GRIMSBY, Ontario—Cimcorp Group, a manufacturer of turnkey robotic gantry-based order fulfillment and tire-handling solutions, has hired Markus Rimmele to be general manager of its U.S. Operations and Technology Services.
He succeds Vesa Hakanen, who served in the position for more than two decades.
In his role, Rimmele will head the U.S. office in Norcross, Ga., of Cimcorp, which is part of Murata Machinery Ltd. He will manage technology and service support for Cimcorp's U.S. customer base and guide economic targets in the region.
Rimmele has more than 20 years of experience in electrical engineering, the commissioning of multimillion-dollar equipment, operations management, team building and business development. Originally from Germany, he has worked in a wide range of industries, including automotive, medical devices, solar energy, machine tooling and materials handling.
Rimmele started his career as a service technician and controls engineer, and he worked his way up to managerial positions, leading the implementation and servicing of European technologies in the North American market.
Rick Trigatti, Cimcorp's North America president, said the firm's U.S. office, open since the second quarter of 2016, has become an established home base for Cimcorp's North American field services.
"This has made a profound impact on both our business as well as our customers, who benefit from fast, expert local support," Trigatti said. "As Vesa passes the reins to Markus, I look forward to seeing how he will elevate our profitability and customer satisfaction across the nation."
Rimmele, in his last role, he managed a business unit for Actemium S.A.S., a European engineering services company in Alpharetta, Ga. He planned and executed customized automation solutions in several industries and multiple geographic locations.
"I see a tremendous opportunity for its materials-handling solutions to fit right into the big Industry 4.0 picture coming together right now, with operations becoming more data-driven and automated, and maintenance becoming more predictive," Rimmele said.
"I anticipate using my technical and business acumen to bridge the connections and bring in more technologies aligned with Industry 4.0 to Cimcorp's customer base, helping them overcome tough challenges like labor shortage, know-how transfer and accurate and timely order fulfillment, as well as keeping production downtime at a low level."