Specialty foundation equipment distributor Equipment Corporation of America (ECA) has announced new hires at several of its branches in the United States.

In a release, ECA’s President and CEO Roy Kern says he is excited to announce the hiring of his son Rod, who represents the fourth generation of the Kern family in the business.

“Rod will follow a similar path to my own by joining ECA at the ground level and learning all aspects of our operation from the ground up,” Roy Kern says. “That experience will prepare him to eventually guide ECA in its second century of business.”

Rod Kern joins the ECA Bauer service team as applications engineering manager. While completing his civil engineering degree from Penn State, he worked at ECA as a mechanic’s assistant and then took on several internships. After graduation, he went on to earn master’s degrees in business administration and geotechnical engineering from Cornell University. Once he completed those degrees, he began working for Moretrench (Keller North America) as a staff engineer. During his four years at Moretrench, he worked on a variety of large construction projects and was eventually promoted to assistant project manager.

In a release, ECA says Rod Kern’s field and customer experience, combined with his education, allow him to find effective solutions to geotechnical problems for the company’s customers.

As Bauer and Klemm service engineer, Gus Delfarno expands ECA’s Bauer service team capabilities. The “Swiss Army knife” of technicians, Delfarno began his career 10 years ago as a shop mechanic at Hayward Baker (Keller North America). From the shop, he moved on to become a field mechanic, learning how to service, assemble, repair, troubleshoot and operate all equipment owned by Hayward Baker. In a release, ECA says Delfarno’s curiosity and passion for learning how to work on and operate various types of equipment make him a versatile and highly useful addition to the Bauer service team.

Greg Barta joins ECA as mid-Atlantic account manager. Barta started out in the U.S. Coast Guard and has since spent time in various sales roles for Caterpillar equipment dealerships around the country.

Matt Nastala has been named Philadelphia service manager. Nastala previously worked for a Caterpillar dealer.

Stephen Funaiock has been named Pittsburgh service manager. He started out in paving materials and quickly moved on to service supervisor before being promoted to shop manager for Cleveland Brothers. He later worked at American Contractors Equipment Company as manager of both the parts and service departments.

Rex Christensen joins ECA as Midwest account manager. In a release, ECA says Chritensen’s experience with training, safety and project coordination made him an obvious choice.

“While there is no question the Coronavirus Pandemic has presented new challenges in the short term, ECA has always operated with a long-term outlook,” says Vice President – Sales and Marketing Jeff Harmston. “The hiring of talented employees represents our view that it’s important to constantly invest in our ability to serve the industry regardless of economic conditions.”

ECA has supplied foundation construction equipment in the eastern United States and eastern Canada for more than a century. The company is exclusive distributor for Bauer drills, Klemm anchor and micropile drills, RTG piling Rigs, Bauer MAT slurry handling systems, HPSI vibratory pile hammers, Word International drill attachments, Dawson construction products, ALLU ground improvement equipment, Pile Master air hammers, and Digga dangle drills. ECA offers sales, rentals, service, and parts from nine facilities throughout the eastern U.S. and eastern Canadian provinces. Visit ecanet.com for more information.