Kirk Spitzer, a 1967 graduate of Virginia Tech's Industrial and Systems Engineering (ISE) Department, received the College of Engineering's Distinguished Service Award for 2007.
Spitzer of Richmond, Va., retired as president and chief executive officer of Alfa Laval Thermal of Glen Allen, Va., on Sept. 1, 2005. He had the overall responsibility for Alfa Laval's USA operations, reporting to the president and CEO of the worldwide Alfa Laval Group based in Lund, Sweden.
Spitzer joined Alfa Laval in 1983 as the general manager of its Thermal Division in Fort Lee, New Jersey. He was appointed President of Thermal USA in 1987, now located in Glen Allen, Virginia, until the spring of 1998.
Under Spitzer's's leadership, Alfa Laval Thermal began actively recruiting Virginia Tech mechanical engineering graduates in 1993.
At Virginia Tech, Spitzer and his wife Lilia are members of the Ut Prosim Society. He was inducted into the ISE Academy of Distinguished Alumni in 2002.
Spitzer was a critical member of Virginia Tech's Institute for Critical Technology and Applied Science (ICTAS) Task Force. ICTAS, led by the College of Engineering, is leveraging the University's research strengths in order to position it for future growth.
Among Spitzer's civic contributions, he has served on the Board of Directors of the YMCA of Greater Richmond. In 2004 he was appointed to the Cultural Arts Center Foundation at Glen Allen. It offers residents and visitors in the metropolitan Richmond region an unparalleled opportunity to experience the arts, entertain new ideas, develop a new talent, and experience first-hand, all the best this community has to offer. He is currently its chairman elect.
He is also on the executive advisory board of the Hilliard House, a program that assists homeless women and their children to build their capacity to live productively within the community.