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People News: Greenbrier; Duos; WSP-USA; Greater Cleveland RTA

Written by Marybeth Luczak, Executive Editor
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The Greenbrier Companies has announced leadership promotions in five business units. In addition, Duos Technologies Group, Inc. has appointed rail industry veteran Edmond (Ed) L. Harris to its Board of Directors; WSP-USA has named Thomas LeBeau and Darwin Desen to the national Transit and Rail team; and Greater Cleveland RTA has named Mark Petit Deputy General Manager of Innovation and Technology.

The Greenbrier Companies

Brian Comstock has been promoted to Chief Commercial & Leasing Officer, preceding the planned retirement of Mark Rittenbaum in August 2022. Comstock will execute Greenbrier’s go-to-market strategy in North America and South America, and continue to direct all Greenbrier Commercial & Leasing strategies in the Americas.

Rittenbaum will remain an Executive Vice President and Senior Advisor to Chairman and CEO William A. Furman, and will aid the Commercial & Leasing group in its transition to new leadership.

“Greenbrier President and COO Lorie Tekorius and I have worked with Mark and Brian over many years in our Commercial & Leasing business,” Furman said. “Together with other team members, they developed multiple long-term railcar purchase agreements and strong customer relationships. Through their leadership, Greenbrier has grown its lease investor and customer base, contributing to sustained cash flow and shareholder value. Mark and Brian were both critical to executing the successful 2019 ARI acquisition, and in facilitating market expansions around the world.”

William Krueger, Senior Vice President of the Greenbrier Manufacturing Organization (GMO) business unit, has assumed responsibility for the facilities in Arkansas and Missouri, part of Greenbrier’s ARI acquisition. He will also manage all Greenbrier manufacturing automation and process development.

Rick Galvin, who joined Greenbrier in 2019 as Senior Vice President, Operations for the Greenbrier Rail Services (GRS) business unit, is succeeding Rick Turner, who led GRS since 2013 and retired on Dec. 31, 2020. Dan Weiler, head of the Greenbrier Management Services (GMS) business unit, now reports to Tekorius, along with Galvan. Weiler and Galvan are expected to drive synergies between the GRS and GMS railcar aftermarket businesses.

In Human Resources, Laurie Dornan has been promoted to Senior Vice President, Chief Human Resources Officer. Dornan joined Greenbrier in 2014 and has more than 20 years of HR experience.

“These executive leadership advancements support Greenbrier’s policy to effectively develop future generations of talent while maintaining continuity in our current strategies and operations,” Furman said.

Duos Technologies

Ed Harris, Duos Technologies Board of Directors

Ed Harris has been appointed to the Board of Directors at Duos Technologies, an advanced analytical technology solutions provider. He will serve as Chairman of the Jacksonville, Fla.-based company’s Nominating and Governance committees. Harris served previously as Executive Vice President of Operations for CSX, and held similar positions at Canadian Pacific and Illinois Central.

“Ed has many decades of leadership experience in key areas of rail and transportation systems operation, strategy implementation, and technology development, all of which are vital areas for our current as well as future operations and growth strategy,” Duos Technologies Board Chair Kenneth Ehrman said. “We look forward to benefitting from his hands-on counsel and deep industry relationships.”

WSP USA

Thomas LeBeau, Transit and Rail Market Lead, WSP USA

Thomas LeBeau and Darwin Desen have been named Vice Presidents at engineering and professional services consultancy WSP USA. LeBeau will serve as the Transit and Rail Market Lead, and Desen will serve as Senior Managing Director for Transit and Rail. Both will be based in the firm’s Dallas, Texas, office.

LeBeau will help expand and drive practice growth in the Texas region and monitor production work to ensure it is delivered within scope, schedule and budget. He has held executive-level positions in all areas of the industry, including with public agencies and private consultants.

Darwin Desen, Senior Managing Director for Transit and Rail, WSP USA

Desen will manage the design and delivery of large, complex rail infrastructure projects, including freight railroad main lines, yards, terminals and support facilities, and commuter and light rail projects. He has more than 30 years of experience with public and private clients.

“WSP has a strong transit and rail business in the Texas area and these two outstanding senior level executives will support our local teams to ensure our clients have the resources and solutions they need to address complex challenges,” WSP Deputy National Transit and Rail Market Leader Frank Banko said.

Greater Cleveland RTA

Mark Petit has been named Deputy General Manager of Innovation and Technology for the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (RTA). Petit brings more than 30 years of experience leading technology teams and initiatives as an outsourced Chief Information Officer (CIO) in both the private and public sectors. Petit’s first day was Feb. 1.

Mark Petit

Recently, Petit was CIO for The City of Akron, serving on the Mayor’s cabinet and leading smart city initiatives. Managing Akron and Summit County’s IT operating budget of more than $9 million, Petit “developed multi-year strategies with initiatives that improved staffing, operations, applications, infrastructure, compliance, security and cloud,” RTA noted. Petit also led cyber security programs including threat prevention and mitigation, and served on the leadership team for the Summit County Executive’s office. His efforts throughout local and county governments spanned utilities, data analytics, smart Internet of Things (IoT) controls, public safety, digital infrastructure, business continuity and multiplatform hybrid cloud initiatives.

“I am excited the be a part of the RTA executive team to use my experience to ensure the technology platforms and IT teams are optimized and aligned with the organization’s strategic plan,” Petit said. “I look forward to the opportunity to find innovative ways to improve the RTA and its services for the communities that it serves.”

The selection of Petit followed a national search.

“We are pleased to welcome Mark to the RTA leadership team and look forward to his energy and experience in the technology industry to help boost our agency’s digital profile as we move forward,” said RTA CEO and General Manager India Birdsong.  “Understanding the importance of technology in such a virtual-dependent time only underscores the urgency for this position at RTA, and we are confident that Mark’s leadership will be instrumental in leading this initiative.”

Petit holds a degree in Business Administration and Marketing from the University of Akron.
 

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