Sandro Scherf, the CEO of crushing, screening and material handling equipment company Pilot Crushtec, was named this year’s Business Person of the Year award winner at the Italian-South African Chamber of Trade and Industries FNB Business Excellence Awards 2009. The announcement was made at a gala dinner on October 20th. In addition, Pilot Crushtec, the business Scherf co-founded in 1990 with his father, was a Business Enterprise of the Year finalist.

“I am naturally deeply honoured by this recognition, and also very pleased that the company did so well in the enterprise category. This is deserved recognition of the commitment everyone who works at Pilot Crushtec has shown to the company,” said Scherf after the dinner.

The awards recognise business people of Italian descent, as well as enterprises that are Italian or that enhance the image of the Italian-South African business community.

In summarising Scherf’s achievements, the chamber noted that he had built up the company to become a leading manufacturer and distributor of mobile and semi-mobile equipment for the open-cast mining, quarrying, civil engineering, construction, and recycling industries. He was also the driving force behind Pilot Crushtec’s dynamic expansion into foreign markets, selling to countries in Africa, Europe, Asia and Australasia.

The company is known for its innovative approach to developing new products for its customers’ needs, and this has helped power the company’s rapid growth. Pilot Crushtec now has an annual turnover in excess of R440 million, and employs over 150 people. It is also the sole southern Africa distributor for Terex- Finlay, Trio Engineered Products and Rubble Master crushing and screening equipment, and has consistently been Terex- Finlay’s biggest or second biggest dealership in the world.