Equipment Management Conference & Exhibition : ELFA

Equipment Management Conference & Exhibition

February 26 - February 28, 2023

Orlando World Center Marriott, Orlando, FL

Online registration is closed. Registration is still available and will be taken onsite at the conference.

Serving Equipment Management Professionals for Over a Quarter of a Century

GREAT SESSIONS that bring you up-to-date on a variety of asset classes
OFF-SITE EQUIPMENT TOURS enabling attendees to get invaluable insight into a variety of equipment and to see them in actual work settings
FIRST CLASS EXHIBITION of equipment appraisers, remarketers, and others you need to meet
QUALIFIES FOR ASA Re-CERTIFICATION
UNMATCHED NETWORKING OPPORTUNITIES with your peers in the industry.

Exhibit Opportunities

An exhibition is held in conjunction with this conference. To receive more information about exhibiting, please contact Steve Wafalosky at 440-247-1060 or stevew@larichadv.com. The Exhibitor Prospectus will be available soon.

Sponsorship Opportunities

Sponsoring events and functions at ELFA meetings provides excellent exposure for your company. Contact Steve Wafalosky at 440-247-1060 or stevew@larichadv.com if you are interested in sponsoring any of the conference events.

Who Should Attend?

Equipment management professionals, including senior managers and their staff, equipment appraisers and remarketers and service providers to the industry.

Release and Assumption of Risk

As we continue taking important steps to provide for the health and safety of our attendees, we ask that you review our COVID-19 information, well-being protocols, and policies below. By registering for this event you agree to adhere to the below policies to sustain a healthy and safe environment for our attendees. It's important that we all respond responsibly and transparently to these health precautions. Any and all private health and personal data will be treated with confidentiality and sensitivity.

Because COVID-19 is extremely contagious and is spread mainly from person-to-person contact, Equipment Leasing and Finance Association (“ELFA”) has adopted preventative measures to reduce the spread of the COVID virus at its conferences and events in accordance with guidance published by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for events and gatherings, in coordination with event host properties. ELFA will comply with all applicable requirements imposed by state, provincial, and local health authorities for the locality in which the conference or event takes place. However, ELFA cannot guarantee that conference attendees will not become infected with COVID-19.

Individuals who fall within either of the categories listed below should not attend ELFA conferences or events:

Individuals who are experiencing, or within the 14 days prior to the conference or event have experienced, symptoms associated with COVID-19; or
Individuals who believe that they may have been exposed to a confirmed or suspected case of COVID-19 or have been diagnosed with COVID-19 and are not yet cleared as non-contagious by state or local public health authorities or the health care team responsible for their treatment.

Conference and event attendees should self-monitor for signs and symptoms of COVID-19 and are asked to contact ELFA at meetings@elfaonline.org if experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 within 5 days after participating in an ELFA conference or event.

Registration Fees

Price Description	Amount


Additional Attendee - Member Company	$1160.00
Attendee - Member Company	$1290.00
Committee Member	$650.00
First Time Additional Exhibitor - Member Company	$1095.00
First Time Attendee- Member Company	$1095.00
Non Member Company Attendee	$2580.00
Non Member Spouse Companion	$270.00
Speaker - Member	$650.00
Speaker - Non Member	$650.00
Spouse Companion	$270.00

View cancellation and other policies

Conference Schedule & Networking Events

Session descriptions and speakers are all located in the conference schedule!

Special Networking Events

Golf Tournament
Sunday, February 26th * 7:30 am - 2:30 pm
**Additional fees apply**
Join your fellow attendees on the links! Stunningly beautiful and equally challenging, this 18-hole championship golf course, designed by noted golf course architect Robert Cupp, offers a distinct experience you won’t soon forget.

Newcomer Reception
Sunday, February 26th * 4:00 - 5:00 pm
Is this your first time attending the Equipment Management Conference? Welcome! Don't miss this reception, JUST FOR YOU! Meet fellow first time attendees and the conference planning committee. This is a great way to start off your conference.

Welcome Reception
Sunday, February 26th * 5:00 - 7:00 pm
A great start to the conference and a wonderful opportunity to network with individuals from across the industry. Don’t miss the opening Welcome Reception in the exhibit hall.

Daily Breakfast
Monday and Tuesday, February 27th & 28th * 7:45 - 8:45 am
Breakfast is held on both Monday and Tuesday in the exhibit hall for all attendees.

