Rail supplier news from GREX, Stewart & Stevenson, FreightCar America and Appalachian Railcar (Aug. 17)

Georgetown Rail Equipment Co. (GREX) has added Bruce Wise as director of business development. He'll focus on strategic accounts and new products as the company continues to develop track inspection and maintenance technologies, GREX officials said in a press release. Wise has more than three decades of experience in engineering, sales, management and leadership experience. He most recently served as director of railroad sales at Whitmore Rail in Rockwall, Texas. Since 2009, Wise has served on the Railway Engineering-Maintenance Suppliers Association's board. For the 2017-2018 term, he served as board president.

Stewart & Stevenson Manufacturing Technologies has named Eastern Lift Truck Co. Inc. as the sole authorized dealership to market, sell and service its Rail King® rail-car movers within the Mid-Atlantic region. Headquartered in Houston, Stewart & Stevenson manufactures five different Rail King rail-car movers, which feature side-mount or full-width cabs with dual direction controls. The company chose Eastern Lift for its "first-class" service, Stewart & Stevenson officials said in a press release.

FreightCar America Inc. has hired Dan Wallace as vice president and general manager of leasing. He has more than 15 years of experience in all facets of rail-car leasing, company officials said in a press release. Most recently, he served as VP and director of North American rail finance for City National Capital Finance. Before that, he served as senior VP and chief financial officer with private investment venture Redwood Rail. Wallace also worked as senior VP of structured finance and business development with General Electric's rail-car services.

Appalachian Railcar Services LLC (ARS) has appointed M. Scott Driggers as chief operating officer. He'll oversee business operations and continue efforts to drive profitability. Before joining ARS, he served as vice president of fleet maintenance for a "large rail-car fleet with a large asset value," company officials said in a press release. Driggers has held several leadership roles in the rail-car repair field, including as rail-car repairman and senior VP of operations and corporate safety.