Ben Pecoraro

Ben Pecoraro
Chairman 

I currently manage the Dangerous Goods Group of Basic Crating & Packaging Inc. I have been working with DG throughout my career starting with W.W. Grainger in 1995 and then moving to DGM Chicago 16 years later. The DGM franchise was then picked up by Basic Crating & Packaging Inc. We have since dropped the franchise and are operating wholly as Basic Crating & Packaging Inc. where the same quality of service is offered now.
 
I have been involved with the IACAC since 2017. In that time I have made many connections and a growing group of friends attending many of the events the IACAC has offered. My goal is to continue to strengthen the IACAC and have it be a positive place for people within our industry to meet new connections as well as discuss the current industry climate and challenges we all face. 

Jim Wilbrandt

Jim Wilbrandt
President

Jim Wilbrandt is the current Vice President of Operations for JA Frate, where he specializes with day-to-day operations on JA Frate’s asset side, JA Logistics warehousing and distribution along with JA Nationwide non-asset third-party logistics. Jim has been in the transportation and trucking industry
since 1997, providing sales, operations, warehousing, and counseling.

He is a past board member of IACAC and held the position of president for the association in 2015. He has been president of numerous townhome and homeowners’ associations. In 2020, he graduated from Leadership of Greater McHenry County and currently serves on the alumni board. Jim is also on the board of West Dundee Leafs Hockey Club as an Associate Board Member as the Fundraising Committee Chair and is an advisor for the Elgin O’Hare Western Access Project.

Christine Aguirre

Christine Aguirre
Vice President

My name is Christina Aguirre, and I have been in the transportation industry for over 40 years. I currently work for GET Logistics, LLC., and I have worked in many aspects of the transportation industry. I currently serve on the Traffic Club of Chicago as a Director and have enjoyed that position for four years, but now, I am running for Vice President of the IACAC. I am excited about the opportunity to rejoin the Board of IACAC and contribute to the organization. Thank you in advance for your consideration and vote.

Therese O'Sullivan

Therese O'Sullivan
Treasurer

Therese has been a Unishippers franchise owner since 2014 and involved in Unishippers since 2009.  Her experience entails domestic and international shipping needs, collaborating  Her understanding of small business shipping needs, coupled with her ability to build effective teams and navigate market dynamics, led to significant growth year after year.

With a background in accounting, Therese has served as a board member of the International Cargo Association, the LaGrange Business Associationand the Irish Immigrant Support.

Therese is proud to be a 1st generation American and college graduate supporting fellow women succeed.

Lisa Oswald

Lisa Oswald
Secretary

Lisa began her career in the industry in the late 80's with Hellmann International where she spent seven years working in both their air and ocean import and export departments. She has also worked at Expeditors, Vanguard / DCL Conterm where she began as an account representative and left as a sales manager and other stops along the way. Since 2015 she has served as the Regional Sales Manager for Amass International Group.

Chuck Menini

 

Chuck Menini
Board Member

Chuck Menini has 43 years experience in the Air Freight industry. He started from the bottom and worked his way up on the ramp, loading cargo onto cargo aircraft. From there he obtained a CDL license and drove over the road moving cargo from airport to airport carrier, carrying airfreight for the airlines and freight forwarders, throughout the Midwest area and Canada.

He eventually moved out of the driver’s seat to dispatching and operations for three major trucking carriers in the air freight industries. After that, Chuck worked for a trucking company and started up a logistics operations road feeder service for the airlines moving bonded cargo from one airport to others throughout the 48 states and managing all the freight status updates between airlines and carriers.

Chuck has several years experience in terminal managing and regional managing of air freight carriers. Chuck has now moved into a position for a software company as the Director of Information Services.

Ray Hurtado

 

Ray Hurtado
Board Member

A few things about myself:

From Palatine IL
Graduated from Western Illinois University
Currently the General Manager of Distribution for C.H. Robinson in Chicago
Career:
Started with C.H. Robinson in 1998
Started at the Chicago Global Forwarding Division
Managed Air Export Division
Started Warehouse and Distribution Division for CH Robinson in 2006
Started Retail Consolidation program for CHR
Opened up first CCSF for CHR
Designed and built current 250K facility in Des Plaines which houses our NAST Retail Consolidation/Crossdock business, Global Forwarding CFS and Global Forwarding CCSF.  

