• A. O. Smith recently announced Chairman AJITA RAJENDRA is retiring effective May 1. The company’s board of directors elected KEVIN WHEELER as chaiman of the Milwaukee-based water technology company effective upon Rajendra’s retirement. Wheeler will continue to serve as president and CEO of the company. Rajendra will remain a member of the company’s board of directors. 

    “Ajita has been an inspiring and visionary leader since the moment he joined the company in 2005 to run A. O. Smith’s water products division, as well as during his time at the helm of A. O. Smith as chief executive officer and president from 2013 to 2018,” said WILLIAM GREUBEL, lead director. “He built a strong team and developed the strategy that has resulted in the company’s current success in water technology.”

     
  • BRENT ANDERSON, president and CEO of the Mountain-Contractors Supply Group, recently announced his retirement at the end of the year. Mountain-Contractors Supply Group Is the holding company for Mountainland Supply and Contractors Heating and Cooling Supply. BRANDON JOHNSON has been named CEO and will take over Anderson’s responsibilities. Johnson joined the Mountainland-Contractors team in 2014 as corporate controller and was later promoted to CFO. Also, JOSEPH LITTLE has been named the new president of the Mountain-Contractors Supply Group. He had been serving as the company’s vice president and director of sales and marketing since 2018. Little has been with the company for more than 20 years.

    “The company expresses its gratitude to Brent and his team for his accomplishment in the nearly 40 years of steady leadership, including the transition to an ESOP In 2018,” Mountain-Contractors noted. “The employee/owners of Mountain-Contractors thank Brent for his years of service and look forward to continued growth and support of their new leadership team.”

     
  • Saniflo USA appointed RUBEN CEBALLOS to the newly created position of business development manager for the East Coast. Ceballos is based out of New Jersey and will work with eastern plumbing and heating wholesaler-distributors and contractors to increase sales through plumber product trainings to help the trade better understand the various pumping solutions Saniflo offers.

     
  • NAVAC hired BRYAN SCHWARTZ for the role of western regional sales manager. In this position, Schwartz will spearhead sales efforts and play a fundamental role in expanding the company’s customer base. Most recently, Schwartz was senior national training manager for LG Electronics.

     
  • The LUXURY PRODUCTS GROUP marketing and buying group added KUECO to its growing list of approved vendor partners. Keuco’s offering encompasses more than 4,500 different items in categories such as fittings, accessories, lights, mirrors, mirror cabinets, washbasins and bathroom furniture.

     
  • REHAU launched its new North America website at www.REHAU.com. The new site brings extensive resources to the desktops and mobile devices of REHAU’s customers throughout the United States and Canada, the company explained. The rebuilt interface offers deep educational content for customers and suppliers of REHAU’s wide-ranging polymer-based solutions. 

     
  • Raynham, Massachusetts-based Manufacturers rep firm SWEENEY ROGERS GERAGHTY announced new partnerships with manufacturers PRO1 THERMOSTATS out of Boulder, Colorado, and REFRESH FANS out of Coconut Creek, Florida. Both manufacturers will be represented in New England and upstate New York by SRGI.

     
  • CONSTRUCTION SPECIALTIES, a manufacturer of specialty building products, announces its acquisition of PLATFORM MANUFACTURING GROUP, a steel fabrication company based in Melissa, Texas. The acquisition, Construction Specialties notes, will expand its capabilities using steel to design products for enhanced building resilience.