Hosted Reception
Monday, February 27th * 5:30 - 7:00 pm
Join your fellow conference attendees for an evening reception in the exhibit hall before heading out to dinner on your own.

Closing Reception
Tuesday, February 28th * 6:00 - 8:00 pm
A perfect way to end your 2023 Conference - the Closing Reception! Have some food and refreshments with your friends and wish everyone farewell, until next year!

Available Functions

Sunday - February 26
4:00 pm - 5:00 pm
	Newcomer Reception
Monday - February 27
12:45 pm - 5:00 pm
	Tour of Port Canaveral - Off-Site Tour Registration required by February 15, 2023.	$0.00
	Ritchie Bros - Off-Site Tour Registration required by February 20, 2023.	$0.00

Speakers

Raffi Aharonian

Raffi has been with Rouse Services since 2012 and has responsibility for the Rouse Appraisals division.

After years of operating as a family owned business, in December 2020 Rouse was wholly acquired by Ritchie Bros. With that transaction, Rouse brings 100 years of service to the construction equipment and transportation industries and is widely recognized as the leader in current market values, estimated residual values, remarketing support, and fleet management analytics.

In 2020, Rouse's Appraisal division performed valuations of rental and dealer fleets in North America and the United Kingdom comprising over $45 billion of equipment - all in support of financial underwriting processes.

Mr. Aharonian has more than fifteen years of experience in asset valuation, development and management of proprietary databases, and financial statement auditing & analysis.

His experience includes the oversight of over $45 billion of annual equipment appraisals and liquidation analyses across the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. He regularly interfaces with key industry stakeholders (lenders, equipment owners, OEMs, private equity firms, audit firms, debt advisory groups, etc.) to provide support for valuations and to share regular, data-based market updates specific to the equipment industry.

Bryan Biddulph

President
MYCO Instrumentation, Inc.

Carl Chrappa A.S.A, M.R.I.C.S., I.F.A

Senior Managing Director
The Alta Group LLC

Carl C. Chrappa is Senior Managing Director - Asset Management Practice Leader of The Alta Group, LLC, headquartered in Clearwater, Florida. He is a registered auctioneer, recognized expert witness, and nationally (A.S.A.) as well as internationally (M.R.I.C.S.) tested and accredited senior equipment appraiser with over 45 years of experience.

Mr. Chrappa is uniquely qualified to author this article, since he actively trades in global equipment markets, and provides appraisals and equipment consulting services to companies throughout the world. He is also a member of the National Association for Business Economics (NABE), where he was elected to serve two-terms as Chair of the Association’s Industrial/ Manufacturing Roundtable. Since 2009 Mr. Chrappa has served as a panelist on the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia’s - ‘Livingston Survey,’ which twice a year forecasts macroeconomic moves in the U.S. economy. He also serves on the Institute for Supply Management’s (ISM) monthly PMI survey panel.

He is Chair Emeritus and a founding member of The Equipment Leasing and Finance Association's Equipment Management Committee, also serves on the Board of Directors of the Secured Finance Network (fka CFA). He has served on the ELFA’s Service Providers Steering Committee, and is a past national technical director of the American Association of Cost Engineers. Mr. Chrappa received the ELFA’s Distinguished Service Award in 2010. In addition, he co-authored a book entitled A Leasing Company's Guide to Equipment Management and is the author of several columns devoted to equipment management as well as being a regular content provider to the ELFA's web-based ELFAonline.org. He has given numerous presentations at professional and trade association meetings and seminars throughout the United States, Europe and South America, and has been interviewed and quoted by such news media as The Wall Street Journal, the L.A. Business Times, TheStreet.com, CNBC MoneyLine, and NPR radio. Mr. Chrappa is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.

The Alta Group, LLC, 2451 McMullen Booth Road, Suite 305 - Clearwater, FL 33759
Phone: (727) 796-7733
Email: cchrappa@thealtagroup.com

Nicholas Coscia

Equipment Manager, Asset Management Americas CT&I
DLL

Nicholas Coscia is the Equipment Manager for De Lage Landen Financial Services (DLL), working in the Construction, Transportation & Industrial (CT&I) group.

Prior to joining DLL, Nick worked People's Capital & Leasing Corp as the VP, Asset Management. Prior to that, Nick worked for CoBank as an Asset Manager. Prior to CoBank, Nick spent 6 years at Terex Corporation working in Asset Management and Crane Sales. Nick started his career at GE Capital Corporation in 2002.

