• A.O. Smith 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.”

     
  • Oatey Co. announced the promotion of Brian Suriner to vice president, wholesale national accounts. Suriner joined Keeney Mfg. Co. in 2014 as vice president of marketing and commercial sales. Oatey acquired Keeney late last year. In his new role, Suriner will manage corporate relationships at Ferguson, IMARK, AD, Winsupply, Hajoca, Commonwealth Group and Reese for the Oatey and Keeney businesses.

     
  • 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.

     
  • Fujitsu General America has separated its sales and marketing functions into two positions, now with a vice president of sales and a vice president of marketing. Dennis Stinson, who has served as director of national accounts for the past year and as regional sales manager for four years prior to that, has been promoted to vice president of sales. Erin Mezle, who has served in multiple roles at Fujitsu for the past 20 years, has been named vice president of marketing. In other Fujitsu news, the company promoted David Trautman to director of national accounts. He is focused on supporting key national accounts; leading unitary sales with RE Michel and assuming the leadership role with Ferguson corporate. Trautman previously was regional sales manager in the south-central region.

     
  • NSF International has completed the moves of two of its laboratories to one new 20,000-square-foot space in Ypsilanti, Michigan. The expanded location brings together all of NSF’s plastics testing and certification capabilities, including advanced chemical and structural testing on plastic pipes, fittings and valves, metal fittings and components, manifolds, solvent cements, thread sealants, PVC ingredients and plastic materials for global applications. The new facility, known as the Willow Run Laboratory, is about 15 miles from NSF’s headquarters in Ann Arbor. 

    The moving phases had been ongoing for more than a year, and the new Willow Run Laboratory has remained fully operational during the COVID-19 pandemic to fulfill NSF International’s public health and safety mission as it relates to product safety. Separate from testing for certification, the new lab also conducts custom plastic testing as well as research and development. This includes evaluating non-standard components using routine tests. It can also include evaluating routine components using non-standard tests and simulation of in-service conditions.

     
  • 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.