People – June 2006

• Alpha Professional Tools® adds Oscar Soltero to the Oakland, N.J.-based company’s sales team. He will be responsible for Northern California and the Reno/Lake Tahoe area of Nevada.
• Vince Pompo joins Ceramic Tile and Stone Consultants LLC (CTaSC) as new business development manager, focusing on promotion of University of Ceramic Tile and Stone (UofCTS) training programs for the San Diego-based consultancy. Pompo began his career in the ceramic-tile industry, working as a sales manager and also owner/founder of several San Diego-area companies. He is a Certified Ceramic Tile Consultant (CTC) and a charter member of the Ceramic Tile Distributors of America (CTDA).
• Braxton-Bragg Corp. promotes Steve Bussell, an eight-year veteran of the Knoxville, Tenn.-based company, to sales manager, coordinating the work of eight sales representatives. The company also adds Matt Maples as automated tooling specialist and Gerald Ruiz as a bilingual (English/Spanish) representative in sales and customer service; names Ed Mink and Sam Parker to CNC customer service; and appoints James Sykes as director of warehousing.
• Jim Owens, executive director of the Indiana Limestone Institute, was honored at the group’s spring meeting in Bloomington, Ind., last month for his outstanding efforts in promoting the use of natural stone. Francis Heck of Stone Industry News offered the first annual award from the publication for Owens’, “tireless efforts in promoting natural stone through educational programs and technical assistance to architects, contractors, and building owners and others throughout the country.”