Trailer, truck & body OEMs

B-12 Transportation Group, a transportation-focused holding company that includes Diamond Acquisition and Brown Industries, a manufacturer of van bodies and specialty vehicles, recently named John Resnik its CEO. Resnik boasts more than 25 years in vehicle manufacturing, with three stops in the uplifting industry. The company also recently appointed Mark Radosevich as its chief financial officer and William Sprague as director of Human Resources and special projects.

Rail supplier news from Ricardo, Alstom, B12 Transportation, Transdev and Burns (Sept. 25)

Beijing Metro Construction Administration Corp. Ltd. has selected Ricardo to perform an independent safety assessment of a new metro line in eastern Beijing. Ricardo will ensure the safety of passengers, staff and surrounding communities during construction, installation, testing and commissioning of the new line in 2021, company officials said in a press release. The assessment’s scope extends across rolling stock, signaling, route infrastructure and communications technologies, as well as the safety management system.

Alstom, in a consortium with Setec Ferroviaire, has been awarded a $54.9 million contract by SNCF Reseau to supply its Atlas European Railways Traffic Management System Level 2 train control system on over 310 miles of the Paris-Lyon high speed line in Europe. Alstom will carry out the design, equipment supply, installation work, tests and maintenance of its Atlas solution. Setec Ferroviaire will be in charge of verifying the design, integrated project management and testing, Alstom officials said in a press release. Meanwhile, Alstom has been commissioned by Deutsche Bahn AG to retrofit 17 internationally operating ICE3 high-speed trains with its Atlas European Train Control System (ETCS) in a contract worth nearly $33 million. The new technology will allow the trains to be equipped for the new ETCS Level 2 high-speed line between Stuttgart and Ulm, Germany, officials said. Alstom has also been included in the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices for the ninth consecutive year. The company reached an overall score of 79 out of 100 in the corporate sustainability assessment.

The B12 Transportation Group LLC appointed John Resnik as chief executive officer, Mark Radosevich as chief financial officer and William Sprague as director of human resources and special projects. Resnik has over 25 years of executive leadership experience in vehicle manufacturing. Radosevich previously served as vice president of finance and administration for Innovest Holdings and Subs. In his new role, Radosevich will direct a shared services team across three locations and manage financial operations for the holding company and subsidiary manufacturing businesses. Sprague has more than 40 years of human resources and operations experience with an emphasis on the manufacturing sector. Sprague additionally served local government as city commissioner and mayor of Lapeer, Michigan.

Transdev North America promoted Ibrahima Toure from southwest region area vice president to regional VP. Toure joined Transdev in 2004 as a bus operator in Denver, and later worked as safety and training supervisor and general manager for Transdev’s operation in Chico, California, and VP of business development.

Burns Engineering hired Michael Ehrenberger as a signals and communications project manager. Ehrenberger has over 35 years of experience in vehicle system-level design and application of safety critical products for major railroad and transit clients. He is a systems and subject matter expert for the on-board advanced civil speed enforcement system, Burns officials said in a press release.

Rail supplier news from Brown Industries, HNTB, Strato, Transit Wireless and Alliance Shippers (Oct. 11)

Brown Industries LLC has introduced a patent-pending grapple truck designed to pull multiple loaded trains. The hybrid car mover can generate more than 20,000 pounds of tractive effort, Brown Industries officials said in a press release. The truck allows railroads to move rail cars in one day and conduct track maintenance the next day, they said.

HNTB Corp. hired Pamela McCombe as a senior project manager for transit and rail. She has nearly 35 years of industry experience. Prior to joining HNTB, McCombe served as a technical manager for another consulting firm and directed safety departments at several transit agencies, including the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority, St. Louis Transit Authority and Toronto Transit Commission. She is a senior instructor for the U.S. Department of Transportation Safety Institute, a member of the American Public Transportation Association’s Peer Review Teams and Operations Committee, and a member of the Transit Cooperative Research Program Committee.

Strato Inc. named Brian Cunkelman vice president of engineering to succeed Larry Hixon, who retired earlier this year after 15 years with the company. In his role, Cunkelman will be responsible for leading the research, development and engineering teams through all stages of product design and development. He will also oversee product launches and lean manufacturing process development. Prior to joining Strato, Cunkelman spent more than 25 years in various leadership and executive roles in the rail industry, Strato officials said in a press release.

