NMBC Makes it “Easy to be Green”; New Green Initiative Award and Sustainability Forum, March 27

March 8, 2013 - PRLog -- The owner of Westchester County’s first LEED Platinum building, C.W. Brown of Pleasantville, NY was also the first company to receive National Minority Business Council’s Green Initiative award at the organization’s 33rd Annual Awards Ceremony, February 28.

         In accepting the award, company president and CEO Renee Brown recalled her late husband’s vision for building Westchester County’s first LEED-certified building for their general contracting company’s headquartered in Armonk, NY.  The building has since become a Mecca for students and architects eager to learn more about sustainable building practices.

         C.W. Brown was one of 14 award recipients at this year’s annual luncheon which featured Craig Collins, vice president for administration, New York City School Construction Authority (SCA).  Collins, who is responsible for Contractor Qualification, Administrative Services, Human Resources, Business Development Division (BDD) and Policy Development.

         John F. Robinson, President and CEO of NMBC noted that Collins has been a strong advocate of Minority, Woman, and Local Business Enterprise (MWLBE) since his appointment as vice president of SCA in November 2010.  “He was a most appropriate keynote speaker for this year’s Awards Luncheon as NMBC moves aggressively into the green space of building and sustainability.  He has made it his mission to make sure that the contractors SCA deals with daily sub-contract to MWLBE firms whenever possible.  His participation attracted many of the contracting firms that attended as a sign of respect and admiration for his leadership.”

         In keeping with the accelerated green initiative of NMBC, Board Member and Treasurer Michael S. Robinson announced that a “Supply Chain Sustainability Forum” will be held at the former Citicorp Center, 631 Lexington Ave. at E. 53rd St. in Manhattan on Wednesday, March 27th, from 9:30 AM – 11:30 AM.  “When people think ‘green’ they tend to initially think about building materials, alternative energy supplies, better insulation and rooftop gardens.