Copeland wins top CMA award

Former state Rep. David Copeland was presented the top award today from the Chattanooga Manufacturers Association for his lifetime of political and business support of business and manufacturing.

Mr. Copeland, who founded his Copeland’s Inc. machine shop in 1965, received the C.D. Mitchell Award named for the founder of the Chattanooga Manufacturers Association, the nation’s oldest manufacturers’ group. The group was formed in 1902.

“Chattanooga has had a long history of manufacturing and it’s part of our DNA and our makeup,” said Trevor Hamilton, the Chamber of Commerce vice president who received the C.D. Mitchell award last year. “It is because of the leadership of people like David Copeland that manufacturing is assured of being a strong part of our future.”

In 1963, Mr. Copeland organized the Citizens Taxpayers Association in Hamilton County and in 1968 he was elected to the Tennessee General Assembly where he served as a state representative until 1992. Mr. Copeland helped author a constitutional amendment to limit tax growth in the state and sponsored numerous bills to reform Tennessee’s tax system to help business growth, Mr. Hamilton said.

Mr. Copeland was presented the award at the Chattanooga Manufacturers Association’s 107th annual meeting. At today’s meeting, Koch Foods’ Executive Dan Nuckolls took over as chairman of the manufacturers group.