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MIAMI — Mercury Marine’s MercMonitor featuring the ECO-Screen was awarded the grand prize in West Marine’s first annual Green Product of the Year contest, according to a release from West Marine.
The MercMonitor can help conserve fuel by allowing boaters to locate and lock onto their engine’s most fuel-efficient settings. A $10,000 prize accompanied the award and was presented by Randy Repass, West Marine chairman and founder, to Mercury Marine President Mark Schwabero at the Miami International Boat Show.
Schwabero responded by announcing that the prize money would be used to launch the “Mercury Marine Conservation Fund,” an effort designed to improve the environment near Fond du Lac, Wis., home of Mercury Marine’s global headquarters.
The panel of judges who selected the winning entry was: Randy Kochevar, Stanford University; Mike Sutton, Center for the Future of the Oceans; Chuck Hawley, VP Product Information, West Marine; Ruth Wood, President, Boat US Foundation; Chuck Husick, President, Owa, Inc., former President of Cessna Aircraft and Chris-Craft Boats; Stan Honey, Ocean Racing Navigator, Founder of Etak and SportVision and Randy Repass, Chairman and Founder, West Marine.
The judges made their selection based on eco-effectiveness, cost-effectiveness, applicability and breadth of market impact, degree of innovation and originality, and compliance with official rules.
“The Green Product of the Year contest was designed to help fulfill West Marine’s mission to “preserve and protect the marine environment,” Repass said in the release. “We hope it encourages vendors, manufacturers and inventors to develop sustainable products to help boaters enjoy boating, while minimizing their impact on our natural resources. I look forward to seeing next year’s entries.”
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