Frozen Food Express Industries Inc. on Monday, Dec. 6, announced that Rob Newell has been elected to the position of vice president of capacity development for FFE Transportation Services, and that FFE Vice President Mark Rhea is assuming the position of vice president of driver development and strategic accounts.
Newell has more than 26 years of transportation experience and was most recently vice president of capacity management at Greatwide in Dallas. Newell has experience in growing fleets by systematically adding new qualified and professional drivers, and FFE says his expertise will be integral in growing capacity to the next level and for the long term. “In this increasingly difficult environment of adding drivers, Rob’s experience will be invaluable to us, and we are looking forward to his success,” says John Hickerson, executive vice president and chief operating officer.
Rhea, who has more than 25 years of transportation experience and has served in a number of senior management roles at FFE, will oversee the launch and startup for the new FFE Driving School Academy in Fort Worth, a venture FFE says will help position it for the future by bringing in new entrants to the trucking industry, providing professional training and getting them oriented to company procedures and processes. After successful completion of the program, graduates will be integrated into the mainstream of the professional driving team at FFE.
“The Academy is part of FFE’s long-term strategic plan, and Mark and his team have worked immensely hard to get this established,” Hickerson says. “This strategy will also position FFE to comply with CSA (Comprehensive Safety Analysis) requirements for the long term. In addition, Mark will have commercial responsibility for a select number of FFE strategic corporate accounts with which FFE has aligned with for the extended future.”
