Stewart Bruce, current vice president of sales and marketing adds, “A new decade is upon us and GW is poised to gain more market share with this move. I feel confident there will be a seamless transition here and all of our valued customers will see the same concerted effort from any GW associate as before. My role and responsibilities will change over the coming months.” Within the next few years, after a new Director of Domestic Sales is hired, Stewart Bruce will become responsible for international sales, non-rail sales and rail transit sales. As part of this change, Dan Foley has been promoted to Non-rail Sales Manager and will report directly to Stewart Bruce in this new capacity.
Graham-White’s management is considering in-house candidates for the Director of Domestic Sales but adds that an outside source will be used to broaden the search to fill this critical roll. “We are actively seeking the right person for this strategic position related to our domestic rail market,” says Jim Frantz.
Jack Kuhns, Senior Director for Business Development & Sales will assume all sales responsibilities for non-GW remanufacturing activities. These include sales from the recently acquired Vista Corporation of Virginia and the short line/regional railroad market. Jack brings 30 years of experience to the table with a ‘whatever it takes’ attitude that is hard to match. “Expanding our REMANSM family of services to include complete engines offers great potential for personal and corporate growth,” says Jack Kuhns. “Also, we are all excited about the new direction Graham-White is taking to become an affordable, single-source option for 1033 Emission Certificates. Plus, the Vista Corporation is a huge bonus for all our existing and new customers alike.”
Other personnel affected by this change include Jim Somerville. Jim has worked smart to become a BSME/MBA/professional engineer and now Director of Engineering at Graham-White. He has 5 years of tenure at the company with duties that included market development and sourcing responsibilities for China. His background includes sales, engineering and LEAN manufacturing management positions. He posses 35 years of experience in nuclear reactor testing along with the design and manufacture of industrial compressed air dryers. ”
Former head of engineering, Lenny Wedge, is now responsible for identifying new product opportunities that dovetails perfectly with his additional role in Field Service as Director of New Product & Field Service. He will work closely with Jim Somerville and Stewart Bruce to keep GW products innovative and cost-effective. He states, “Hands-on in the field with the customer is where the information is best gleaned for developing new products that better serve client needs.”
Long time employee Dan Hughes is named Director of Operations and will continue his responsibility for all manufacturing and service center operations. In a recent group interview, Dan, Jim Somerville and Lenny Wedge all agreed that this change was necessary maintain our competitive edge globally. The group consensus is “What else are we in business for other than to learn and grow as a company? We’re all excited about the future.”
Graham-White Manufacturing Company supplies an assortment of new and remanufactured severe-duty pneumatic/electro-pneumatic valves and accessories to heavy rail, rail transit, military, truck & bus, and industrial clients worldwide. Graham-White is ISO 9001:2000 and AAR M-1003 compliant. The E-BELL, CADDIE, SafeSet, and SludgeBraker brands are all registered trademarks of Graham-White Manufacturing Corporation.
Contacts:
Graham-White: Stewart Bruce, vice-president sales and marketing: +1(540).387.5620, x236
Jack Kuhns, senior director of business development and sales: +1(904).230.4525
AGE: Jim Napier, president and CEO: +1(904).249.6077
www.grahamwhite.com
