The George W. Woodruff School
of Mechanical Engineering
Annual Spring Banquet and the
1999 Distinguished
Alumnus Award Presentation
Tuesday, May 4, 1999
6:00 p.m.
The Gordy Room
Wardlaw Center
Georgia Institute of Technology
| Planned
and organized by the Woodruff School of Mechanical
Engineering Student Advisory Committee (WSSAC)
and ponsored by the George W. Woodruff School
of Mechanical Engineering. |
 |
The 1999 Distinguished Alumnus
Oliver H. Sale, Jr. (BME 1956)
Oliver H. Sale, Jr., was born in Washington, Georgia, which lies
between Athens and Augusta. The family moved to Atlanta when Oliver
was one year old. After graduating from North Fulton High School
in 1952 he entered Georgia Tech. Mr. Sale said "he was raised
to go to Tech" as his father did, and he studied mechanical engineering
because he "was always interested in mechanical things so it seemed
appropriate." During his four years at Tech, he was a member of
Sigma Chi fraternity and was manager of the football team. He
graduated in 1956 with a BME degree and was commissioned in the
U.S. Air Force.
In 1960, upon leaving the Air Force, he began working with Industrial
Fabricators. He purchased half of the company by 1969, and it
merged with FESCO Inc. in 1970. The company built bulk materials
handling systems for the crushed stone and paper industries. In
1985 the company merged with RETEC, Inc. and in 1988 he sold FESCO-RETEC
to Consileum Bulk of Sweden. In 1989, Oliver Sale founded and
became the president of FESCO International.
In 1971 he founded NORX, Inc., which distributes after-market parts
to the mine and stone industries. The company operates in Georgia,
South Carolina, North Carolina, and Alabama. Mr. Sale has been
the chief executive officer from the founding of the company to
the present.
Mr. Sale has long been an ardent supporter of Georgia Tech. From
1989 to 1990 he was president of the Georgia Tech Alumni Association
and he has been a member of the Georgia Tech Foundation from 1994
to the present. He was elected to the Georgia Tech Academy of
Distinguished Engineering Alumni in 1994. He was appointed to
the Woodruff School Advisory Board in 1988 and he currently serves
as chairman.
Mr. Sale has two married daughters. One lives in New Jersey and
works for Merrill Lynch, the other lives in Atlanta with her husband
and two children. His third daughter is a senior at the University
of Georgia's School of Management. Mr. Sale enjoys golfing and
fishing and he attends Mt. Vernon Baptist Church.
About the Award
The Woodruff Distinguished Alumnus Award was inaugurated
in 1989 to recognize an outstanding alumnus of the School. Mr.
Sale's name, along with other winners of the Woodruff Distinguished
Alumnus Award, will be on permanent display in the lobby of the
MRDC.
