People

Jan. 1, 2006
3M Co. (St. Paul, Minn.): George W. Buckley has been elected chairman, president and chief executive officer, succeeding interim chairman and CEO Robert

3M Co. (St. Paul, Minn.): George W. Buckley has been elected chairman, president and chief executive officer, succeeding interim chairman and CEO Robert S. Morrison, who had led the company since July 1, 2005. Buckley comes to 3M from Brunswick Corp. where he served as chairman and chief executive officer since June 2000.

3M Electrical Markets Division (Austin, Texas): Bob Custer has been named national sales manager for commercial and industrial markets. Custer also heads the 3M Sales Connection for New Orleans, a quarterly information-sharing gathering of all 3M salespeople in a geographic area. Custer has worked in the electrical division at 3M for 24 years.

Klein Tools (Chicago): With 20 years of experience at Klein Tools, David Tawney has been promoted to Western regional sales manager. The region includes California, Nevada, Arizona and New Mexico. Michael Canada has been promoted to regional sales manager, Texas region. Previously, he was a national accounts manager and a sales manager for the South Central region. Tawney and Canada are each responsible for training, coaching and supporting district managers in their respective regions as well as developing and enhancing relationships with distributors and end users.

Rexel Inc. (Dallas): Rexel has restructured product management positions in its Dallas corporate office. Robert Stroescu is now product manager - lighting. He joined Rexel's marketing department in 2000 as a market analyst and most recently was product manager for datacom. He succeeds Karl Williams, who was promoted to director of product management. Erynn Mullinax Keenen has been appointed product manager - datacom. Keenen came to Rexel in 1992, taking a position at its Kansas City branch. She transferred to Dallas in 1999, where she has worked in various datacom positions. Keenen and Stroescu are two of the company's five product managers; all report to Williams at Rexel's Dallas national headquarters.

Tyco Electrical and Metal Products (Harvey, Ill.): Roger Vaught was recently promoted to vice president of marketing for the electrical division of Tyco Electrical and Metal Products. Vaught will be responsible for overseeing all worldwide marketing efforts for Tyco Electrical brands, including Allied Tube & Conduit, AFC Cable Systems, Power-Strut, and TJ Cope. Vaught joined the Tyco organization in 2003 as director of sales and marketing, and has been in the electrical industry since 1982.

Arlington Industries (Scranton, Pa.): Joe Carroll has been appointed Midwest regional sales manager. Most recently, he was vice president of sales and marketing for Milbank Manufacturing Co.

American Power Conversion (APC, Kingston, R.I.): Tom Goldman has been appointed vice president, global sales. Most recently, he was president and chief executive officer of NetBotz Inc., which APC acquired in October 2005. Goldman succeeds Ed Bednarcik, who is leaving APC to pursue other opportunities.

B & K Electric Wholesale (City of Industry, Calif.): B & K has announced the following appointments to its executive team: Mike Blanchard has been named senior vice president; Todd Brown was named regional vice president - Rockwell Division; and Todd Sprague has been appointed regional vice president - Square Division.

Schneider Electric (Palatine, Ill.): The Schneider Electric North American Operating Division has appointed Andy Gravitt vice president of industrial automation and control. Gravitt has 13 years of experience with Schneider Electric's North American Operating Division. He most recently served as vice president of customer operations and process improvement.

Leff Electric (Cleveland): Bill Better has been appointed vice president of sales and marketing. Better comes to Leff with 20 years of experience in the industry. He previously was vice president of operations for Rexel USA. Jim Milligan joins Leff Electric as national accounts manager with 12 years of electrical industry experience. Most recently, he was regional national accounts manager for Lithonia Lighting. Ben Austin has been promoted to corporate IT manager. He previously was IT manager for Leff Akron Electric. Angela Svadba, marketing manager, has added internal marketing to her responsibilities. She will manage employee recruitment, development and retention.

Siemens Energy & Automation Inc. (Alpharetta, Ga.): James S. Vanden Hoek has been promoted to vice president, channel management and development. Previously, he was director of that group. Vanden Hoek joined Siemens Energy & Automation in 2002.

Schaedler Yesco Distribution Inc. (Harrisburg, Pa.): Kurt Suchar has been appointed director of industrial and OEM sales. Formerly industrial automation manager, in his new role Suchar will be responsible for the overall planning and direction of the industrial and OEM business as well as direct the outside sales teams in the Harrisburg, Lancaster and York, Pa., geographies. Doug Sheaffer, former outside sales manager, has been named director of construction and commercial sales. In addition to leading construction and commercial sales efforts, Sheaffer will manage the outside sales teams in the Williamsport and State College, Pa., geographies.

Obituaries

Glenn T. Kern, a long-time member of the National Electrical Manufacturers Representatives Association (NEMRA), died Nov. 22. He was 65 years old.

Kern joined NEMRA in 1980 and worked for several Pittsburgh-area rep agencies, most recently Synergy Electrical Sales Inc., Fairless Hills, Pa.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Shriners Hospital for Children, 1645 W. Eighth St., Erie, PA 16505.

Thomas J. Schaedler Jr., vice president and a member of the board of directors for Schaedler Yesco, Harrisburg, Pa., died Nov. 27 due to complications from lung cancer. He was 61 years old.

After receiving his doctorate in clinical psychology in 1973, he worked for more than 10 years as a psychologist before joining his two brothers in the family business in 1985. He was responsible for opening branch offices in Carlisle, Pa., in 1988; and Williamsport, Pa., in 1990.

He is survived by his wife, Rosemary Alitto Schaedler; two daughters, Elizabeth A. Schaedler, and Antoinette Mandich; two brothers; and two granddaughters.

Memorial contributions may be made to the American Cancer Society, Capital Region Unit, 3211 North Front St., Suite 100, Harrisburg, PA 17110; or the St. Francis of Assisi Soup Kitchen, 1459 Zarker St., Harrisburg, PA 17104.

John F. Hendricks Jr., executive vice president and part owner of Goldschmidt Electrical Sales, Cincinnati, died Dec. 10. He was 56 years old.

Hendricks was a graduate of the Certified Professional Manufacturers Representatives Program and an active member of the National Electrical Manufacturers Representatives Association (NEMRA).

He is survived by his wife, Pam Hendricks; son, John Hendricks; two daughters, Laura Sanders and Julie Cobaugh; a sister; brother; and four grandchildren.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Michael Quinlan Brain Tumor Foundation, P.O. Box 4005, Louisville, KY 40204.

Gordon J. Yardley, a long-time leader in the electrical industry, died Dec. 12 in Edgbaston, United Kingdom. He was 74 years old.

Yardley started his career in electrical distribution with Newey and Eyre in Birmingham, England, in 1951 and became managing director in 1974. He acquired Summers Electric, Dallas, in 1979; Glasco Electric, St. Louis, Mo., in 1980; and ESD, San Diego, in 1980 for the parent company Thomas Tilling, London, England. He continued in the distribution industry as an executive director at BTR in London overseeing some of the former Tilling companies until his retirement in 1991.

He is survived by his wife, Jillian, and two daughters, Anne and Jane. He was preceded in death by his son, Tim.

Reginald “Reg” Callender, who spent more than 50 years working in the electrical industry, died Dec. 25. Callender retired from B & K Electrical Wholesale, City of Industry, Calif., in August of 2005. His career followed his parents, Lucille and Oppie Callender, in the ownership of Buena Park Wholesale Electric. He is survived by three sons, one daughter and many grandchildren.