Transit Wireless hired Eli Kay as chief financial officer and Michael Hoyt as senior vice president of product development, engineering and operations. Kay has more than 20 years of corporate finance, risk management, audit and tax experience. Most recently, he served as CFO for JFK International Air Terminal LLC’s Terminal 4, where he led the multibillion-dollar expansion and business negotiation with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey and Delta Airlines. Previously, Kay was CFO of Chicago Skyway and the San Mateo County Transit District. Hoyt has over 20 years of telecommunications and engineering experience. He previously served as an infrastructure consultant to several service providers across the United States and Europe.

Alliance Shippers Inc. received the SmartWay Excellence Award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for top environmental performance and energy efficiency in the freight supply chain. Alliance Shippers was one of 17 shippers and logistics firms to receive the distinction, Alliance Shippers officials said in a press release.

LAWRENCE, KAN. — Brown Industries, LLC, a subsidiary of B12 Transportation Group, announces its newest patent pending car rail vehicle — designed to pull multiple loaded trains, while remaining a fully functional grapple truck. This truck will allow more flexibility while working out in the field.

This hybrid car mover generates 20,000 + pounds of tractive effort with ease. Other features of this vehicle include Continental rail gear, the Brown Rail hydrostatic remote drive system, hydraulic tool circuit, Brown Rail custom material handling body, the Moley Magnetics ESB32 magnet system, the 2018 Western Star 4900SB and the Brown Rail Train Knuckle and Train Air.

“The car mover is one of the most versatile rail trucks in Brown’s rail vehicle lineup, allowing clients to move rail cars in one day and conduct track maintenance the next day. Essentially, clients can do more work with less vehicles,” said Stuart Seeger, rail director for Brown Industries.

“Brown Industries is a team that takes pride in creating the most durable, efficient, hard-working trucks available from design, through production to final finishing,” said Mark Radosevich, chief financial officer.

Brown Industries, LLC is a manufacturer of van bodies, rail equipment and specialty vehicles with manufacturing locations in Lawrence, KS and Henderson, CO. Brown Industries has been building top quality van bodies, trailers, rail equipment, trolleys and custom vehicles for more than 70 years, serving customers throughout North America.

If you would like more information about Brown Industries’ newest equipment, or for other news, please call Stuart Seegar, rail director, at (800) 255-6827, or email s.seeger@bcvi.com.

John Resnik named CEO of B12 Transportation Group; Mark Radosevich named CFO; William Sprague to director of HR and special projects

LAWRENCE, KAN. — John Resnik was named CEO of B12 Transportation Group, a PE-backed, transportation-focused holding company comprised of two wholly-owned subsidiaries: Diamond Acquisition, LLC – formerly Diamond Coach (Oswego, KS), a manufacturer of medium-sized composite buses, and Brown Industries, LLC (Lawrence, KS/Henderson, CO), a manufacturer of van bodies, rail equipment and specialty vehicles.

Resnik comes to B12 Transportation Group with over 25 years’ experience in vehicle manufacturing. Originally from central Kansas, Resnik has been CEO, CFO and COO of a number of entities, including three in the vehicle upfitting industry at the manufacturing level and one at the dealer level. His experience set includes leadership roles with ElDorado National, Champion Bus, Goshen Coach and Master’s Transportation.

Since joining B12 Transportation Group in July 2018, Resnik has implemented a new business structure at Brown Industries, consisting of three separate business units – van body, rail and trolley.

Mark Radosevich joined B12 Transportation Group’s executive leadership team in July 2018, bringing extensive experience leading administration, financial and IT operations. Radosevich directs a shared services team across three locations and manages all financial operations for the holding company and subsidiary manufacturing businesses.

Radosevich previously served as vice president of finance & administration for Innovest Holdings and Subs, a Kansas-based holding company whose portfolio companies include RBC Medical Innovations, a developer and manufacturer of medical devices within electromechanical and electro-energy sectors, and Energize Medical, LLC, the owner and licensor of intellectual property.

