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Columbia Appoints Three Senior Executives

Columbia Elevator Products Co. Inc. has named three new senior executives. Jim Yates has been appointed chief administrative officer, after serving Columbia as president and in various other capacities. Yates joined the company in 2008, bringing 30 years of finance and operations experience in a manufacturing environment, and understanding of cross-functional relationships. In his new position, he will oversee the “back of the house,” including such areas as finance, human resources and safety.

Marc Dinkes has been named chief customer officer, having previously served as Columbia’s vice president of systems. In his new position, he will oversee the “front of the house,” working with the sales, marketing, estimating and engineering departments. Dinkes joined Columbia in 2004 to help expand the company from a small, single location to the larger, multilocation operation it is today, utilizing his skills in system design, process development and technology. Dinkes commented, “My work spans every area of the company, so every day has new challenges. I enjoy developing innovative solutions to help the company grow and sustain quality.”

Kenneth D. Hendrickson has been appointed chief operations officer. He joins Columbia with decades of experience in the industrial/manufacturing field, most recently having served as general manager for Arens Controls, a division of the Curtiss-Wright Corp. Industrial Group. In his new position, he will oversee the manufacturing process, purchasing, shipping and overall quality control. According to Hendrickson, the objective of his new position is to “get each job to each customer, on time, with zero defects.”

McArthur Has New Position With NAEC

The National Association of Elevator Contractors (NAEC) has named Alesa McArthur Meetings and Exposition manager, filling the position formerly held by Kerrie Rebmann, who is stepping down to focus on her family. McArthur has more than 20 years’ experience in the hospitality and meeting-planning industry with an extensive skill set that includes sales and marketing, catering, event management and facilities management. While welcoming McArthur to the team, NAEC thanked Rebmann for her six years of “amazing” service.

NAESA Regional Officers Elected

NAESA International has elected regional officers. They are: Gerald Brown, Central Region; Bill Snyder, Eastern Region; and Mike Stewart, Western Region. Brown is a third-generation elevator constructor who serves as elevator-inspection program manager for the Nebraska Department of Labor. An elevator consultant at VTE Solution in the Tampa, Florida, area, Snyder has been a member of NAESA for almost 30 years and has served on its board of directors since 2005. A board member since 2011 and current Western Region treasurer, Stewart has been in the elevator industry since 1999, when he started work with Otis. He became a certified inspector with NAESA in 2005, going on to help develop programs for the State of Colorado and, currently, the Denver Fire Department.