Family & Hobbies:
Three kids, Jessica (Senior / 17-yrs old), Justin (Sophomore / 15-yrs old), Julianna (8th, 13 years old)
Coaching (Baseball, Lacrosse, Softball)
Traveling
Hiking
Eagles and Phillies fan!

Robert Bussey

Robert Bussey
Board Member

I would like to join the board as I feel my experience can be valuable to the many members of IACAC in a community manner of networking and sharing.
 
I love helping people and I love making the impossible possible.
 
I have well over 30 years of experience in transportation including 10 years at a major airline, 10 plus years in freight forwarding and 10 plus years in trade show logistics and now in my role as a 3PL provider I can use all of my knowledge, contacts and resources to help my customers.
 
I believe being a member of IACAC is great for collaboration and the contacts within this group can also help me be better at what I do. I was a member of IACAC back in my freight forwarding days and want to be more involved and have now been a member again for two years. I look forward to participating in the events in 2022 and 2023. I already have my ticket for DEC 13.
 
I have a wife and a 9-year-old son and we live in Chicago. We like enjoying the arts and cultural events in Chicago and I am very interested in music and have a fairly large vinyl collection.

Timothy McGovern

Timothy McGovern
Of Counsel

Timothy S. McGovern is a partner with the law firm Zeiler Floyd Zadkovich with expertise in maritime and transportation matters, such as personal injury and wrongful death defense, cargo claims and commercial disputes. Tim also advises maritime and transportation clients with respect to contracts and related commercial matters.

Tim has extensive experience litigating matters throughout the United States and is admitted to practice in the state of Illinois, along with the federal courts in Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin and Michigan. He has engaged in appellate advocacy before the Illinois Supreme Court, the Appellate Courts for the state of Illinois and the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.

In addition to contentious matters, Tim has advised major energy, maritime and logistics service providers on contractual issues. He has prepared form contracts, advised clients and served as a trusted advisor to the industry he has worked in and served for nearly three decades.
Prior to his legal career, Tim served as a USCG licensed master of passenger vessels operating in Lake Michigan. His operational experience and legal expertise allow him to provide clients with advice based on a unique mix of hands-on familiarity and courtroom experience.

Scott Waldier

Scott Waldier
Board Member

Scott is the Director of Sales at BCS Placement. Specializing in pairing talented industry professionals with growing companies. Scott comes from the industry, working at Coyote Logistics, a freight brokerage purchased by UPS. He has also sold in the freight tech space helping warehousing companies with parcel procurement. Scott has also recently managed a carrier relations team at CJ Logistics, formerly DSC.

Jim Slawnikowski

Jim Slawnikowski
Board Member

Jim Slawnikowski, the vibrant ‘Jim of All Trades,’ serves as the Managing Director of Position: Global, where he combines his extensive background in agency, marketing, and management to foster meaningful relationships in the logistics sector. With over four years in this "industry adjacent" role, Jim has cultivated a rich understanding of the logistics landscape, guiding both national and global organizations through innovative campaigns and strategic endeavors.

A Dominican University alumnus with a Business Marketing/Theatre Arts degree, Jim blends creativity with strategic insight, bringing a unique and colorful perspective to all his initiatives. Now, as he steps forward to run for a Board of Directors position with the IACAC, Jim is eager to deepen his impact on the logistics industry, leveraging his multifaceted skills and innovative approach to advance the organization's mission and foster a community of collaboration and growth.

William Gerst

William Gerst 
Board Member

I am a logistician with 20+ years experience in the Chicago air freight market and have been Business Development Manager for 12 years with Innovative Transport Solutions (ITS) & now also PTS Logistics (PTSL) in Wood Dale, IL 60191. Career background in air, ocean, warehousing, domestic trucking (asset-based & non-asset based), rail & intermodal transportation. Concentration in best practices for loading/unloading cargo from 20'/40'/45'/53’ ISO containers & 53’ Dry & Refrigerated Vans. Manufacturer & distributor offering material handling equipment such as the Portable Roller Bed System (PBS) for the air-ground transport market (18 airfreight markets) and the Mobile Transport Tray (MTT) for door-to-door-intermodal services throughout North America and the ocean freight transportation market around the globe.

I look forward to the opportunity of serving on the IACAC Board to bring my career skillsets & professional contacts to support & grow this important organization.

IACAC Partners and Member Benefits

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