"It's very clear to me that the award is a merit shared with a courageous team of councilors, directors and thousands of employees who accompany us on this important journey," said Décio da Silva in a speech made at the award giving of the Order of Industrial Merit.

The Federation of Industries of the State of Santa Catarina (FIESC) held the award giving event of the Order of Industrial Merit of Santa Catarina on July 20. It is the highest decoration given by the industry of this state. The ceremony ended the Journey of Innovation and Competitiveness of the Industry of Santa Catarina held from 16-20 of July.

Décio da Silva, WEG President of the Board was among those awarded. In his speech, Décio da SIlva said that throughout his career at WEG, he learned from the company's founders, Werner Ricardo Voigt, Eggon John Smith and Geraldo Werninghaus, the importance of reinvestment of profits, continued expansion of markets, investment in technology, participatory management, valorization and development of people and corporate governance, even before some of these concepts were a part of everyday life of most companies.

"It's very clear to me that the award is a merit shared with a courageous team of councilors, directors and thousands of employees who accompany us on this important journey," he said.

About the Award
The Order of Industrial Merit of Santa Catarina, created in 2000, acknowledges the contributions of industrialists to the development of the industry of the state.

Décio da Silva
Décio da Silva is a Mechanical Technician (Escola Técnica Tupy - Joinville), has a degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Federal University of Santa Catarina – UFSC and a degree in Business Management from ESAG/FURJ. He began his career in 1979 at WEG in Quality Engineering and held several positions in industrial and commercial areas until he became President of WEG S.A. in 1989.

During his 18 years as CEO of the WEG Group, the company increased its sales from R$ 116 million to R$ 4,408 billion, and the number of employees rose from 7,698 to 18,522.
Currently, Décio da SIlva is Chairman of the Board of WPA Participações e Serviços, WEG and Oxford Porcelanas. He is a member of the Board of Brasil Foods, Iochpe-Maxion, TECSIS and Tigre.