David Caldwell and Lee Padgett of Takeuchi-US have expanded their product manager responsibilities to encompass new duties that take advantage of their unique expertise in the compact equipment industry.

David Caldwell is now Takeuchi’s national product manager. In his new role, he will oversee new product development and rollouts to the company’s North American distributor network, as well as national sales training events. Caldwell will continue to be extremely involved in Takeuchi’s compact excavator product line by developing training courses, conducting sales training events, overseeing the product department and assisting with its development and management. He will also provide competitive compact excavator product and market analysis materials.

Caldwell joined Takeuchi-US in 2010 as a product and training manager, working his way up to become the excavator product manager before taking on his new national product manager position. He has more than 20 years of experience in the equipment industry, including six years with Mitchell Distributing Company and seven years with Komatsu America.

Lee Padgett is now the product manager for Takeuchi’s compact track loaders, compact wheel loaders and attachments. In his new role, Padgett will assist in the development and management of those product lines, including developing training curriculums and conducting sales training events. He will also work with distribution and customers to better understand customer needs and use that knowledge to enhance future product development. Padgett will provide competitive product and market analysis materials for both the track loader and wheel loader product lines, and he will source, test and on-board new attachments for the Takeuchi Attachment Program.

Padgett joined Takeuchi in 2014 as an inside sales representative before moving into his product management role.

President of Takeuchi-US, Jeff Stewart said:

“David and Lee have proven themselves during their tenures here at Takeuchi, Not only do they exhibit an innate understanding and knowledge of our equipment lines, but they’re also excellent instructors who can quickly and effectively train our dealer sales partners. Furthermore, they continue to build positive relationships within this industry that will help us grow our business here in North America. We couldn’t be more pleased to have David and Lee on the Takeuchi team.”