People news: December 2017

The James Hopkins Trust, which provides nursing respite care for local life-limited and seriously ill young children, recently held a Christmas party for the children in its care. The team at Rygor donated and delivered 115 selection boxes for the children and their siblings. Rygor’s Charities of the Year initiative was set up to enable the company’s team members to nominate and vote to support charities that benefit local communities. Rygor aimed to raise at least £6,000 for its three Charities of the Year for 2016-17, which included Dorothy House Hospice Care and Bath Cats & Dogs Home. With a month left of the fundraising period, staff have achieved more than £16,000 in total, which will be shared equally across the three charities.

Above: Jacqueline O’Donovan, managing director of London’s O’Donovan Waste Disposal, has been honoured by Irish President Michael D Higgins (pictured, right) for her continuous support of the Irish community abroad. She was one of the recipients of the presidential distinguished service awards for the Irish abroad at a ceremony held at the official residence of the President of Ireland in Dublin. Other recipients included actor Liam Neeson, painter Bernard Canavan, Irish hockey player Denis Mulcahy and aid worker Mary T. Murphy.

Above: Emission reduction specialists Eminox has promoted Mark Runciman (shown at left) to managing director as the company enters its 40th year of business. Runciman has been operations director for two years and will take over from Andy Meakin, now chairman of Eminox (pictured, right). Having started his career in manufacturing as a shop floor operator, Runciman has worked his way through every level through to senior roles. Since 1978, the privately owned company has grown from three employees to almost 300 and is based in Gainsborough, Lincolnshire.

Tyre company Goodyear has announced two promotions. Marc Preedy, former director of commercial vehicle tyres, UK and Ireland, has been appointed as director, truck sales replacement, Europe. Replacing him is David Howe, who moves from his post as fleet and retail channel manager.Preedy will join the company’s European commercial leadership team based in Brussels.

Above: Laura Nelson, managing director of RTITB, has been recognised as a key industry influencer in The Logistics 100, the only representative of an accrediting body to receive this endorsement. The Logistics 100 is an annual list of the industry’s most influential professionals, and is compiled by SHD Logistics magazine based on selections by a panel of industry experts. Nelson was appointed managing director in 2015 following five years as operations director; she also holds a certificate of professional competence in national road haulage.

Above: As of January 2018, Marco Reichwein will take over as the managing director of the Schmitz Cargobull subsidiary Schmitz Cargobull Telematics. His last job was as CEO of EURO-Leasing, which rents tractors, trailers and semi-trailers under the MAN Financial Services brand. Karl-Heinz Neu, the previous managing director of Schmitz Cargobull Telematics, will become the new managing director of the new 100% digital business subsidiary KUBIKx on 1 January 2018.

Adam Richards has become the European managing director of windscreen wiper manufacturer Trico. He was originally recruited as operations manager at Trico in Pontypool, Wales in 2010. Commenting on his appointment, Richards said: “Moving forward, we intend to regain the brand recognition that TRICO wipers once had in the UK and Europe.”

Above: Brian Evans joins bus manufacturer Optare from Alexander Dennis to lead its aftermarket offering (maintenance, service and parts). For nearly 20 years, he has worked primarily for OEMs in support and service roles including Volvo Bus, and latterly Alexander Dennis Limited, as group service director. He replaces Lawrence Govender, who has left the company. Meanwhile, Steve Whiteway, former managing director of Epsom Coaches, has joined the company to work with the bus manufacturer and operators in London and surrounding areas to support in the implementation of electric bus technologies. The Metrodecker EV, Optare’s electric double deck bus, completed trials with First York and First West Yorkshire recently and is set to start trials with Go-Ahead London.

Mercedes-Benz Vans UK managing director Steve Bridge recently visited the West Midlands headquarters of DPD, which runs a fleet of 4,500 Mercedes-Benz vehicles, where he joined driver Zack Lunn on a delivery round in and around the Black Country town of Dudley. Dave Winchcombe, Head of Transport for DPD UK, added: “Mercedes-Benz are an excellent partner, and the Sprinter an excellent van for our operation. We run our vans for five-and-a-half years.”

Above: Aftercare Response has made a key appointment as it pursues an ambitious growth strategy which envisages a doubling of turnover in five years. Dean Miller becomes the service provider’s first head of sales development. Aftercare Response maintains and repairs commercial vehicle bodies and ancillaries. Its 50 field-based engineers provide commercial vehicle operators nationwide with planned and emergency support covering bodywork of all kinds, as well as equipment such as cranes, tail-lifts and roller shutter doors. They are managed by a team of 27 operations controllers based at the multi-faceted Bevan Group’s smart new headquarters in Wednesbury, West Midlands, where four of the main bays in the factory are also assigned to Aftercare Response.

Above: Commercial vehicle safety component supplier Sentinel Systems is expanding its services in Scotland and has appointed a new sales manager, Scott Logan, to support the Scottish and North of England market. He was previously a parts specialist for Scania.

Last but not least, Ryder has appointed Wendy Nicolson (above) to the position of rental sales executive for Scotland. She will be responsible for developing and growing Ryder’s rental business from its Glasgow, Edinburgh, and Newcastle locations. She was previously customer service supervisor within Ryder’s Glasgow location. She has nearly 15 years of experience in the commercial vehicle rental and leasing sector within Ryder and, prior to that, with Hill Hire.