At the 2024 WHMA Annual Global Leadership Summit on February 15, the WHMA Board of Directors welcomed three new officers and four new members. Board officers serve a three-year term and board members can serve two, three-year terms.
The newly elected Board officers are:
- WHMA Board Chairman: Parker Garrett, manager and owner, EMSCO
- WHMA Board Vice Chairman/Secretary: Doug Chowning, president, American Syscomptel, Inc.
- WHMA Board Immediate Past Chairman: Joe DeMan, president, Interconnect Dynamics – An Amphenol Global Solutions Provider
The newly elected Board members are:
- Joan Kappell, account manager, Amphenol Unlimited Services
- Michael Lau, engineering manager, ALTEX
- Tom Pientok, president, Timberline Manufacturing
- Harry Coates, Canadian sales manager, Schleuinger
“I am delighted to extend a warm welcome to Parker Garrett as a fresh addition to the WHMA Board, and I extend my congratulations to Doug Chowning for assuming the role of vice chairman/secretary,” said Joe DeMan. “I am looking forward to Parker spearheading WHMA’s newest endeavors as the newly appointed Board chair. Parker’s outstanding dedication to advancing WHMA’s mission has been evident, and we eagerly anticipate his leadership.”
“I am honored to assume this role during such an exhilarating period for our association. The commitment of WHMA’s Board of Directors to their mission of ‘lead, educate, and connect’ has opened up numerous new avenues of growth for WHMA’s membership,” stated Parker Garrett. “It’s my honor to work alongside the Board to continue growing our future in the wire harness and interconnect industry.”
For Garrett, the manager and owner of EMSCO, a WHMA member company, becoming Board Chairman was a natural fit. EMSCO is a fully American-made shop that builds harnesses and circuit boards in central Virginia and is known for having a no-debt posture, and almost zero percent voluntary turnover. “WHMA has introduced EMSCO to so many friends in the industry and has made this journey of being a wire harness manufacturer in the U.S. so much more fun.” The partnerships forged through WHMA has brought about new and profitable projects. “We have been able to increase our profitability by having WHMA member companies build sub-components that they have the unique ability to produce well due to specific machinery and talent, and they get us as their customer which increases their sales and productive use of their machines and talent.”
Much of this networking has happened for Garrett and EMSCO at WHMA’s Annual Global Leadership Summit and the annual Electrical Wire Processing Technology Expo (EWPTE). Networking at these events has helped Garrett “rethink our business strategies and made a big positive impact in my ability to help serve my coworkers well.”
EWPTE will be held at Baird Center, Milwaukee, Wis., May 14– 16. For more information on how to register, visit: https://www.electricalwireshow.com. For more information on WHMA’s Annual Leadership Summit visit: https://annualconference.whma.org/.
