business & professional Want To Buy A Used Trolley Car? Academic Boycotts Of Israel Examined Robert Levy is helping Detroit sell its surplus vehicles. Allan Nahajewski Contributing Writer A s a boy gowing up in Southfield and attend- ing Temple Beth El in Detroit, Robert Levy never envi- sioned entering his father's line of work. Robert's father, Norman, sold industrial assets. Norman Levy Associates grew to become the largest and most respected firm of its kind, valuing and sell- ing billions of dollars worth of Robert industrial machinery, equipment, inventory and capital assets. "I remember my father telling me that the most important thing that I would ever do in my life was to pick something that I would enjoy doing and would make me happy:' recalls Levy, now 56. "My father said, 'This is my business. Go find your own:" While in college, Levy tried metal- smithing and the jewelry business. "I was pretty good at it, but I needed something more, so I asked my father if he would give me an opportunity to work in his business. He said, 'We have a sale going on in England right now Go work there for two weeks, and when you get back, we'll talk:" The trip to England was an eye- opener. "I loved it. I had a fantastic time working, interacting and learning; Levy said. "I came back and said to my father, `I really think I'd like to try this business with you: He said, 'OK, go to work: He was my mentor for three years until he passed away. He taught me so much about business. He really mentored me in a very positive way:' Flash forward 35 years. Robert Levy is now president and managing partner of Hilco Industrial, a global leader in the sale of industrial assets, based in Farmington Hills. He's cur- rently involved in the sale of the city of Detroit's surplus transportation assets — everything from garbage trucks maintenance vehicles, passenger vans, snowplows, forklifts, cranes and back- hoes to aged police cars and fire trucks and even antique trolleys. Hilco Industrial and its joint venture partner Miedema Asset Management were awarded the three-year contract after a competitive bid process that was held over several months. "We're thrilled:' Levy said. "We live in 36 November 13 • 2014 JN Levy This garbage truck is one of many vehicles Levy is sell- ing for the city of Detroit. this community and have built our busi- ness in the Metropolitan Detroit area so we are both financially and emotionally invested in helping the city maximize its recovery in every way:' Levy calls the project "a huge respon- sibility:' "It's a very high-profile transaction," he said. "Everybody's eyeballs are on the city of Detroit, and the city wouldn't select anyone who would not represent them in a very professional, transparent way:' Assets for sale are being marshaled at the Herman Kiefer Hospital site on Taylor Street in Detroit. Large-scale asset sales are Levy's and Hilco's specialty. "Last year, we did the Hostess liq- uidation. That was a very successful transaction. We put Twinkies back on the shelves:' Levy said. Hilco success- fully sold more than 12,000 vehicles for Hostess during its bankruptcy and sub- sequent restructuring. From 2009 to 2011, Hilco managed liquidation of assets during the realign- ment of the U.S auto industry. "We sold the assets for about 50 of the auto plants in Michigan and throughout the Midwest for GM, Ford and Chrysler," Levy said. Hilco also purchased a four-square- mile steel mill in Maryland, which at one time was the largest steel mill in the Western Hemisphere. "We're liquidating the equipment there and repurposing the land right now. That's a massive undertaking." Hilco has nearly 600 employees. "We do a lot of high-profile work on an international basis. We have offices throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico, Europe and Asia, and we're now operating in Austrailia," Levy said. Headquartered in Michigan, the indus- trial division has more than 200 employ- ees globally, including 25 locally. For the city of Detroit contract, the list of transportation assets being offered are mainly from three depart- ments: the Detroit Department of Transportation, which includes transit buses and fabrication shop assets; the Public Lighting Department, which includes utility maintenance equipment, including bucket trucks, digger derricks and cable vans and inventory associated with utility repairs; and the Department of Public Works, which includes waste trucks, log loaders and additional rolling stock. The Fire and Police departments also have excess vehicles for sale. Levy believes it's the experience and reputation of Hilco and Miedema that earned the companies the project. "I think we represent the best oppor- tunity for the city to monetize assets:' Levy said. "Together, we have a lot of experience working with municipalities. We understand what the assets are and the way to bring those to the market- place in the fastest and best light. Our technology and our marketing capability are unsurpassed:' Levy said the sale is a sign of the city's progress. "The city is now becoming fiscally responsible, and I'm very pleased to see this:' he said. "Certain services have been privatized — garbage collection, for example — so the city no longer needs these assets. There are quite a few high-quality vehicles for sale:' Information about the assets being sold can be found at www.hilcoind. corn. ❑ A heated issue confronting profes- sional academic associations today is whether to join the movement to boycott Israeli academic institutions because of the country's political actions. Self-described "ten- ured radical" Cary R. Nelson will explore this movement and its effects during a Nov. 19 presenta- tion at Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti. Nelson, the Jubilee Professor of Liberal Cary Nelson Arts and Sciences at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, will speak on "Bait and Switch: The Purpose of the Movement to Boycott Israel" at 7:30 p.m. in the EMU Student Center Auditorium, 900 Oakwood. The program, free and open to the public, is part of EMU's Jewish Studies Program lec- ture series. Nelson will discuss how, during the past year, the movement to weaken Israel through boycotts, divestments and sanctions has gained significant momentum. Nelson has spoken out against this growing campaign, expressing concern at the move- ment's success at increasing intolerance on American campuses. For more information, contact jewish. studies@emich.edu or Marty Shichtman at mshichtmal@emich.edu. ❑ Secular Humanists Look At Issues Of Intermarriage How has freedom and intermarriage changed Jewish identity? What will the Jewish community look like in the next generation? The International Institute for Secular Humanistic Judaism (IISHJ) will present "Colloquium 2014: Evolution or Revolution? Intermarriage, Jewish Culture and the Future of Jewish Community" Friday- Sunday, Nov. 14-16, at the Birmingham Temple in Farmington Hills Speakers include Paul Golin, associate executive director of the Jewish Outreach Institute; Rabbi Sivan Malkin Maas, dean of Tmura-IISHJ in Jerusalem and direc- tor of "The Secular Library;" Keren McGinity, director of Love and Tradition: Intermarriage Insights for a Jewish Future; and Rabbi Adam Chalom, dean for North America of the IISHJ. The colloquium is free and open to the public, though a suggested donation is encouraged. For online registration, visit iishj.org/colloquium-14.html. For information about the institute and its programs, visit www.iishj.org , or contact info@iishj.org or (847) 383-6330.