Gary Durden

Partner and Managing Director
CohnReznick LLP

Gary is a Partner and Managing Director with CohnReznick Capital, based in the New York office. He provides transaction management and advisory services for clients in the sustainable energy sector, including corporate M&A, capital raises, and structured finance solutions for wind, solar, and battery storage projects. Gary has closed equity investments in over 5GW of utility-scale and C&I wind and solar projects, including tax equity, cash equity, and sale lease-back transactions.
Gary was previously a Senior Vice President at GE Energy Financial Services, where he led deal teams in the structuring, diligence, and negotiation of investments in renewable energy projects in the US and Canada. Prior to GE EFS, Gary worked at Standard & Poor’s, developing models used by commercial banks for assessing the credit risk of C&I companies.
Earlier in his career, Gary served as an officer in the United States Navy, supervising the operation of nuclear reactor plants on aircraft carriers and teaching college-level classes to university students enrolled in the Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps.
Gary is a CFA charter holder and earned an MBA from Villanova University and a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering with Highest Honors from the University of Florida.

James Fullerton

Equipment Manager
DLL

Jace Gentil

Director, Global Business Operations
Probo Medical

Anthony Gordon ASA

Director of Asset Management and Remarketing
Farm Credit Leasing

Anthony Gordon is the Director of Asset Management & Remarket for CoBank - Farm Credit Leasing. Mr. Gordon is responsible for Asset Management and Remarketing functions at Farm Credit Leasing. He received his accredited Senior Appraiser designation from the American Society of Appraisers in 2011. Mr. Gordon was raised on a family farm and has over 30 years of agricultural equipment finance experience in various roles, including asset management, asset remarketing, credit underwriting, sales, foreclosure and portfolio management. Prior to joining Farm Credit Leasing in December 2017, Mr. Gordon spent a year at Heritage Bank NA, fifteen years at DLL Finance Food & Ag and fourteen years with Agricredit Acceptance Co. He studied finance at Drake University, Des Moines, IA and received a bachelor's degree in business administration from Graceland University – Lamoni, IA.

Anthony Gordon ASA

Director of Asset Management and Remarketing
Farm Credit Leasing

Laura Grill

VP, Asset Management
Truist Equipment Finance Corp.

Thomas Harford

SVP - Equipment Management Group
Wells Fargo Equipment Finance

Thomas Harford oversees the Equipment Management Valuation team at Wells Fargo Equipment Finance (WFEF). WFEF provides competitive fixed- and floating-rate loans and leases covering a full range of commercial equipment for businesses in the United States and Canada. Based in Chicago, Thomas’ current team of equipment valuation managers and collateral equipment management specialists is responsible for managing WFEF equipment valuations supporting Capital Markets, Commercial/Corporate Banking, Corporate Aircraft, Specialty Industries, Surface Transportation and Canadian portfolios.

Prior to his current role, Thomas led Wells Fargo’s Equipment Management Valuation team with direct management responsibility for equipment valuations within Wells Fargo’s Vendor, Canadian, Construction and Business Banking Group business portfolios.

Before joining Wells Fargo in 2013, Thomas spent 10 years at Banc of America Leasing in management roles within the Equipment Management Group with responsibility for its Vendor lease portfolio as well as their Healthcare portfolio. Prior experience included equipment management roles at the Royal Bank of Scotland, National City Leasing, Sanwa Business Credit Corporation and The LINC Group.

Mr. Harford holds a B.S./B.A. in Finance and Economics from University of Wisconsin- LaCrosse. He is a member in the American Society of Appraisers and currently serves on the Equipment Leasing and Finance Association’s Equipment Management Committee.

Robert Herb ASA

Head of Global Asset Management, Healthcare, Technology & Office Equipment
DLL

DLL is a global vendor finance company with more than EUR 30 billion in assets. Partnering with equipment manufacturers, dealers and distributors in more than 30 countries to support their distribution channels and help grow their businesses, DLL combines customer focus with deep industry knowledge to deliver sustainable solutions for the complete asset life cycle, including retail finance, commercial finance and used equipment finance. DLL is a wholly owned subsidiary of Rabobank Group.

In his role with DLL, Rob Herb manages a EUR 3 billion global portfolio of healthcare and clean technology assets, consulting with manufacturers on life cycle asset management (LCAM) initiatives, driving the adoption of refurbishment and redeployment plans for capital equipment, as well as transforming selling models from traditional ownership to usage and service based.

