The appointment was made at CEMA’s 76th annual meeting held from March 20 to 24 in Florida.

Swinderman, who has been with Martin since 1979, has been the company’s director and chief technology officer since 2005. Before that, he held the roles of vice-president, general manager, president and chief executive officer.

A graduate of the University of Illinois, Swinderman holds over 30 US patents and was lead author on the company’s Foundation book series for belt conveyor performance improvement. He also led the development of its new Center for Bulk Materials Handling Innovation research facility in Illinois.

Swinderman has been very active with CEMA, having been involved with many projects including chair of the committees to write Design Standard #575, Impact Beds/Cradles, and rewrite Standard #550, Classification of Bulk Materials. He was also chair and editor of the sixth edition of Belt Conveyors for Bulk Materials.

CEMA, which serves all sectors of the conveyor industry, classifies its members under one of six headings: conveyor chain, conveyor controls, general bulk handling, palletizer, screw conveyor and unit handling conveying.