James A. ‘Jim’ Petersen has been appointed Director of Marketing & Business Development. Petersen will be responsible for managing Gainco’s domestic and international marketing activities, as well as the identification, exploration and cultivation of new markets and new product opportunities. Prior to taking on these responsibilities, Petersen served as sales director for Gainco. Before joining the company in 2000, he held sales and managerial positions at Bettcher Industries as well as several food processing companies – Lykes Brothers and Sunnyland, Inc.
Jim Hipple has joined Gainco as Director of Sales. In this position, Hipple will direct all domestic and international sales activities, including the company’s field sales organization. Hipple has more than 20 years of sales and managerial experience in the poultry industry. Before joining Gainco, he served in divisional and regional sales manager positions at Meyn America and Prime Equipment Group. He has also held field sales positions with Dapec, Breuil Automation and Stork Gamco which included account management responsibilities for leading processors such as Perdue, Gold Kist, ConAgra, Gold’n Plump and Wayne Farms. Hipple holds a B.S. degree in Agricultural Mechanization Technology from the University of Georgia.
Gainco also announces the appointment of Brian E. Porter as the company’s Manager of Sales Engineering, with responsibilities for managing sales engineering as well as the development of systems and equipment that fully satisfy customer needs. Prior to appointment to this post, Porter served as manager of customer project development at Gainco – as well as at Weigh Systems South prior to that company’s acquisition by Gainco – where he was responsible for managing all aspects of domestic and international projects including quotations, project management and equipment installation. Porter has served on Gainco’s New Product Development Team since 2003.
Commenting on the new appointments, Don Esch, President, stated, “These gentlemen bring strong practical experience, in addition to marketing and technical capabilities, to their positions. As a U.S.-based manufacturer – rather unusual in our equipment segment – these appointments are part of our continuing commitment to secure the best U.S.-based talent. These new members of our senior team have the proven skills to meet the needs for efficiency, flexibility and service that meat and poultry processors increasingly require from suppliers today.”
For more information on Gainco’s systems and services, contact Jim Petersen at (770) 534-0703. FAX: (770) 534-1865. E-mail:
