At its annual conference in Quebec City it was announced by the Sanitary Supply Wholesaling Association (SSWA) that Ron Underwood, President of Advantage Maintenance Products, Paris, Ontario, Canada, has been awarded the Stanley E. Friedman Award of Merit.  The selection of this prestigious award is based on the contribution to the SSWA and the industry over a period of time.

The award has been presented only 11 times previously since it was established in 1985.  The award was named after one of the founding members of the SSWA who was also the first recipient in 1989.  It was last awarded in 2008.

Mr. Underwood has been active in the janitorial supplies business for more than 50 years and a member of the CSSA and the ISSA since 1961.  In 1978 he joined The White Mop Wringer Company of Canada as President and acquired ownership of the Canadian Division in 1991 where he quickly reorganized from being a branch plant manufacturer to a National Wholesaler.

Between 1999 and 2004 he acquired and merged two national and three regional wholesalers and changed the company name to Advantage Maintenance Products in 2000.