Fueling A Green Future
CGI Gases has been manufacturing and supplying industrial and residential gases for more than 75 years. The company is among the largest independent manufacturers of hydrogen and industrial gases in the Northeastern United States with distribution networks in 18 states.
Founded by Charles J. Zullo Sr., in 1948, the company originally operated as a general welding company. Zullo’s son, Charles, Jr., learned to weld at the age of 14 and ultimately joined his father in leading the company, starting in the 1960s. CGI Gases was among the earliest of the Airco (now Linde) distributors entering the cylinder gas business a decade earlier. CGI Gases expanded into the bulk gases category and launched the first privately held hydrogen production facility in the U.S. during the 1980s.
A third generation of Zullo’s joined the company when Charles J. Zullo III was appointed President and CEO in 1998, having worked his way up through CGI’s sales team. Father and son worked together to expand customers and territories. Charles III led the company until his death in 2003, and his sister, Eileen, followed as President and CEO. Her present-day leadership has increased CGI Gases’ strategic industry partnerships and established the company’s vertical supply chain as both a national manufacturer and distributor of hydrogen and carbon dioxide.
In 2008, Rohit “Sunny” Punj was appointed Chief Operating Officer. Zullo and Punj have significantly increased the company’s capability and reach, particularly regarding hydrogen gas technologies, manufacturing, and distribution.
As alternative energy solutions are being rapidly implemented throughout the U.S. in response to federal incentives and opportunities, CGI Gases is making inroads by leveraging its expertise and resources to deliver clean energy and accelerate toward the goal of a low carbon future.
CGI Gases Leadership
Eileen J. Zullo
President and CEO
Representing the third generation to lead CGI International, LLC, Eileen J. Zullo has more than 20 years of experience in the industrial gases and energy industry. She currently serves as CEO, President, and Principal of the CGI International one of the largest privately held industrial gas distributors in the Northeastern United States. The CGI International group of companies CGI Gases, General Hydrogen Corp.
Zullo served as the President and CEO of St. Croix Communications; an event marketing firm focused on new product introductions. Her clients included Starbucks, PepsiCo., RJ Reynolds’s, Frito Lay, Hawaiian Punch and consumer packed goods multinationals.
Zullo holds a Bachelor of Economics from Washington & Jefferson College as well as an AP in Specialized Technology from the Art Institute. She also attended the University of Pittsburgh’s Graduate School of Business.
Rohit Sunny Punj
Chief Operating Officer
Sunny’s former roles included private banking with Goldman Sachs and management consulting with MMG (McKinsey & Company spinoff) as part of its Energy and Financial Service Practice.
He subsequently worked for Schlumberger, a multi-billion-dollar oil and gas conglomerate, as a Director in Mergers & Acquisitions. Sunny’s reputation is reflected by initiatives including multibillion dollar outsourcing companies like Wipro and Cognizant as a P&L leader and turnaround specialist leading a sales and delivery teams ranging from 100-250 people. He has spent the last 15 years in Industrial Gases with a special focus on hydrogen and CO2.
Sunny graduated in Industrial Engineering with Honors from Cornell University in a combined program with Harvard University. He has also served as an honorary Guest Lecturer for the MIT Graduate Program.
Celebrating A Reputation For Delivering Results
In 1948, when Charles Zullo, Sr., entered the arena of the welding industry, a glass of chilled, refreshing Coca-Cola cost a nickel.
Spurred by the significant post-World War II manufacturing effort, Zullo launched General Welding Company, a regional supplier of welding services and cylinder gases. Among its initial strategic decisions was to become an Airco distributorship [now Linde], serving as one of Airco’s pioneering distributors.
Strategic markets throughout the U.S. were targeted for gas and welding distributors as the majors quickly expanded into franchises that capitalized upon the returning WWII veterans with gas and welding experience. Operating in Western Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia, CGI Gases had a front-row seat as Pittsburgh’s steel boom accounted for nearly half the nation’s steel production throughout the 50s and 60s.
For more than two decades, the company’s portfolio of industrial gases expanded to include bulk gases and entry in the hydrogen industry. As the company began to dominate the region, the larger industrial gas companies recognized CGI Gases’ importance as a supplier. Thus, the majors became both competitors and customers, resulting in a business model in which CGI strengthened its vertical supply chain to become a manufacturer, supplier, and distributor throughout the mid-Atlantic and Northeast. Its physical footprint also expanded as the company purchased a 32-acre site for its headquarters location and added to its transportation fleet.
In 1984, when the cost of a can of Coca-Cola had now quintupled to 25 cents, CGI Gases made a prescient decision to invest in hydrogen, creating its subsidiary the General Hydrogen Corp and rapidly expanding its customer base to include clients from the power, manufacturing, and gas industries. Today, situated at the intersection of the U.S. hydrogen corridor, CGI Gases’ portfolio of gases includes its original portfolio of cylinder gases, hydrogen, carbon dioxide, oxygen, nitrogen as well as carbon negative hydrogen, propane, rare/specialty gases, and welding supplies.
Currently, CGI Gases is enjoying a remarkable season of “back to the future” as it responds to the priorities associated with a carbon-free future. Its legacy of quality, safety and excellence has held up CGI as an industry role model amidst the companies and investors seeking to enter the industrial gas and hydrogen segment. Likewise, its independent status and geographical location has allowed CGI Gases to serve customers across the country in a manner marked by exceptional responsiveness and innovation.
