ILMA Honors Catherine Novak of Cadillac Oil with John A. Bellanti Award
The Independent Lubricant Manufacturers Association (ILMA) today honored Catherine Novak, technical director at Cadillac Oil Co. in Detroit, Michigan, with its prestigious John A. Bellanti Award. The award was presented during the general session of the 2025 ILMA Annual Meeting at the Boca Raton hotel in Boca Raton, Florida.
The Bellanti Award recognizes prolonged service and outstanding achievement by an ILMA member representative or an individual serving ILMA and the industry. Originally known as the Distinguished Service Award, it was renamed in 2004 to honor the legacy of ILMA Past President John A. Bellanti of Battenfeld Grease & Oil Corporation of N.Y.
Novak showed her dedication to the industry through several ILMA leadership roles. She served on the association’s board of directors from 2003 to 2010, including as board president in 2009–2010. She also chaired ILMA’s Metalworking Fluids Committee and Safety, Health & Regulatory Affairs Committee.
In a particularly important contribution ILMA, Novak testified before the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration in 2010 during the implementation of the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS). By presenting the real-world challenges of GHS implementation faced by a small lubricant manufacturing company, she influenced regulators to extend compliance deadlines, providing critical relief for ILMA’s manufacturing members.
“Her impact can be seen not only in the businesses she helped grow and the associations she has strengthened, but also in the people she has guided,” noted Jim Carroll, executive vice president of Schaeffer Manufacturing Co. and ILMA’s incoming president, as he presented the award.
Novak began her college education after starting a family and took night classes for nine years to complete her degree while raising four children. She spent 35 years in lubricant formulation, including 10 years running her own company.
“Each step on my career path has provided me with valuable lessons that helped me hone my career life skills,” Novak said in her acceptance speech. “The biggest life lesson for me was learning that you’re not a failure as long as you learned something from the experience.”