53
NOVEMBER 2013
ACT
PEOPLE & EVENTS
2013
World Crane &
Transport Summit
Oct. 29-30
Amsterdam, The Netherlands
International
Tower Cranes
Nov. 4-5
Berlin, Germany
ICEF International
Construction
Economic Forum
Nov. 20 – 22
Amsterdam, The Netherlands
SC&RA Webinar
Construction Industry
Economic Outlook
(with emphasis
on crane, rigging and
specialized transportation)
December 11
Chris Sleight, Editor
International
Construction
Magazine
Sany America CEO,
Tim Frank, resigns
Tim Frank has
resigned as
chairman and
CEO of Sany
America Inc.,
the Georgia-
based heavy
equipment company he led to
record sales growth and the
first profit in its seven-year
history. The resignation was
effective Friday, Oct. 11.
“Sany has great potential in
the North American market,”
Frank said. “I enjoyed my time
getting to know Sany people
and culture. I am proud that
we achieved record sales and
profit in the U.S. during my
time with the company.”
Frank led Sany America to
its first profitable quarter in
Q1 of 2013, followed by two
more successive profitable
quarters. During his tenure,
the company transitioned
from manufacturing concrete
pumps at its Peachtree City,
GA, plant to assembling
crawler excavators for the U.S.,
Canada, Mexico and Central
America. The Sany America
network of dealers grew from
just a handful to more than
30 during that time, and 2013
sales are on pace to more than
double 2012 results.
“My experience is that the
Chinese product is well made,
reliable, and affordable,” Frank
said. “I continue to encourage
people to give it a try.”
EVENTS DIARY
■
Mike Heiligenstein
,
executive director of the
Central Texas Regional
Mobility Authority, has been
elected President of the
International Bridge Tunnel
and Turnpike Association
(IBTTA), the worldwide
association for the owners
and operators of toll facilities
and the businesses that
serve them. The election
and nomination took place
at the IBTTA Annual Meeting
and Exposition in Vancouver,
British Columbia, Canada.
■
Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers
has appointed
Beverley
Anne Briscoe
as deputy
chairperson of the company’s
Board of Directors, effective
September 22. Briscoe
joined the company as a
director in October 2004,
and has served as a
member of the Nominating
& Corporate Governance and
Audit Committees, most
recently as Chair of the Audit
Committee.
■
Ridewell has appointed
Katie Clawson
as its
new company marketing
coordinator. Clawson spent
the last four years at
Southwest Baptist University
studying marketing and public
relations, and graduated this
spring.
■
Davide Pulito
has
been named area manager
in export department for
CTE. After several years of
experience in the aerial lift
area, he has landed at CTE
to face work with emerging
markets. Pulito will focus
on the following countries:
Poland, Ukraine, Czech
Republic, Slovakia, Azerbaijan
and Kazakhstan, bringing
forward the partnership and
the markets already opened
by CTE in recent years and
exploring new one. “I’m proud
to be a part of CTE. The
company is investing a lot in
emerging markets,” he said.
HIGHLIGHTS
Slingmax names new
sales director plus
other appointments
Slingmax Rigging Solutions has appointed Tony
Zomparelli as its new sales director. Zomparelli
has 29 years of experience in the rigging industry.
Located in Chicago, his responsibilities will include
all sales and marketing issues involving Slingmax
solutions and Slingmax dealers, including keeping
sales and customer service teams updated on the latest Slingmax
innovations and improving sales strategies for Slingmax products.
Also new to the Slingmax team is Dan Ross,
who is the new marketing coordinator. Ross will
be based out of Aston, PA. He will be working with
authorized Slingmax fabricators around the world
to increase company outreach.
John Ketchum has been
promoted to technical director.
Based in Greensboro, NC, he has
been working in the Slingmax organization for over
two years and has 16 years of experience in the
crane and rigging industry.
Wheco names Willis
as Division Manager
John Willis has been named
the division manager for the
Aiken, SC facility of Wheco
Corp., a crane and capital
equipment
structural
repair and
restoration
services
company.
Willis will
oversee Wheco’s East Coast
repair center, managing the
day-to-day operations at
the facility where a team of
skilled technicians provide
compliant, efficient and cost-
effective repair solutions
to structurally damaged
equipment and components.
As a former operations
manager at Wheco’s Aiken
facility, Willis is returning
to take on the additional
responsibilities as division
manager.
“We are excited to have
John returning to Wheco and
stepping up his role,” said Ron
Williams, Wheco’s CEO.
Willis has over 25 years of
crane industry experience
starting as an operator before
moving into supervisory and
management positions.
