New Appointments: July 2015-II

Drytac has appointed Darren Speizer as U.S. national sales manager. Speizer will manage the U.S. sales force and lead the charge as Drytac expands its distribution network and national accounts. He most recently worked at Seal.

Halco Lighting Technologies has hired Rob Freitag as director of Product Development. Freitag will lead the business’s product management and compliance team. He previously worked for EYE Lighting, Day-Brite Group, and Cooper Lighting. Halco has also hired Michael Goldberg as Northeast Regional sales manager. Goldberg is responsible for leading the sales and training of the independent agencies servicing electrical distributors in the Northeast region. He previously worked at Civilight, LumenOptix, Juno Lighting, and Progress Lighting.

ikeGPS announces a new partnership with the International Sign & Printmakers Guild to offer its 2,700-plus independent sign company members Spike, a laser measurement solution.

Miller Weldmaster has added Lance deJong to the sales team. deJong is responsible for managing customers and sales in the Midwestern United States, Ontario, and Quebec. He is tasked with increasing sales and maintaining customer relationships in that region. He most recently worked at Verseidag Seemee US.

Presto Tape, a US manufacturer of wide format print media, has partnered with wholesale supplier Reece Supply for distribution.

SMI Sign Systems recently closed on the purchase of a 30,000-square-foot manufacturing facility on ten acres of property at 4990 Winchester Blvd. in Frederick, MD. With zoning approval for two additional 24,000-square-foot buildings, SMI intends to invest in upgrades to the property to help foster the rapid growth of the company. Manufacturing of exterior signs will be transferred to the new Winchester facility.

Xaar has appointed Don Whaley as director of Sales, Xaar Americas. In addition, the company has also opened a new sales and support office in Texas. Whaley joins Xaar from Piksel Inc. Xaar has also hired Keith Smith to the new role of director of Advanced Manufacturing. Smith is responsible for identifying and developing strategic advanced manufacturing opportunities and partnerships outside Xaar’s established markets. His appointment marks a return to Xaar, having been sales manager for North and South America from 2002-05.