GEODIS Hosts The 27th Annual Top Gun Competition

Global third-party logistics (3PL) provider, GEODIS, celebrates elite forklift operators through friendly ninja-warrior-like competition.

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GEODIS

Sep 12, 2017, 14:00 ET

NASHVILLE, Tenn., Sept. 12, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- On August 15, 2017, GEODIS Contract Logistics U.S. honored Scott Hammarlund for winning the annual Top Gun competition.

Every year GEODIS (who acquired Nashville-based Ozburn-Hessey Logistics) brings the best-of-the-best forklift operators together for their "Top Gun" competition. The event, which takes place in a GEODIS warehouse, is a rigorous competition aimed to recognize the top power industrial truck (PIT) operators throughout the company.

Top Gun competitor navigates the "pallet wall" obstacle as the referee observes. (PRNewsfoto/GEODIS)

Several hundred PIT operators apply to compete, and are narrowed down through a series of both written and obstacle-course assessments to gauge their mastery over the forklift. The top twelve competitors fly to Nashville, TN to compete in the all-day, head-to-head, final contest.

The obstacles are not for novice drivers. For example, the final course has a "slalom" maze with pallets as walls. Competitors must successfully navigate through the course (where sometimes there is only an inch clearance on both sides) then put the forklift in reverse and navigate back out without touching any of the pallets.

Another obstacle requires them to precisely drop a tennis ball in a cup using only a forklift. The competitor with the best run time and least penalties takes home the title Top Gun Champion.

"The Top Gun Competition is a fun way for us to recognize our highly-skilled forklift operators," says Mike Honious, Chief Operating Officer at GEODIS. "The competition is fierce, and holds all of our drivers to the highest standard, but it also creates a sense of pride around the work we are doing to impact our customers' supply chains."

Scott Hammarlund, from Chicago, IL, took home the Top Gun Champion award. Runners up included Joseph Garcia, Alexis Perez, Brian Kigar, and Luis Rodriquez.

GEODIS – www.geodis.us
GEODIS is a Supply Chain Operator ranking among the top companies in the field in Europe and the World. GEODIS, owned by SNCF Logistics, which in turn is a business line of the SNCF Group, is ranked as the number four logistics provider in Europe and number seven at a worldwide level. GEODIS is also listed as a "Leader" in Gartner's 2016 Magic Quadrant of Worldwide 3PLs. GEODIS' reach includes a direct presence in 67 countries and a global network spanning over 120 countries. With its five Lines of Business (Supply Chain Optimization, Freight Forwarding, Contract Logistics, Distribution & Express, and Road Transport), GEODIS manages its customers' Supply Chain by providing end to end solutions enabled by over 39,500 employees, its infrastructure, its processes and systems. In 2016, GEODIS recorded €8 billion in sales.

PRESS CONTACT
Natalie Walkley
GEODIS
615-987-2524
[email protected]

SOURCE GEODIS