MIAMI, Sept. 6 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Ryder System, Inc. , a global leader in transportation and supply chain management solutions, today announced the top three winners of its 2006 Top Technician Recognition Program. The title of "National Top Technician" was awarded to Michael Caylor of Aberdeen, Md., along with keys to a new GMC pick-up truck. Second place was awarded to Michael Bogard of Neenah, Wis., and Timothy Peters of Newton, N.C., received third place; both were rewarded with cash gift cards. Ryder's top seven technicians, who had advanced through earlier rounds, participated in a stringent hands-on National competition which consisted of 10 stations including vehicle electronics, preventive maintenance and air conditioning.
As a result of successfully completing the Company's internal recognition program, the "Magnificent Seven" will represent Team Ryder at the 2006 TMC SuperTech National Technician Skills Competition. The following seven Ryder technicians will compete against the industry's best technicians in Austin, Texas, beginning September 18:
Ryder's Team for 2006 TMC SuperTech: - Robert Balon (Hebron, Ky.) - Michael Bogard (Neenah, Wis.) - Michael Caylor (Aberdeen, Md.) - Duane Houston (Wichita, Kan.) - Timothy Peters (Newton, N.C.) - Dennis Poland (Oxford, Ala.) - Dean Sehm (Phoenix, Ariz.)
"Ryder takes great pride in its technicians and the quality of workmanship they provide to our customers," said Ryder Vice President of Maintenance Ty Cross. "These top-performing technicians have surpassed Ryder's stringent operational and safety standards and have proven themselves to be among the nation's 'best of the best.' I am honored that they are part of Team Ryder and proud to have them represent us at the 2006 TMC SuperTech."
The Ryder Top Technician Recognition Program is an annual program designed to identify, recognize and reward Ryder's top performing technicians. Technicians who are eligible to participate for the national award are selected from Ryder's team of nearly 4,800 U.S.-based technicians. The program highlights the value Ryder places on its technicians, the importance of their technical training for ensuring quality maintenance of the Company's fleet of more than 160,000 vehicles and commitment to quality customer service for Ryder's 15,000 customers. The criteria for this award include technical training qualifications, outstanding customer service performance and quality workmanship.
About Ryder
Ryder is a Fortune 500 company providing leading-edge transportation, logistics and supply chain management solutions worldwide. Ryder's stock is a component of the Dow Jones Transportation Average and the Standard & Poor's 500 Index. For more information about Ryder System, Inc., visit http://www.ryder.com/.
Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements: Certain statements and information included in this press release are "forward-looking statements" under the Federal Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Accordingly, these forward-looking statements should be evaluated with consideration given to the many risks and uncertainties inherent in our business that could cause actual results and events to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause such differences include, among others, our ability to obtain adequate profit margins for our services, our inability to maintain current pricing levels due to customer acceptance or competition, customer retention levels, unexpected volume declines, loss of key customers in the Supply Chain Solutions (SCS) business segment, our failure to successfully implement new sales growth initiatives in our FMS business segment, unexpected reserves or write-offs due to the deterioration of the credit worthiness or bankruptcy of certain customers in our SCS business segment, changes in financial, tax or regulatory requirements or changes in customers' business environments that will limit their ability to commit to long-term vehicle leases, changes in market conditions affecting the commercial rental market or the sale of used vehicles, the effect of severe weather events, labor strikes or work stoppages affecting our or our customers' business operations, adequacy of accounting estimates and accruals particularly with respect to pension, taxes and revenue, changes in general economic conditions, sudden changes in fuel prices, availability of qualified drivers, our ability to manage our cost structure, changes in government regulations including regulations regarding vehicle emissions and the risks described in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The risks included here are not exhaustive. New risks emerge from time to time and it is not possible for management to predict all such risk factors or to assess the impact of such risks on our business. Accordingly, we undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.
