Transforming The Utility Pole: Using Innovation To Disrupt Commodity Markets And Fuel Sustainable Business

Getting Out Of The Woods One Forest Products Company’s Approach to Sustainability and Innovation This book is about one company, Cox Industries, and their mission to establish an innovation program that powers the creation of a unique, industry-leading business model. Family owned and operated for over sixty-five years, Cox Industries--recently acquired by Koppers--is the largest American-owned provider of treated wood utility poles in the US. With the addition of Cox Industries, Koppers is poised to become one of the largest wood treatment, production, and supply companies in the world. This book frames the challenges facing many small and mid-sized companies trapped in price-driven, commodity-like industries who remain hopeful of finding a more promising future. In Transforming the Utility Pole, author Barry Breede shows how one company and its strategic approach to innovations that are both profitable and progressive can serve as inspiration to business leaders across industries who want to make sustainability and corporate responsibility work together while running a successful business.

BARRY BREEDE is the chief innovation and marketing officer at Koppers Utility & Industrial Products—a national leader in the sale of wood utility poles—leading the company’s efforts in commercializing new business ventures, products, and services. Barry also assists Cox Recovery, a Koppers subsidiary providing utilities with environmentally-friendly methods of disposing of wood waste. A graduate of the University of Oregon, Barry has also worked extensively in the innovation area with several global companies including Electrolux AB, Umbro International, and Specialized Bicycles. Barry currently resides in Greenville, South Carolina.