Flad is the Vice President Sales - West for Composites One. He began his career in the Composites Industry in 1979 with Vetrotex in sales. In 1983 he joined GLS as a sales representative. In 1997 he became South Region Sales Manager. In 1999 he was promoted to General Manager of the Great lakes Region. In 2001 he was named General Manager of the North Region, after Composites One combined both the Great Lakes and Northeast Regions to form one territory. North Region GM after the combination of the Great Lakes & Northeast Regions.
Walt Beaver is the Vice President Sales-East for Composites One. He has over 24 years in the composites industry. He began his career in 1980 working as a sales representative in North Carolina with American Colors. He held positions of Sales Manager and Director of Operations before American Colors was purchased by CCP in 1992. With CCP he held the positions of Sales Manager-South Region and Director of Distribution. In 1999 he joined Composites One as South Region Sales Manager and was promoted to General Manager in 2004.
Dave Forner is the Vice President Asia for Composites One. He began his career with the company in 1988 as the D C Manager for the Woodstock location. Since then he has held various positions including Regional Operations Manager, Director of Operations, and Vice President of Operations before assuming his current role as Vice President Asia.
Mr. Forner holds an undergraduate degree from Illinois State University in Business Management and Organizational Communication. He later received an MBA from Keller Graduate School of Management.
Dwight Baker is the General Manager of the Composites One Advanced Composites Team. He began his career in the composites industry in 1992 and has since held several positions in sales, sales management and project management. Dwight joined Composites One as the Gulf Coast Sales Manager in 2005 and was named General Manager of the West Region in 2007. He bagan his tenure as General Manager of the Advanced Composites Team in 2010.
Bill Rudersdorf is the Director, Health, Safety & Environment with Composites One. He has been monitoring the ever-increasing regulations and interfacing with EPA, DOT, and OSHA agencies for almost 20 years. Focusing his regulatory expertise exclusively on the composites industry, she definitely understands it is not an easy task for fabricators to stay in compliance. Besides keeping his own company in compliance, Mr. Rudersdorf has been assisting Composites One's large customer base with understanding the complexities of OSHA and EPA through various means such as information bulletins, a compliance manual and regulatory hot-line. He has spoken at national conventions, such as ICPA and ACMA. He participates on ACMA's Governmental Affairs Committees and is on the Executive Board of the Greater Chicago Chapter of ASSE.
Mr. Rudersdorf's credentials include a B.B.A., University of Wisconsin - Madison (Risk Management /Finance); M.S., University of Wisconsin - Whitewater (Occupational Safety); A.R.M., (Associate in Risk Management), Insurance Institute of America; A.S.P., (Associate Safety Professional); Certified Instructor by OSHA for "A Guide to Voluntary Compliance; Member, National Safety Council; and a Member, National Fire Protection Association.
Marcy Offner is the Marketing Manager for Composites One. She has held various marketing and public relations positions since graduating from Northern Illinois University with a BA in Journalism, including Director of Marketing and Public Relations for the Chicago Auto Show. She also began her career in marketing and communications for Sportmart, Inc.
Serving on vaious ACMA commiitees, Ms. Offner is the current Show Committee Chairman for COMPOSITES 2012. She was also named ACMA's Volunteer of the Year at the COMPOSITES 2011 event.
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