Jonathan Rampone, Chris Moore

Hand Construction of Shreveport recently hired Marine Corps Iraqi War veterans Jonathan Rampone and Chris Moore.

Rampone and Moore are equipment operators and provide project maintenance services to Hand Construction. They plan to attend school to further their education in building construction.

While in the Marines, Moore was a heavy equipment operator for the Marine Transportation Support Unit. His responsibilities included building and improving roads and providing security berms around Marine bases in Iraq. He was born in California, raised in Louisiana and recently returned to Shreveport.

Rampone was an armory custodian in Golf Company, Second Battalion, Fifth Marines. It was his responsibility to locate, collect, track and provide simple repair/maintenance of weapons. Rampone was born in Missouri and recently relocated to the Shreveport area.

"What most people don't realize is that there is a lot of good being done in Iraq, but it just never gets reported in the news," Rampone said.

"We built hospitals, schools and worked to rebuild their police forces," Moore said. "We also provided a lot of humanitarian relief, like food, water and shelter to families as well as evacuating men, women and children out of combat zones, sometimes putting ourselves at risk to do so."

J. Christopher Dighton

J. Christopher Dighton has been named chief information officer of Turner Industries Group LLC in Baton Rouge. A Turner Industries employee since 1986, Dighton has held various positions in operating divisions and in the Management Information Systems Division.

Dighton was most recently the interim director of information technology. He holds a bachelor's degree in industrial technology from Louisiana State University and recently received his MBA from LSU.

Dighton, an active member of the community, has held numerous leadership roles in scouting, church and junior achievement.

Turner Industries Group has a nearly 12,000-member work force and is consistently ranked in the top 100 contractors in the maintenance, petrochemical and industrial sector by Engineering News-Record.

Rick Delcoure, Dan Pottratz

F. H. Myers Construction Corp. of Harahan recently hired two new project managers.

Rick Delcoure, a former resident of New Orleans, returns to the New Orleans area after 15 years of construction experience in the Seattle, Wash., area. He is a 1973 graduate of Nicholls State University with a bachelor's degree in construction management.

In Washington, he worked for Baugh Industrial Contractors as a Bellingham division manager supervising project managers and engineers.

In Seattle, he was employed by Bridgeway Construction Co. as an operations manager and Sabey Construction Co. as a senior project manager and estimator.

"We are very fortunate to have Rick join our team," said President Fred Myers. "He brings a broad range of construction experience and knowledge to our firm."

Dan Pottratz, a former resident of Chicago, Ill., is a 1998 graduate of Iowa State University with a bachelor's degree in construction engineering. Previously, he was employed as a project manager with Weis Builders Inc. of Rolling Meadows, Ill., and E. W. Corrigan Construction Co. of Oak Brook, Ill.

"Dan's enthusiasm and experience in project management will certainly be an asset to our firm," Myers said. "This young talent represents the future of our industry."

Bill Brasher

Bill Brasher has been hired as a project manager for Dean Hart Construction LLC of West Monroe.

Brasher will cover north Louisiana and will be based in the main office.

Richard Bickle has been hired as Dean Hart Construction's Southern Region director of construction and is based in the Lafayette office.

Connie B. Whittle, Chris Rayer

Shavers-Whittle Construction Inc. of Mandeville recently promoted Connie B. Whittle to executive vice president and Chris Rayer to vice president.

Whittle has been with Shavers-Whittle Construction since its inception and manages payroll, accounts payables, health insurance, property, management, labor compliance and office/field computer support.

Rayer joined the company in 2001 as an estimator/project manager with more than 15 years experience in civil and marine construction.

Alex Kummant

Komatsu America Corp. recently announced that Alex Kummant has been appointed as executive vice president and chief marketing officer (CMO).

"We are pleased and excited to bring in Alex's broad expertise and experience to the Komatsu team," said Dave Grzelak, chairman and CEO of Komatsu America Corp.

Kummant will have broad responsibility for the mining and utility business segments, as well as the marketing functions of the construction equipment business.

Most recently, Kummant was president of BOMAG, the Germany-based manufacturer of heavy and light equipment for soil, asphalt and refuse compaction.

His earlier career history includes seven years with Emerson Electric Company. He has held a number of general management positions of increasing size and complexity, including several years at Union Pacific Railroad.

Kummant holds a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from Case Western Reserve University, a master's degree in manufacturing engineering from Carnegie Mellon University and a master's degree from Stanford University.

Komatsu America Corp. is a wholly owned U.S. subsidiary of Komatsu Ltd.

Randy Noland

Topcon recently added Randy Noland to its corporate staff as 3D machine control product sales manager for the United States and Canada.

This new position was created to respond to the increasing demand for Topcon's machine control products specifically designed for earthmoving, excavating and grading operations.

Noland will provide on-site technical support and training for these products.

Noland brings 20 years of experience in the sales and distribution of survey instruments and three recent years experience with machine control systems. During these years, he represented products from Geotronics, Spectra-Precision and Trimble.

Topcon is constantly creating new applications of technology that provide solutions specifically designed for the contractor.

Amanda Johnson

Houston-based Interface Consulting International Inc. recently announced that Amanda Johnson has joined the company as its new executive coordinator.

Johnson's responsibilities will focus on supporting the firm in marketing and business relations. She will also collaborate with the quality assurance department to promote the firm's pursuit of quality and innovation in its work products and marketing endeavors.

Johnson graduated from the University of Texas with a bachelor's degree in journalism.

Prior to joining Interface Consulting, she worked as an administrative and marketing assistant for the nation's third largest commercial real estate firm, where she produced its marketing literature. Her career has also included editing for a historical novel and a collegiate newspaper along with marketing support for a debt registry company.

Clay Hoffpauir, Chris M. Fincher

Godwin Pumps recently announced the addition of two new sales engineers to its team located at Godwin's rental office in Houston.

Clay Hoffpauir of Spruger, Texas, joined Godwin Pumps as a sales engineer responsible for developing new business and serving existing customers in the Beaumont industrial area and Lake Charles.

Chris M. Fincher of Houston joined Godwin as a sales engineer. Fincher's primary focus will be rentals and sales to industrial and petrochemical accounts southeast of the ship channel. Fincher earned a bachelor's degree in economics and political science from Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, Texas.