Rob received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from Gettysburg College and his Masters of Business Administration from LaSalle University.

Adam Herman

VP, Business Development
Prestige Equipment Corporation

Adam Herman is Vice President and General Counsel at Prestige Equipment Corporation. Prestige is one of the largest used machinery dealers and auction/liquidation firms in the country, and specializes in sales of metalworking machinery, fabricating equipment, and complete manufacturing facilities. Prestige also maintain a 150,000 sq. ft. warehouse in Philadelphia, PA.

Casey Herschler

North American Marine Consultants, LLC

Casey M. Herschler joined North American Marine Consultants, LLC in 2011 as a marine surveyor and since been involved in numerous marine consulting and appraisal projects for customers including Bank of America, BB&T Equipment Finance, Crowley Marine, The Dutra Group, Signet Maritime, SunTrust, Wells Fargo, PNC Bank, People’s Capital, Firth Third Leasing, Regions Equipment Finance, AIG Financial, and many more clients in the financial, insurance and private sectors.

Mr. Herschler concurrently works with Canton Marine Towing Company, a small regional towing company on the Mid-Mississippi River where he is involved in government regulations and relations. Mr. Herschler was previously employed at, Inc. as the Director of Engineer at SCF Marine and prior to that as an Architect with Clayco Construction in St. Louis, MO.

Mr. Herschler holds a Bachelor of Science in Architecture from Southern Illinois University. He is a candidate member of the American Society of Appraisers (ASA). Mr. Herschler is a licensed mariner holding a Master of Steam and Motor Vessels and Master of Towing Vessel licenses upon Western Rivers and is also Co-Chairman of River Industry Action Committee.

Philip Houser

Director, Asset Management
First Citizens Bank Equipment Finance

Phil Houser is an accomplished, effective, and performance-driven leader with 30+ years of equipment finance success in Global Asset Management, Business Development, and Operations Management. Phil has extensive achievement in creating, motivating, and leading high-performing teams within the Banking, Captive Finance, and Independent Finance industries.

Phil is a Senior strategic leader with global expertise in delivering transformational and systematic change initiatives, and broad experience in starting, building, and restructuring cross-functional teams while driving organizational efficiency and effectiveness. Phil is highly regarded for building relationships and fostering a culture of collaboration to drive results.

Areas of expertise; Dynamic Team Leadership, Talent Acquisition and Team Building, Performance Developing and Elevating, Business Development, and Efficiency and Effectiveness.

Joseph Joyce

Vice President, Purchasing
Russell Equipment Company

Kimberly Khoury

Certified Equipment Appraiser
Action Machinery Consulting LLC

Kimberly Khoury, CEA, has over 25 years of experience in the used equipment industry, where she has purchased, sold, liquidated and appraised a broad range of conventional and state-of-the-art computer-controlled machine tools and allied equipment. As President of Action Machinery Consulting LLC and previously Vice President of Action Machinery, one of the leading machine tool dealers in the nation since 1965, Kim has managed every aspect of the business. Kim is a Certified Equipment Appraiser with relevant insight into market dynamics, sales trends and used equipment values. She has significant experience in strategic target marketing for plant and equipment sales, auctions, and liquidations and has participated in collateral repossession and equipment remarketing for numerous asset-based lenders.

Action Machinery Consulting is a member of the Machinery Dealers National Association (MDNA), an international trade organization dedicated to networking and business development among participants in the secondary equipment marketplace. Kimberly has been active in the MDNA for many years, in a significant number of capacities, and currently serves as the association's past-president and member of its Executive Committee. She has been a member of the association's Board of Directors since 2001 and currently serves on the ethics and mediation committee and is a Trustee for the MDNA Austin D. Lucas Scholarship Fund.

