Lavatec Laundry Technology Hires Washbrook as VP of Operations
BEACON FALLS, Conn. — Lavatec Laundry Technology continues to expand company resources with the addition of Tom Washbrook as vice president of operations.
Washbrook brings 40 years of industrial laundry experience in multiple disciplines, including machinery manufacturing, facilities and process design, construction management, laundry plant operations, equipment sales management and marketing.
His activities within the laundry community have spanned the globe, as he has provided various sales and technical services throughout North America, Central America, the Middle East, Asia and the South Pacific, the company says.
Fesmire Jr. Returns to Ellis Corp.; Mundt Also Joins Company
ITASCA, Ill. — Bob Fesmire Jr. has returned to the staff of Ellis Corp. in the newly created position of 
vice president of customer support. Joining him will be Craig Mundt, recently hired as director of customer support, also a new position.
Fesmire worked 13 years for Ellis, rising to vice president and chief operating officer, before leaving to work for Ecolab as corporate account manager and business improvement/SAT lead.
“I am thrilled to have Bob back in the organization,” says Bob Fesmire Sr., president/CEO of Ellis and Bob Jr.’s father. “This business is his passion, and we are very happy that he has returned. Bob will be heading a newly reorganized customer service group to place a stronger emphasis on our customer visibility within our organization.”
Mundt brings more than 30 years experience in sales, service and marketing in the laundry industry. Most recently, he was vice president of sales for Amko America. He is a former president of C&W Equipment, capital equipment manager at ARAMARK, and vice president of sales and marketing for American Laundry Machinery.
“With his years of industry experience on the consultant, customer and supplier side, he is a perfect fit,” Fesmire Sr. says of Mundt.
Tingue, Brown Appoints Bridge as Sales Representative in Northeast
SADDLE BROOK, N.J. — Tingue, Brown & Co. has appointed Jamie Bridge as sales representative serving the growing region of Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire and Rhode Island, the company says.
Bridge brings 22 years of laundry experience to his new assignment. Most recently, he spent eight years as general manager of a group laundry for a Boston-based restaurant chain. This operation processed and delivered table linen and uniforms to restaurants all along the East Coast.
“I’m very pleased to have Jamie Bridge join the Tingue, Brown team,” says Mitchell Strauss, Tingue’s North Region sales manager. “His decade-long experience in the laundry industry will strengthen our ability to serve our New England customers.”
Bridge lives in Dracut, Mass., with his wife and two children. In his spare time, Bridge coaches youth sports and has served on the board of directors for Dracut’s youth football program.
IPA Hires Hawthorne as Marketing Specialist
DULUTH, Ga. — Innovative Product Achievements (IPA) has added Kera Hawthorne, marketing specialist, to its expanding 
team. Her responsibilities are to evaluate, develop and execute on marketing initiatives relative to the mission of the organization, the company says.
Hawthorne has considerable experience overseeing marketing strategies, with recent experience at SunTrust Bank and a large consulting firm within the Manpower Group, says the maker of automated scrub suit and linen dispensing systems for the healthcare market.
Hawthorne is a graduate of Columbia College Chicago with a degree in marketing communications. She has also served on the American Marketing Association Young Professionals committee as the chair of graduate student recruitment.
