Electrical Execs on the Move: Carlson to step down at Southwire

Southwire (Carrollton, Ga.):  Jack Carlson, the  company’s president of North America, has decided to retire. He will serve in an advisory role to Southwire’s leadership team until May 31, 2016. Carlson began his career at Southwire in 2001 after more than 20 years of industry experience with leading companies such as Square D and Yale Security Group. Since that time, his influence and focus on innovation and growth have created a substantial impact on Southwire’s approach to developing customer solutions.

 “It has been a remarkable experience to work with Southwire, and I am extremely proud of the accomplishments we’ve been able to share over the last 15 years,” said Carlson. “We’ve built incredibly strong relationships with our distributors, agents and contractors and innovated safe and productive solutions that have positively changed the way our end users do business for the long term.”

 Carlson joined Southwire as president of the Electrical Division and was later promoted to president of North America. He served as a leader in all areas of the business including sales, marketing, product development, divisional growth and research, and his experience in the wire and cable industry sparked the innovation of creative and unique processes and products that benefit both the company and the end user.

 “I was fortunate to know of Jack prior to joining the team at Southwire and have had the great opportunity to personally work closely with him as I’ve begun my career with the organization,” said Rich Stinson, Southwire president and CEO. “His focus on meeting the needs of the customer, his innovative spirit and his impact on the market have been key influences that will continue, both inside and outside the walls of Southwire, long after his retirement.”

As the company positions itself to best serve the needs of its customers, Southwire has reorganized into business groups based on its approach to the market. Norman Adkins has been promoted to president of the Construction Systems and Solutions Group, and Charlie Murrah has been promoted to president of the Power Systems and Solutions Group.

Adkins, who previously served as president of Southwire’s electrical business, holds 18 years of experience with the company and has served in various roles including international manufacturing and business development, energy sales and also served as president of the company’s OEM business. Murrah, a more than 30-year veteran of the company, served most recently as president of the company’s energy business. Throughout his career, Murrah has held numerous responsibilities in areas including the company’s engineering, manufacturing and supply chain functions.

Hans Meiring, executive vice president of operations and international, will continue to lead the company’s efforts as it builds world-class manufacturing capabilities and extends its international presence, and Guyton Cochran, chief financial officer, will ensure the company remains a good steward of its financial resources. As general counsel, Burt Fealing will continue to ensure Southwire’s business operations meet its legal and ethical principles, and Kathleen Edge, executive vice president of human resources, will lead the growth of the company’s organizational capabilities.

Crescent Electric Supply Co. (East Dubuque, Ill.): The company has appointed Debra McCashin to the role of energy solutions manager; Eric Hauff to the position of director, corporate inside sales; and Randi Trumm to the position of sales operations manager.

In her new role, McCashin will manage a national team of energy business development managers and drive Crescent’s overall energy strategy. She will be responsible for developing business opportunities and selling energy solutions and services to senior level decision makers at end user accounts. McCashin joined Crescent Electric’s National Account team in September, 2015 after serving as V.P. of sales for the Leff Electric Co.

In Trumm’s new roles as sales operations manager, she will support strategic sales initiatives such as ongoing sales training, customer retention and promotion programs and continuous improvement activities and report to Darrin Anderson, senior vice president/COO. Prior to this promotion, she was regional financial operations manager for Crescent Electric’s Central Region.

Before his promotion to director, corporate inside sales, Hauff was industry marketing manager, and prior to that was a member of Crescent’s technical support center. He has been with the company since July, 2007. He will be relocating to Dubuque from Ohio with his wife and daughter.

Van Meter Inc. (Cedar Rapids, Iowa): Josh Patton will serve as regional customer service manager (RCSM) for the company’s recently-acquired Bright Electric location at 217 N. Western Avenue in Chicago. Patton will assume responsibility for the inside sales, counter sales, operations and lighting quotations teams in Chicago.

Bright Electric President David Borovsky will direct his focus to business development and leading the Bright Electric-Powered by Van Meter outside sales team.

Patton joined Van Meter in October of 2011 as an RCSM and then Sales Manager in Waterloo, Iowa. Prior to his time at Van Meter, Patton worked at RuffaloCODY and Grainger Industrial Supply. A graduate of the University of Phoenix, Patton holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Management. He also served in the U.S. Navy. Patton is passionate about giving back to the community. He shares his time and talent with Habitat for Humanity, Partners in Education, and Junior Achievement. Patton will transition to his new role in Chicago over the next 30 to 45 days.

Buckles-Smith Electric (San Jose, Calif.): Roger Stanger has accepted the new role of chief information officer at Buckles-Smith Electric. He has more than 30 years of industry experience in sales and operations, most recently as Buckles-Smith’s vice president of operations.

Kett Tool (Cincinnati): This manufacturer of electric and pneumatic portable power saws, shears and nibblers for sheet metal applications, has appointed Alex Rozumovich as the company’s new vice president, where he will oversee day-to-day activities, including marketing and sales, public relations and strategic planning, as well as engineering, quality control and manufacturing. Rozumovich succeeded Rick Fowkes, who retired after 34 years of service with the company.

Enlighted Inc. (Sunnyvale, Calif.):  A provider of Internet of Things (IoT) solutions for commercial buildings, announces the addition of four executives to the team: Gaile Gordon, Ian Larson, Eamonn Hughes and Ulrich Wenz.

​Gaile Gordon joins the team as a senior director of technology. With a doctorate in computer science from Harvard University, and more than 25 years of experience in computer vision related research and design (R&D) and product development, Gordon was a cofounder of TYZX Inc., which was acquired by Intel in 2012 for its renowned 3D cameras and image analysis applications.

Ian Larson comes to Enlighted with more than 20 years of experience in complex project implementations. Prior to joining Enlighted, Larson managed an office for a large tech and tenant improvement (TI)-based general contractor, managed a complex data based device for the aesthetics industry and managed numerous biologic, medical device and capital projects for the pharmaceutical industry.

​Eamonn Hughes has been appointed area vice president in Enlighted’s Northern European territory. Prior to joining Enlighted, Hughes served as the UK and Ireland country manager for Teradata.

Ulrich Wenz will serve as the area vice president in Central Europe, responsible for the adoption of IoT solutions in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.