Kelly Lane

Senior Managing Director, Head of Asset Management
Ansley Park Capital

Kelly Lane is Senior Managing Director, Head of Asset Management and is part of the Ansley Park Capital leadership team. He is a seasoned leader in the industry with over 25 years of experience in equipment trading, appraisals, leasing, and portfolio valuation. Mr. Lane leads the Asset Management Group at Ansley Park, which is responsible for asset valuation, residual risk, appraisal review, remarketing, and portfolio oversight. The group has a primary focus on air, marine, transportation, manufacturing, oil & gas, mining, construction, infrastructure, alternative energy, and other large ticket transactions. Prior to joining the Ansley Park team, Kelly worked at Bci Capital, Signature Financial, Santander Equipment Finance, CIT Equipment Finance, Somerset Capital Group and nearly 10 years at GE Commercial Equipment Finance. Mr. Lane is a graduate of Western Connecticut State University, currently serves on the ELFA Equipment Management Committee, is a member of the American Society of Appraisers, and received his Green Belt Certification while at GE. Kelly also serves on the Board of Directors for Candlewood Shores Tax District in Brookfield, CT, where he lives with his daughter.

Peter Lewis

Principal
Next Summit Group

Pete Lewis, ASA, PE, is the Principal of Next Summit Group. NSG provides appraisals, technical reviews, and consulting services focused on the power industry for financial institutions, sponsors, and government agencies. Pete has over 20 years of experience appraising renewable generating assets (solar and wind), distributed generation technologies, energy storage, and related industrial equipment. Prior to his appraisal career, he served in the U.S. Navy and worked as an engineering project manager for Westinghouse and Bechtel. Pete received a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Lehigh University and an MBA from Carnegie-Mellon University.

Patrick Mazzanti

President
Railroad Appraisal Associates

Pat Mazzanti is president of Railroad Appraisal Associates, the management consulting division of The Occor Company, specializing in the railroad industry, serving operators, suppliers and financial service companies. Railroad Appraisal Associates is the oldest railroad specific appraisal business in the United States and was founded in 1976. Areas of expertise include railroad and locomotive appraisals, inspections, equipment remanufacture and general management consulting services. Prior to Railroad Appraisal Associates, Pat spent 18 years with Deutsche Financial Services a unit of Deutsche Bank, with the last 7 as Head of Railroad Finance.

Pat earned a MBA in Business Economics from Lake Forest Graduate School of Management in Lake Forest, Illinois, as well as a BS in Economics and Finance from Canisius College in Buffalo, New York. Pat is currently a member of the Midwest Association of Rail Shippers, Equipment Appraisers Association of North America, and is a Certified Senior Appraiser. Pat resides in Spring Grove, Illinois with his wife and 2 children where he is active in the community as an elected village trustee.

Robert Mercogliano

SVP, Head of Asset Management
PEAC Solutions

Robert Mercogliano
Strategic Account Manager - Financial Services
bidadoo Inc.

Bob is currently the Strategic Account Manager for Financial Services at bidadoo auction services. Bob has 30 years of Asset Management experience with expertise in managing, evaluating, and selling transportation, construction, industrial, manufacturing, technology, and healthcare assets.

Bob has held several positions during his career in Leasing and Finance as Head of Asset Management, Pricing, and Portfolio Management. Prior to joining bidadoo in 2020, Bob worked as the Managing Director, Head of Asset Management for SunTrust. He was also the Global Head of Asset Management for the Project Structured Finance Group of Siemens Financial Services for 18 years. He currently sits on and is a former chairman of the Equipment Leasing and Finance Association’s Asset Management Committee.

Education - Bob received a B.S. in International Business Management from Fairleigh Dickinson University.

bidadoo is the largest and most trusted online auction service on the world’s largest auction marketplace, eBay. With eBay’s 150+ million active buyers around the globe, bidadoo provides equipment sellers access to the world’s largest online auction marketplace, with its long-term partnership with eBay. bidadoo provides professional remarketing for used construction equipment, rental and municipal fleets, trucks, and other capital assets to many of the world’s largest equipment and fleet companies.

James Merz

SVP - Head of Equipment Management
Fifth Third Bank, National Association

Mark Miller

VP
Bay4 Energy Services, LLC

Mark has worked for and with the Bay4 Energy Services team for more than 15 years and has more than 30 years of experience in financial services, business development, C-Suite advising and consulting and enterprise account management.

He has also led international expansion into Mexico, Brazil, and Canada. In addition to working at Bay4 Energy Services, Mark has worked for Bank of America, GE Capital Technology Finance, and CHG-Meridian USA Corp. Mark understands today's complex renewable energy environment and brings his passion for developing and maintaining large client relationships to Bay4 Energy Services. He has the expertise to position the company for continued growth and success.

Mark earned his bachelor's degree in Business and Economics from the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Washington.

