NORWALK, Conn. — SmartEquip, a supplier of innovative software products serving the construction equipment industry, last month announced the appointment of rental industry veterans John Caskey Jr. and Tim Novoselski as executive vice president of business development and senior vice president of sales and marketing, respectively.

Caskey is well known to the industry as senior partner with Script International, a consulting company that helped consult and establish rental companies in more than 40 countries. Before working for Script, Caskey owned and operated construction equipment dealerships and rental companies in Florida for more than 25 years.

Caskey was one of the featured speakers at the Associated Equipment Distributors Executive Forum last week in Rosemont, Ill. His topic, “Competitive Turbulence and the Future of the Equipment Rental Industry,” focused on how the market has matured and has created both challenges and opportunities for manufacturers, dealers and rental companies.

“To gain your competitive advantage it is vital that you know your customers, their needs, and their choices,” Caskey told the AED executives. “You must know your market, your competitors, your organization, and you must develop a clear corporate vision. More importantly, you must be eager to re-create your company, its image and culture, as well as products and services. You must become an entrepreneur…again!”

Novoselski is the former publisher and owner of RER, before selling the magazine, along with its parent company Miramar Communications, to Primedia in 1998. Novoselski began his relationship with the construction equipment industry in 1978.

SmartEquip's offerings includes intelligent/interactive parts catalogs that map parts drawings to parts lists and parts ID numbers and vice versa; embedded parts e-commerce solutions; up-to-date service documentation and support solutions; equipment-seeking safety alerts; electronic warranty modules; operator guides, and service, safety and trouble-shooting information. It can be provided via a web platform or through a company's existing fleet management and business systems.