Secretary Gutierrez to Present 2007 Baldrige Awards
Ceremony Marks 20 Years of Performance Excellence and First Awards to Nonprofit Organizations

WASHINGTON—U.S. Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez will present five U.S. organizations with the 2007 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, the nation’s highest honor for performance excellence, Wednesday, April 23. The ceremony—the 20th in the history of the award—will be on the first day of the Quest for Excellence XX conference.

The 2007 Baldrige Award recipients are: PRO-TEC Coating Co., Leipsic, Ohio (small business); Mercy Health System, Janesville, Wis. (health care); Sharp HealthCare, San Diego, Calif. (health care); City of Coral Springs, Coral Springs, Fla. (nonprofit); and the U.S. Army Armament Research, Development and Engineering Center (ARDEC), Picatinny Arsenal, N.J. (nonprofit). This was the first year that nonprofits were eligible to apply for the award.

Named after Malcolm Baldrige, the 26th Secretary of Commerce, the Baldrige Award was established by Congress in 1987 to enhance the competitiveness and performance of U.S. businesses and expanded in 1998 to include education and health care and in 2007 to include nonprofit organizations. The award promotes excellence in organizational performance, recognizes the achievements and results of U.S. organizations, and publicizes successful performance strategies. Since 1988, 72 organizations have received Baldrige Awards.

Media Check-In: 2 - 4 p.m. EDT; ceremony will begin promptly at 4:15 p.m. EDT. News media must show a badge with photo or a photo ID with a business card to gain admission to the ceremony.

Media Pre-set: Cameras, tripods, large camera cases or other photographic equipment should be set in place in the ballroom between 3:15 – 3:45 p.m. EDT. Risers will be available for positioning cameras.

Satellite Feed and Webcast: A satellite broadcast of the ceremony will be available for broadcast TV stations to downlink. The ceremony also will be webcast.

Webcast Address: mms://wms.edgecastcdn.net/20003F/mbqa

Satellite Downlink Data: 3:45-5:45 p.m. EDT

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Media Interviews: Executives of Baldrige Award recipients will be available for interviews between 3:15 – 3:45 p.m. EDT. Reporters may request interviews before April 23 by contacting Michael Newman (301-975-3025, michael.newman@nist.gov) or sign up on the day of the ceremony at the media registration table.

For reporters who wish to cover the successes and impacts of the Baldrige Program during its first 20 years, interviews also may be arranged with Baldrige Quality Program officials, Baldrige examiners and judges, and leaders of the Baldrige Foundation, the private-sector group partnering with NIST to manage the Baldrige Award.

Further information on the Baldrige Award and the 2007 recipients is available at www.baldrige.nist.gov.

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date created: 04/21/08
last update: 04/21/08
contact: inquiries@nist.gov