Pledges Continued Support for Good Jobs for NW Ohio and Sustainable Energy Storage Across the World
FREMONT, OH – Crown Battery President and CEO Hal Hawk was formally honored with a Distinguished Service Award during the BCI’s 100th-Anniversary Convention + Power Mart Expo. BCI is the battery industry’s leading trade association, and the Distinguished Service Award is its highest individual honor for long-term contribution.
“Modern society can’t function without batteries,” says Jyl Zeis, Crown Battery’s Director of Human Resources. “Hal has spent decades helping ensure batteries worldwide are safe, sustainable, reliable, and environmentally friendly—all while creating good jobs here in Northwest Ohio.”
Hawk is currently the longest-serving member of the BCI Board of Directors (since 1999) and remains active on multiple BCI committees. As president of BCI from 2006-2008, Hawk was a key leader for the entire industry.
A graduate of John Carroll University, Hawk started with Crown Battery 42 years ago as a route salesperson driving a delivery truck. This path led him to branch manager and sales manager positions and eventually to VP of Sales. In 1998, Hal led the acquisition of Crown Battery, then held by Lee Koenig.
In Fremont and across the industry, Hawk is a vocal advocate for job creation, safety, and sustainability.
Since the mid-2010s, Crown’s workforce has grown from 530 employees to more than 625, including organic growth and acquisitions. At Crown’s manufacturing plant, trained technicians work alongside robots to assemble batteries in heavily regulated facilities – with stringent safety training, personal protective equipment (PPE) and machinery requirements, and comprehensive water and air filtration.
Hawk also supports Universal Battery Recycling – because while lead-acid and absorbent glass mat (AGM) batteries like Crown’s are already 99% recycled, Lithium-ion batteries are only 5% recycled.
“We work hard to create good, safe jobs in our community, our region, and our industry,” says Zeis. “And Hal, Crown Battery, and the BCI continue to advocate for high environmental, labor, and safety standards across the industry.”
About Crown Battery Manufacturing
Since 1926, Crown Battery is the world’s leading producer of green, 99%-recyclable batteries. Crown’s recyclable lead batteries are engineered and manufactured in the USA -- at its ISO 9001:2015-certified plant in Fremont, Ohio. Innovations include 3D design and prototyping, robotic assembly, and renewable energy for manufacturing – which earned Crown the industry’s first US EPA’s Green Power Partnership.
Crown Battery actively supports the community, including working with local schools, Ronald McDonald House, area food banks, Rotary International, United Way, and other charitable causes.
