Jeffrey S. Mitchell, Rae M. Oakes

Jeffrey S. Mitchell of Shreveport has joined Balar Associates Inc., a Shreveport civil engineering consulting firm, as business development coordinator.

Mitchell has extensive marketing experience and will represent the firm in future business acquisition endeavors.

Balar Associates also named Rae M. Oakes as director of marketing and business development. Oakes is a graduate of Louisiana State University - Shreveport and a longtime Shreveport resident. She has worked in the architectural and engineering fields for four years and will direct all activities for the firm's marketing and business development departments.

George V. Baus Jr.

George V. Baus Jr. recently joined Gallagher of Louisiana in the New Orleans office as a vice president specializing in bonding and insurance for contractors. Gallagher of Louisiana has offices in Baton Rouge, Lake Charles, Monroe, Plattenville and New Orleans, and is part of Arthur J. Gallagher, the world's fourth largest insurance brokerage firm.

Baus was formerly with Zurich North America for 11 years as an executive in both the Financial Services units. While there, he worked to re-establish and expand the company's New Orleans office through marketing and underwriting efforts for the construction and banking industries.

He is a Tulane University graduate and is currently enrolled in the MBA program at the Tulane A.B. Freeman School of Business. He has received the CIC designation from the Society of Certified Insurance Counselors. Baus has competed in the New York an Chicago Marathons.

Henry Holton

Cleve Mathis, regional manager of Labor Finders, recently announced that Henry Holton has been appointed as the manager of a new office in Alexandria. The office is located at 4509 Lee St.

Labor Finders now has 10 offices in Louisiana. The three newest offices are located in Lafayette, Lake Charles and Alexandria. Labor Finders specializes in furnishing workers to the construction industry.

Matt Hayes

Matt Hayes was recently named the new owner of 1-800-GOT-JUNK?, a franchise in Baton Rouge that services the commercial and residential markets.

1-800-GOT-JUNK? is a full service junk removal company, with up to 60 percent of the material recycled or donated to local charities.

Hayes, a former executive with a paper mill in Pine Bluff, Ark., said the company was created by CEO Brian Scudamore, and has hauled more than 75,000 tons of junk since its founding in 1989.

Barry N. Natwick

Barry N. Natwick has been appointed president of Volvo Construction Rents Inc. (Volvo CE Rents).

The announcement of Natwick's appointment, which is effective immediately, was made recently by Scott Hall, executive vice president, Volvo Construction Equipment, Brussels, and chairman of the Volvo Construction Equipment Rents Inc. board of directors. Natwick was formerly vice president of Volvo's equipment rental franchise operations for North America and the company's global fleet management operations. As president, he will be responsible for the global activities of Volvo CE Rents.

Natwick, a member of the original development group that organized the Volvo CE Rents initiative in 2001, has nearly 30 years of experience in the equipment rental and construction equipment manufacturing and distribution industries.

"Barry Natwick brings Volvo CE Rents an outstanding record of achievement in driving revenue growth in his positions with other companies in the rental and manufacturing industries and during his tenure with Volvo CE Rents," said Scott Hall. "He has given us invaluable expertise in creating Volvo CE Rents, and he is now in charge of the operations of the company he helped build."

Natwick began his career in the construction equipment industry in 1977 in a service and sales capacity with L. B. Smith, Inc., one of the largest heavy equipment distributors in North America. In 1979 he joined John Deere Construction Equipment Company as a market and product support representative for the company's eastern region.

His positions with John Deere until 1994 included area manager of product support, sales manager for southern New England, senior financial analyst and division manager of product support for the company's eastern region, and manager of product support and marketing for John Deere's North American Construction Division.

In 1994 Natwick was appointed vice president of product support for the North America operations of JCB, Inc., a position he held for six years, accomplishing a major and successful aftermarket support operation.

In January 2000, Natwick joined a major construction equipment rental company as vice president of fleet management responsible for the management of revenue assets, purchasing of rental and rolling vehicle fleet, utilization management and centralized warranty for a $300 million aerial and general construction equipment rental fleet. Under his management, the company's rental fleet was expanded from primarily an aerial work platform base to general rental equipment and the directed the fleet purchase programs.

In 2001 Natwick joined Volvo Construction Equipment Rents as a vice president with responsibilities for fleet negotiations, purchases, and management for the company's worldwide operations. He was appointed vice president for Volvo CE Rents North America operations in May 2003.