Thomas Monroe Jr

SVP, ATEL Equipment Services
ATEL Capital Group

Thomas P. Monroe, Jr. joined ATEL as a portfolio manager in the asset management department. In 2004, Mr. Monroe was named Senior Vice President of ATEL Equipment Services. In this function, Mr. Monroe manages ATEL's asset management department, which is responsible for residual valuation, due diligence, equipment inspections and negotiating renewal and remarketing for ATEL's portfolio. Prior to joining ATEL, Mr. Monroe was employed by GE Capital for 6 years as a portfolio manager in the computer leasing division. Mr. Monroe holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of California, Berkeley, and an M.B.A. from the University of Notre Dame.

Robert Neagle

President and CEO
Finova Capital, LLC

Bob Neagle is currently President and CEO of Finova Capital, LLC and Chair of the ELFA. Prior to this current role, Bob was President and General Manager of the Merchant Finance Division of Ascentium Capital LLC. In this role, he was responsible for Ascentium Capital’s entry into the payments industry, and the general direction of the business and its P&L.

Over the past thirty years, he has held senior management roles with leading companies in the equipment leasing and financing industry. He began his career with TriContinental Leasing, later Bell Atlantic Capital, where he was SVP and COO of the commercial equipment finance group. He later joined AT&T Capital where he was SVP of Marketing for the Business Finance unit which provided SBA loans, conventional loans and small ticket leasing. While at AT&T Capital, he started the Franchise Finance Division which provided equipment and real estate financing to select National franchisors. After some time at CIT leading its Franchise Finance group, he joined First Data Corporation in 2004 where he led the rapid and profitable growth of First Data Global Leasing both in the United States and Europe, and served on the board of the company’s largest International joint venture.

He previously served 2 terms as a Trustee of the Equipment Leasing and Financing Foundation. Over the years, he has published articles in the JELF and for 30 years has served as a member of the Editorial Review board of the Journal of Equipment Leasing and Finance.

He is a Ph.D. graduate of Loyola University Chicago.

Steve Oliver

National Director of Sales
Taylor & Martin Auctioneers and Appraisals

Steve Oliver
Vice President of Business Development – Taylor and Martin Auctioneers
Steve Oliver has been the National Director of Sales for Taylor and Martin Auctioneers since 2017 and was recently named the Vice President for Business Development. Steve heads a sales team that generates over $500 million in transportation truck and trailer sales, at over 50 live consignment and dispersal auctions annually. Prior to working for Taylor and Martin, Steve spent the bulk of his career in the auto dealership space, most recently as a General Manager for a large dealer group in Omaha.
Taylor and Martin is an employee owned auction, remarketing, appraisal, and consulting company based in Fremont, Nebraska. Taylor and Martin counts some of the country’s largest fleets, dealer groups, and transportation lenders as customers in both the auction and appraisal sides of the business. In business since 1935, Taylor and Martin is dedicated exclusively to the transportation equipment business.

Andrew Pace

Chief Client Experience Officer
Asset Compliant Solutions (ACS)

Ralph Petta

Ralph Petta is the President and CEO of the Equipment Leasing and Finance Association (ELFA), the premier trade association representing 550+ member organizations in the $1 trillion equipment finance sector. Mr. Petta leads the organization in executing its mission to foster business development, deliver industry information and analysis, provide educational opportunities and advocate for the industry. He is also President of the Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation, which is dedicated to inspiring thoughtful innovation and contributing to the betterment of the equipment leasing and finance industry.

Mr. Petta, an authority in the business of equipment finance, has been with the association since 1987. Before assuming the role of President and CEO in January 2016, he served as Chief Operating Officer for six years, providing coordination, direction and oversight of ELFA programs and services designed to add value to the association's member organizations. Prior to that, he served as Interim President. From 1987 to 2010 he was Vice President-Research & Industry Services, managing ELFA's information, benchmarking and market research initiatives. Throughout his career at ELFA, Mr. Petta has assumed leadership roles in virtually all functional areas within the organization, including governance, membership marketing, communications, business and professional development, state advocacy and the association's affiliated Foundation.

He is often quoted in industry trade publications and is a frequent speaker about the role of equipment finance in the U.S. economy and trends and developments in the equipment finance sector.

Mr. Petta is a member of the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE), as well as ASAE's Key Industry Association Committee (KIAC). He completed the ASAE/University of Maryland College of Business and Management executive development certificate program in association management. He also was selected for and participated in the ASAE Future Leaders Conference. Mr. Petta is a member of the Exchequer Club of Washington, DC.

