2008 Montana Governor’s Excellence in Exporting Award Winner Announced  

(HELENA) – Governor Brian Schweitzer today joined Megan Harrington, Chair of the Montana District Export Council, and members of the Montana District Export Council in honoring SRS Crisafulli Inc., an eastern Montana equipment manufacturer, as the winner of the Montana District Export Council Governor’s Excellence in Exporting Award for 2008. SRS Crisafulli has been chosen as the 2008 Montana Exporter of the Year.

“Montana’s exports reached a record high of $1.74 billion in 2007 and while the numbers aren’t yet complete for 2008, Montana is on track to surpass 2007,” said Governor Brian Schweitzer. “This success reflects the hard work and dedication of Montana’s exporting businesses like SRS Crisafulli. The world is a global marketplace and Montana’s exporters are helping to keep Montana competitive.”

From its headquarters in Glendive, SRS Crisafulli supplies electro-mechanical hydraulic systems and products to over 5,500 customers, throughout the United States and in over 40 countries. In 2008, SRS Crisafulli’s export sales totaled $750,000, or over 20% of its overall business.

The company designs, engineers, manufactures, sells, installs and services a wide variety of SRS Crisafulli dredges, pumps, power units, necessary accessories and parts.  The company is widely recognized for its innovative approach to the treatment of wastes generated by the treatment of potable (drinking water) as well as sewage/wastewater. SRS Crisafulli products are used for aquatic weed control, canal dredging, conservation projects, dredging industrial lagoons, dredging municipal wastewater lagoons, emergency response,  removal of contaminants, environmental remediation, fish and wildlife refuge management, flood control, food processing, irrigation, metals processing, natural resource management, pond and lagoon management,  potable water treatment, removal of municipal and industrial  wastes, removal of viscous wastes, removal of sand and gravel, stormwater management, toxic waste removal, wastewater treatment, submersible pumping, and high-volume transfer of sediment, water, sludges and slurries.

Transforming from what was once a small, family-owned business to its current identity as an international exporter, SRS Crisafulli continues to expand and recruit representatives internationally with the intention of continually increasing its export sales.  SRS Crisafulli’s 26 employee staff consists of graduate engineers educated in both mechanical & electrical disciplines, along with a number of specialized employees at factory headquarters, as well as the professional SRS Crisafulli representative in the country of customer’s residence.   SRS Crisafulli representatives are actively promoting the company’s products in South America, Puerto Rico, Mexico, East and Southeast Asia.  SRS Crisafulli has recently recruited and begun working a Representative Agency (with offices in Seattle WA and Munich Germany) to serve the European markets. In 2008, the company sold and installed Crisafulli systems in Australia, Canada, Lao PDR, and New Zealand.

The Montana District Export Council (DEC) is a volunteer organization drawn from Montana State businesses, governmental agencies and non-profits. The members have in-depth knowledge and experience in international business and are available as a unique source of professional advice to help other Montana firms compete and win business in the international marketplace. The Montana DEC works closely with the Montana U.S. Export Assistance Center of the U.S. Department of Commerce's Commercial Service to accomplish its mission through:

• Counseling, educating and mentoring local businesses
• Identifying key issues affecting Montana industry competitiveness in the global marketplace
• Advocating on behalf of Montana's trade community
• Enhancing the efforts of the Montana Export Assistance Center