President of Washington-headquartered industrial equipment supplier retiring

The president of Washington-headquartered industrial equipment supplier Columbia Machine is retiring after more than 12 years with the company.

Pat O’Connor joined Columbia in 2011 as business development manager for the palletizer division before being promoted to president in 2014, according to a news release.

O’Connor has spent his 40-year career in the conveyor, palletizing and material handling industry.

“We are grateful for Pat’s exceptional contributions,” Rick Goode, chair and CEO of Columbia Machine, said in the release. “His profound knowledge and extensive experience have played a pivotal role in the transformation and advancement of Columbia’s entire palletizer product line. Pat’s visionary leadership has culminated in the formation of an exceptional team, and his unwavering dedication to our customers, our company and the industry at large will undoubtedly leave a lasting legacy for generations to come.”

Mark MacDonald, who has served as Columbia applications engineering manager since 2015, will take over the role of palletizer division president, according to the release.

MacDonald, with a mechanical engineering degree from the University of Missouri School of Science and Technology and an MBA from St. Louis University,

previously held positions as an applications engineer in the palletizer industry, sourcing commodities manager at GKN Aerospace, and purchasing manager at Duke Manufacturing.