Thomas J. Gibson, president and CEO of the American Iron and Steel Institute, issued the following statement on the death of William M. Heenan, Jr., former president of the Steel Recycling Institute and 2013 recipient of the Steel Market Development Institute’s Lifetime Achievement Award:

“On behalf of the AISI family and our member companies, we were deeply saddened to hear of Bill’s passing. Bill was a tireless and devoted leader in the steel industry—building SRI from the ground up and establishing steel as the world’s most recycled material. We are forever grateful for the lasting impact Bill had on our industry and send our deepest sympathy to his family.”

Lawrence W. Kavanagh, president of SMDI and long-time colleague of Heenan’s, said, “Beyond work, Bill was a generous and devoted family man. He set an example for all of us by crediting every success he had to his family."

Heenan was president of SRI from 1990-2010. Prior to joining SRI, Heenan was general manager, tin mill products, for the United States Steel Corp., a position to which he was appointed in 1988. He was a lifetime board member of the National Recycling Coalition, served as a board member of Keep America Beautiful, Inc. and was co-chairperson of Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful.