Hiab and Clean Express Auto Wash were honored Wednesday during the Streetsboro Area Chamber of Commerce's annual awards ceremony, which took place at the Streetsboro Hampton Inn & Suites.

Both companies are new to the community and have invested significantly.

More: Gebhardt to deliver warehouse automation from new location in Streetsboro

Streetsboro Area Chamber of Commerce board member Michael Cheslock said Clean Express Auto Wash, which won the chamber's 2021 Business of the Year Award, started with a benefit during its grand opening period.

"During the grand opening, Clean Express Auto Wash offered a free signature clean carwash ... to every customer in exchange for a monetary donation to the Streetsboro Community Pantry," he said. "Clean Express Auto Wash also offered a discount on a retail gift card with all proceeds donated back to the pantry throughout the grand opening period."

John Roush, chief executive officer of Express Wash Concepts — the car wash's parent company — said the company invested about $1.5 million in the Streetsboro facility.

"The building turned out beautifully," he said.

Cheslock said the Streetsboro car wash is one of seven Express Wash Concepts locations under construction or recently opened in Northeast Ohio.

The Business of the Year Award goes to the company "that best embodies the ideal of community involvement and investment in the community," he added.

More: Streetsboro manufacturer Waltco doubling its workforce with additional product line

Hiab, the parent company of Waltco, which produces liftgates for trucks, won the chamber's Image Award, which "celebrates new businesses' reinvestment in facilities that stimulate economic growth and retention through jobs and facility improvement," said Kurt Ruehr, the 2022 Streetsboro Area Chamber of Commerce president.

"This company moved to Streetsboro where they created a production facility at a formerly empty site which is now producing 20,000 Waltco liftgates annually," said Ruehr. "In the second quarter of this year, the company expects to bring the Moffett line into production which will produce 150 to 200 Moffett forklifts each month that should create between 80 and 100 new jobs."

Jarno Yli-Junnila, operations manager at the Hiab, thanked Mayor Glenn Broska and Economic Development Director Patrick O'Malia for their help in moving to Streetsboro from Tallmadge.

He said Hiab has emphasized employee safety during the move period, and the company has had no safety problems. The company also managed to get its deliveries to customers on time despite the move.

"The big thing is that we are doing this for the customers," said Yli-Junnila. "You can imagine that if you are moving the factory and 400 employees there are quite a lot of moving pieces. But we managed to deliver everything on time."

In addition to the awards presentation, Streetsboro Area Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Deborah Covert gave attendees an update on the chamber's activities during the past two years, which have been good for membership.

"We witnessed membership growth of 10% in 2020 and 3% in 2021," she said. "Our Scholarship Fund has continued to grow, and we were able to distribute over $1,700 to Streetsboro graduates, as well as partially funding a grant through the Streetsboro Educational Foundation."

During the past two years, that membership growth came about as the chamber pivoted from being a source of networking and events to a clearinghouse for information about the pandemic, from health advisories to loans and grants available, as well as providing information about what restaurants were open, she said.

One board member singled out as a major contributor to the chamber's success was Andrea Sutton, who won the NOACC Bright Star Award, which is presented annually to an individual who has gone above and beyond the call of duty for the chamber.

Do you have a business or healthcare story you'd like to share? Reporter Bob Gaetjens can be reached at 330-541-9440, bgaetjens@recordpub.com and @bobgaetjens_rc.

This article originally appeared on Record-Courier: Hiab, Clean Express Auto Wash honored by Streetsboro chamber