William Sprague, director of HR and special projects, joined B12 Transportation Group in May 2019. Sprague brings more than 40 years of human resources and operations experience in the private and public sectors with an emphasis in the manufacturing sector. Sprague has additionally served local government as city commissioner and mayor of Lapeer, Mich.

Brown Cargo Van was established in 1946 and developed the first dry freight cargo van made out of aluminum by any manufacturer. Brown Cargo Van was purchased in 2007 and the name changed to Brown Industries, LLC. In 2011, Brown created the rail division, which includes seven unique products to fill the MOW (maintenance of way) market.

Today, Brown Industries builds top quality van bodies, trailers, rail equipment, trolleys and custom vehicles for customers throughout North America. Brown Industries has manufactured equipment for the emergency management, law enforcement and mobile medical markets, as well as custom equipment for airport catering and windshield distribution.

Early in 2014, Jeff Hanneman, the Fleet Garage Foreman at the StarTribune in Minneapolis contacted Brown Industries’ Business Development Manager Bob Foster and indicated there were a number of straight trucks to be included in their upcoming purchasing plans. He expected the equipment configurations they used in the past would very likely change. The pending sale of the newspaper to Minnesota businessman Glen Taylor, along with the hiring of a new Director of Fleet and Logistics, prompted a complete re-examination of their delivery fleet. Given the significant pressures that a digitally-oriented world has created for the newspaper industry, maximizing asset utilization was the guiding force in developing new specifications.

For several decades, the fleet consisted of single axle units with 15’ van bodies and tandems with 24’ bodies. All the bodies were 96” wide because two paper carts fit side by side and allowed minimum lateral movement. Interior height was 85” because that was all that was required for cart loading, and in addition, allowed the trucks to access their production facility by a couple of convenient routes that have low clearance bridges near the plant.

All the new van bodies are mounted with a front mounted twin-cylinder direct lift hoist that allows the driver to level the floor if a drop is being done at a location that is sloped. A single cart of papers can weigh as much as 1,200 pounds, so the hoist capability was determined to be a must for the new equipment. The single axle based unit was lengthened to 20’ and all the bodies were spec’ed at 102” O.D. width and 103-1/2” I.D. height. These new dimensions allow them to haul a wide variety of freight when the trucks are not delivering newspapers, increasing asset utilization by hauling general freight locally and back hauling loads that might be available for units doing outstate deliveries.

Over several months, Jeff and Bob Foster worked through numerous specification revisions culminating in an order for six 20’ units and three 24’ tandems.
Their fleet now includes an additional four tandems, two of which are equipped with Palfinger ILD-44 rail gates.

Dick Lallak, Circulation Operations Manager, is extremely pleased with their decision to equip the trucks with Brown Cargo Van bodies. Their day to day operations are as tough on equipment as any freight-hauling operation. Thirteen BCVI bodies are meeting the test daily, and more are in the works as older trucks come up for replacement.

A little bit about some of our people

Jeff Hupke CEO

Jeff joined Brown Industries and the B12 Transportation Group as CEO in January 2016 (Brown is part of the B12 Transportation Group along with Diamond Coach Corporation). Jeff’s most recent experience prior to Brown was in roles as CFO, COO, CEO and Executive VP over a ten year period at Safe Fleet Corporation (formerly ROM Corp.). While at Safe Fleet, Jeff led the company through a period of tremendous growth and innovation in the fleet vehicle component space, including the completion and integration of nine add-on acquisitions in a five year period. Prior to Safe Fleet, Jeff held senior leadership roles at Kansas City start-ups MachineryLink and Netsales. Jeff is a graduate of Purdue University and holds an MBA in finance from Indiana University.

Robert “Bob” Foster Business Development Manager

Bob joined Brown Industries as a Business Development Manager in June 2015. Bob has nearly four decades of sales and sales management experience in both trucks and truck bodies and equipment. Bob sold Chevrolet trucks for a full line dealer and liked it so much he soon transitioned into the truck equipment world. Bob has been a Salesman and Sales Manager in the truck body business for the past 27 years and worked for Kolstad, LaHass, Delta-Waseca, Marion Body Works and most recently Towmaster in the Minnesota-Wisconsin area.

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LAWRENCE, Kan. – February 23, 2010 – Brown Cargo Van has revamped its reefer product line, and it’s green. Last summer the business began building eco-friendly custom refrigerated bodies, known in the industry as reefers, at its plant in Lawrence, Kan.