Before joining ELFA, Mr. Petta worked for nine years in the office of United States Senator Sam Nunn, serving in a variety of professional capacities. He was Senator Nunn's legislative assistant when he left to join the association. Mr. Petta graduated from Syracuse University, earning a B.A. degree in political science.

Jane Rethmeier

CEO
Harbor Capital Leasing, Inc.

Ms. Rethmeier has been with Harbor Capital since the company's inception in 2000, as Mishawaka Leasing, and has over 30 years of leasing experience with a focus on asset management, remarketing, tax and lease accounting. Prior to joining Harbor Mishawaka, Jane was with Capital Associates International, Inc. where she was responsible for establishing residual values and end of lease activities.

Ben Rice

Head of Sales, Big Iron Equipment
Probo Medical

Thomas Rickards

Equipment Portfolio Manager, HC Americas
DLL

Joseph Santora ASA

President
Irontrax

Joseph Santora has spent the last 21 years building Irontrax into a reputable partner for financial institutions, equipment managers and construction professionals who seek accurate valuation and sales of machinery and equipment. His deep relationships in the market, coupled with his true third-party viewpoint, have yielded consistent spot-on valuations for clients.

Irontrax specializes in asset management; consulting, appraisal, and the remarketing of bank-owned construction, transportation, and mining equipment. Irontrax also consults for lease-end negotiations, workouts, and litigations. Irontrax has entered into Master Services Agreements with many of the major financial institutions.

Joe walked in the shoes of his clients, prior to establishing Irontrax. He was an Asset Manager at First Merit Bank (Akron, Ohio) where he established bank policy for the Equipment & Leasing & Finance Division and instituted the use of an approved appraiser list. In addition, he has held roles with Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers, the world’s largest auctioneer of unused and used heavy equipment and trucks, and Insight Auctioneers (Sebring, Florida).

Well-known throughout the industry, Joe has been published in several financial and construction trade publications and has served on numerous committees for the Ohio Contractors Association. He currently is a member of the American Society of Appraiser’s International MTS (Machinery & Technical Specialties Discipline) Committee, which establishes appraisal policies, standards and education on an international level. Joe is also the Founder/Chairman of American Society of Appraisers Annual Equipment Valuation Conference.

Joe often presents at the American Society of Appraiser

Greg Schmid

Managing Director - Rail
RESIDCO

Kevin Sensenbrenner ASA

SVP/Senior Managing Director, Head of Asset Management
Stonebriar Commercial Finance

Kevin Sensenbrenner is SVP and Senior Managing Director of Asset Management, with direct management responsibility for all asset valuation, lease portfolio management, and remarketing activities.

Kevin began his career in 1998 as a commercial and industrial machinery and equipment (M&E) and real estate appraiser with AccuVal Associates. He was responsible for Co-Managing AccuVal's M&E appraisal practice. At AccuVal, Kevin gained extensive experience appraising domestic and international large industrial/manufacturing facilities, such as: steel and paper mills, metal fabrication and automotive assembly plants, chemical/petroleum processing plants, carpet manufacturers, food processing facilities, printing operations, and energy related assets.

Sensenbrenner began his Asset Management career at AIG Commercial Equipment Finance (AIG CAF) in 2006 as Vice President and Senior Asset Manager. His responsibilities increased successively and ultimately included all asset management functions for AIG Investments and AIG CAF portfolios. At AIG, Kevin valued and managed a diverse portfolio, with assets in manufacturing, transportation, oil and gas, mining, construction, marine, rail, and technology industries, as well as real estate assets.

Prior to joining SCF in 2015, Mr. Sensenbrenner led an equipment management valuation team overseeing Wells Fargo Equipment Finances $29.5 billion portfolio, with responsibility for commercial bank, corporate bank, capital markets, marine, energy, and rail business verticals.

Kevin is a Senior ASA appraiser and has served as an ELFA Equipment Management Committee member since 2007.

Douglas Simon

Senior Vice President, Head of Equipment Management
M&T Bank Corporation

Douglas A. Simon is Senior Vice President, Head of Equipment Management at M&T Bank Commercial Equipment Finance Division. Mr. Simon manages M&T’s Equipment Management Group, which is responsible for residual setting and asset valuations, equipment inspections and appraisals, remarketing and portfolio reporting. Before joining M&T in 2015, Mr. Simon spent 9 years at Banc of America Leasing on the Valuation Team within the Equipment Management Group. Prior experience included equipment management roles at ATEL Capital Group, American Express Equipment Finance and TAL Financial Corporation. Mr. Simon holds a B.S. in Business Administration from Northeastern University and currently serves on the Equipment Leasing and Finance Association’s Equipment Management Committee.

