Toyota Material Handling, U.S.A., (TMHU) Chairman and CEO Dr. Shankar Basu today announced the appointment of Brett Wood to president, effective immediately.
Basu, outgoing president, has been influential in catapulting the company to its No. 1 lift truck supplier ranking and will remain active in the company serving as CEO and taking on the new role of chairman. Basu also continues to serve on the TMHU board and as a director on the Toyota Industrial Equipment Manufacturing (TIEM) board of directors. Wood will now serve on the TMHU board as well.
“Brett Wood brings a unique mix of hands-on experience across many facets of our business, including dealer relations, product development, strategic planning and marketing,” said Basu. “His loyal devotion to Toyota and deep expertise in the lift truck market make him the ideal candidate for the job. I look forward to working hand-in-hand with him to lead TMHU into the future.”
Wood, who will report to Basu, formerly served as the company’s vice president of marketing, product and strategic planning and training operations and previously oversaw dealer development as well. He has been influential in identifying the trends and requirements of the material handling industry and developing Toyota products and corporate strategies that meet U.S. lift truck users’ needs.
BASF Turf & Ornamentals announced it has appointed Randy Lusher as Sales Specialist for Illinois and Wisconsin. Lusher will help distributors, golf course superintendents, nursery and greenhouse growers, and lawn care operators select science-based solutions to grow healthy plants and turf.
Prior to joining the Turf & Ornamentals team, Lusher held a Sales Specialist position with BASF Professional Vegetation Management (ProVM). During the 24 years he worked with ProVM, Lusher used his wealth of practical experience to build strong relationships with his customers in the roadside, aquatic and utility markets.
“Randy’s years of exceptional service to BASF customers will be a great asset for us,” said Dr. Toni Bucci, BASF Turf & Ornamentals Business Manager. “We’re happy to add an experienced leader to the sales team for support in the Midwest.”
Jon Hudson, regional manager for Stone Construction Equipment, announced the appointment of Mathew Smith of Denver, Colo., as district manager. Smith has more than seven years of experience in the construction equipment industry, most recently with Volvo Rents. His new responsibilities include servicing the needs of equipment dealers and rental houses in the states of Oklahoma, New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, Utah and parts of Texas.
Stone Construction Equipment, a 100-percnet employee-owned company, is a manufacturer, designer and marketer of construction equipment.
Bird-X, Inc., provider of humane bird and animal pest control solutions, announces the hiring of Dave Kogan as marketing manager. Mr. Kogan coordinates and manages all the marketing functions for Bird-X, Inc. and its subsidiaries including the management of their advertising, public relations, trade show management and SEO/web marketing.
“Bird-X is going through a tremendous growth period and wanted to bring in a marketing professional who could help take Bird-X to the next level,” said Joe Seid, National Sales Manager at Bird-X, Inc. “We want to break out of our niche and sell our proven humane bird pest control products to more markets, and the addition of Dave has been crucial to that goal.”