“The new reefers, based on the latest in foam technology, respond to our customers’ needs for a green product,” says Dane Jennison, Brown Cargo Van president. “We’re transportation specialists. We serve a broad spectrum of needs and offer our customers an unparalleled breadth of work and experience.”

The new foam is Ecomate© from Foam Supplies, Inc., of St. Louis. Based on methyl formate chemistry and responding to governmental mandates, ecomate© is hygienically safe, thermally efficient, recyclable, biodegradable and non-corrosive to equipment and end products. It has zero global warming potential, zero ozone-depletion potential and is exempt of volatile organic compounds (VOC).

“Absolutely the foaming process is different from what used to be standard,” says sales director Ron Thomson of Brown Cargo Van. “We also have an excellent construction method, built in a clamp so the sides are straight and true. It’s a nice product.”

Instead of starting with the dry van design, the new van is manufactured as a reefer “from the ground up,” Thomson says. It features new technology and better construction methods.

“Inside the wall clamp we use a pumped-in foam process that expands in volume to fill all voids before it sets up. We offer many different options for interior liners, floors and more,” he says.

Dairies and school districts as well as fruit, meat, seafood, produce and ice cream companies have bought Brown reefers. Non-food customers include greenhouses, nurseries and delivery companies, like Fed-Ex contractors, which have purchased climate-controlled units to transport sensitive commodities nationwide.

Like other Brown bodies, the reefer is eco-friendly. A high percentage of its parts are recyclable. Reefers are equipped with extruded front ends and recessed LED (light emitting diode) lights. Various safety and efficiency options are available on the reefers and all Brown bodies.

“Our customers buy our product for a long-term investment. They’re going to keep it for years,” Thomson says.

Brown Industries, LLC, manufacturer of Brown Cargo Vans since 1946 and the first ever manufacturer of aluminum van bodies, is proud to announce it has expanded and opened a new facility in Henderson, CO. The new location will assemble, mount and install specialty equipment / accessories on dry freight, refrigerated, cut-a-way, curtain side and custom van body kits in addition to building HD lumber bodies for customers in the U.S. West region.

The Colorado facility features a sales and shop team of seasoned van body / truck equipment manufacturing veterans that bring over 113 years of combined experience from Timpte, Inc. and Alfred Ind.
Employees include: Jerry Smittkamp, Sales/Branch Manager; Dawn Lawson, Office Manager; Jeremy Hayes, Shop Manager; Cory Martinez, Lumber Body Specialist; Tom Gainey, Liftgate & Repair Specialist; and Chris Vargas, Assembly & Paint Specialist.

“Finding people with the experience and knowledge that we have working for us on the front range, coupled with a facility that’s the right size to assemble kits from our main plant represented an opportunity we couldn’t pass up,” says Dane Jennison, President of Brown Industries, LLC.

“We’re excited about the increased capacity that this facility offers and we’re looking forward to developing new customer relationships.”

For the past few years Brown Industries have been installing industry-leading Effer knuckle boom cranes on their rail service trucks. Stuart Seeger, Brown rail equipment Director and sales representative since 2010, has been selling those Brown-built trucks across America at a blistering pace.

So it should have come as no surprise to Seeger and David Price, CEO of Brown Industries, that representatives from the crane company wanted to acknowledge Seeger’s accomplishments during a recent visit to the Effer facilities on the outskirts of Bologna, Italy. But the scope of Seeger’s sales feat came sharply into focus when Effer’s President presented him with the Special Recognition Award commemorating the 10,000,000 ft. lbs. of crane sales Seeger had facilitated over the previous two years. That number translates to an astonishing $3 million in crane sales directly attributable to Seeger, who is Brown Industries’ leading salesman.

Brown Industries CEO David Price joined in praising Seeger for his work. “Great products deserve great salesmen, and Seeger certainly fits that description,” Price said. “We at Brown Industries congratulate Stuart on his award, and look forward to a strong continuing relationship with Effer.”

For over 65 years Brown Industries, based in Lawrence, Kansas, has lead the way in innovation, durability and value in custom service vehicles. For more on Brown-built rail trucks, cargo vans and specialty vehicles, visit www.bcvi.com.