Brian Singer

Chief Commercial Officer
AA Medical

Micheal Smith

President & CEO
RTR Services, Inc.

For over 35 years, Mike has been active in the Leasing and Financial industry. Since 1996 he has been the President and CEO of RTR Services, Inc. the leading national asset management firm specializing in Appraisals, Repossessions, Remarketing and Inspection Services. Mike along with the rest of the RTR Staff are a dependable resource for banks, leasing companies and attorneys across the nation, helping them to determine their equipment’s value and the development and implementation of sound asset management principles.

Mike currently serves on the Equipment Leasing and Financing Association (ELFA) Equipment Management Committee. He served on the ELFA Credit and Collection Committee from 2010-2012. Mike presently serves on the board of RSA as finance committee chair. In addition to his committee work, Mike / RTR are also members of the National Equipment Finance Association (NEFA), the American Association of Commercial Finance Brokers (AACFB), the Chamber of Commerce, and the National Auction Association (NAA).

Kevin Toye

Senior Vice President
Bank of America Global Leasing

Andrew Vering

Director of Appraisal Services
Taylor & Martin Auctioneers and Appraisals

Andy Vering, ASA
Director of Appraisal Services, Taylor and Martin Auctioneers
Andy has been with Taylor and Martin since 2010. Initially starting on the Auction Set up crew, he moved into the appraisal department in 2011. In 2014, he took over a sales territory and sold approximately $85 million worth of trucks and trailers before taking over as the Director of Appraisal Services. Prior to Taylor and Martin, Andy worked as a manager on the family commercial cattle feed yard.
Taylor and Martin is an employee owned auction, remarketing, appraisal, and consulting company based in Fremont, Nebraska. Taylor and Martin counts some of the country’s largest fleets, dealer groups, and transportation lenders as customers in both the auction and appraisal sides of the business. In business since 1935, Taylor and Martin is dedicated exclusively to the transportation equipment business.

Keith Weber

Executive Vice President
North American Marine Consultants, LLC

Keith J. Weber co-founded North American Marine Consultants, LLC to fulfill an industry need for knowledge-based marine surveying, professional appraisal analyses and brokerage of inland and ocean-going marine assets.

Since establishing North American Marine Consultants in 2009, Mr. Weber has authored appraisals for customers including Bank of America, BB&T Equipment Finance, Crowley Marine, The Dutra Group, Signet Maritime, SunTrust, Wells Fargo, PNC Bank, People’s Capital, Firth Third Leasing, Regions Equipment Finance, AIG Financial, and many more clients in the financial, insurance and private sectors.

Mr. Weber was previously employed at Merrill Marine Services, Inc. as the Director of Appraisal Operations. Prior to that, he worked as Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer at ADVANSWERS (a $500 million, multi-state division of Omnicom), and Vice President and Finance Director at D’Arcy Masius Benton & Bowles, Inc.

Mr. Weber holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Finance from Washington and Jefferson College, and a Masters in Business Administration from Washington University. He is an accredited member of the American Society of Appraisers (ASA), and a member of Financial Executives International and Financial Executives Networking Group.

Wade Whitenburg

Strategic Accounts: Finance & Insolvency Management
Ritchie Bros.

Wade W. Whitenburg is a Strategic Accounts Manager with Ritchie Bros. specializing in asset management, valuation and remarketing for finance, banking and insolvency management companies. Since joining the company in January of 2001, he has been responsible for building and maintaining customer relationships with financial organizations of all sizes throughout the U.S.

Wade provides market analysis and CMV guidance for the general equipment industry as well as for specific equipment fleet and asset portfolio managers based on real time data and market awareness. He also plays an essential role in the development and delivery of the Equipment Valuation Workshops which Ritchie Bros. hosts for equipment finance professionals across in the U.S. and Canada.

Before his tenure with Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers, Wade held several positions for various companies within the general equipment industry. His wide-ranging background includes sales, marketing, financing and corporate training. He and his family reside in Cypress, Texas.

Wade holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Geology with a second major in Business Administration from Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, TX.