COMBI COMPANY DIRECTORY

Shawn Beatty is the Vice President of Sales at Combi. He has been with the company since 2006, managing the sales team and covering a territory of several states. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering and has experience in designing equipment and packaging lines, estimating, integration, and sales. Shawn enjoys the challenge of coming up with unique solutions for customers. He strives to be the go-to person for Combi’s customers to reduce their daily responsibilities.

In his free time, Shawn likes to fish, golf, bowl, and travel. He also coaches his son in sports.

Mark Freidly is Sr. Sales Manager for the Central Region & Key Accounts. He has sold Combi equipment for 20 years and spent more 7 years in Machine Vision (Consumer Packaging and Automotive Industry) as Project Engineer, Electrical Engineer, and Inside Sales. At Combi, Mark—who has a Bachelor of Science—finds joy in solving customer needs for improving overall efficiencies within their organization and creating new and future solutions for the customer.

Apart from life at Combi, Mark spends time with family, biking, hiking, and watching sports. He and his wife, Laurie, have 2 daughters, Lauren and Ellie, and 2 dogs named Haley and Lexi.

“There is nothing better than a satisfied customer.”

Fred May is Combi’s Senior Regional Sales Manager for the Northeast Region. He works with Combi’s network of distributors to offer end-of-the-line packaging solutions. With 10 years of experience in engineering and 22 years of experience in sales, Fred focuses on solving customers’ problems and seeing the project through sales, purchase, manufacturing, testing, and installation. He enjoys winning a sale and knowing that the customer made the right decision choosing a Combi solution.

Life outside of work for Fred entails time spent with his wife and family. He enjoys boating, water skiing, snow skiing, hiking, and tennis. Fred also completes home repair and remodeling projects, like rebuilding old motorcycles and turning them into show pieces. He and his family aid their community by participating and contributing in cancer research and awareness organizations and have sponsored stray dogs in providing a safe home for them up until adoption.

Combi’s Western Regional Sales Manager, Mike San Miguel, has been working in the packaging industry for over 20 years. He graduated from California State University Long Beach and has experience in both the distribution and manufacturing sides of business. At Combi, Mike cures customers’ pains by listening, observing, and recommending solutions that will benefit them for not only the short term, but the years to come. He likes to integrate “outside the box” thinking when faced with new challenges and opportunities. Mike enjoys working at Combi because it feels like family and his work is making an impact.

Mike keeps busy being a member of a punk rock band, birdwatching, hiking, biking, and working out. He dedicates a lot of his time collecting data for The Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology on local bird populations and migratory bird movements. He is married to his wife, Laurie, and together they have two children who attend The University of Utah.

“At Combi, and with the number of lifelong employees, it is a family, and they treat you like family!”

Steve Ryan, Combi’s Mideast Regional Sales Manager, is responsible for growing and sustaining the business. He achieves this through accessing, developing, and ultimately selling solutions to customers who want to add value to their company through automating their end-of-the-line packaging processes. Steve holds a degree in Mechanical Engineering Technology from The University of Akron. He started his career at Combi as an engineer, made his way to the Applications department, and now serves in his current role as Sales Manager. In all the positions Steve has held, one thing has remained the same: his passion for finding the best solutions for his customers.

In Steve’s free time, he enjoys designing and creating things for his four children to enjoy. He works with recovering drug addicts and alcoholics and visits local jails and treatment centers to offer hope to those struggling to find a life outside the grips of addiction. His wife, Liz, is a financial advisor, author, artist, and a wonderful mother to their four children. As a family, their mission is to love on those that are unloved, unconditionally.

“The people [at Combi] are fantastic, professional, and capable, and they care about the work they are doing.”

Chris Miller works as a Regional Sales Manager in the Southwestern Region for Combi. He completed his engineering degree in Industrial Distribution from Texas A&M University and has been selling automated packaging equipment for 28 years, both directly for machinery manufacturers and as an automation specialist in the distribution role. Chris likes working for Combi because he can confidently promote and sell equipment as it is well engineered and relevant in today’s various production environments. To advance the industry, Chris would like to help owners by improving inefficiencies in production and production bottle necks, as well as reducing the customer’s product cost.

Apart from Chris’s work life, he spends time boating, camping, hunting, and gunsmithing. He is “Mr. Fix-It” to those that know him—he helps them with his skills, smile, and an ever listening ear for those who need to be heard and understood. He and his wife, Dr. Susan Miller, have two wonderful children, Samantha and Cole. 

“Automation is like chocolate: one little bite makes you want more!”

Bill Mitchell, Combi’s Southeast Regional Sales Manager, has served the company for 20 years. As an alumnus of The University of Akron, he earned a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering and continued his education in robotics, electrical engineering, accounting, and business management.

At the age of 13, Bill was first exposed to the automation industry working for his father’s construction, car rental, and auto parts store businesses. He began his engineering career with KHS in Sarasota, Florida where he patented a mechanism that forms both trays and cartons on an Intermittent Motion (IM) cartoner. Leaving KHS in 1990, Bill pursued his engineering career further at Combi. In this role, he developed numerous engineering designs for case erectors, tray formers, and case packers. Motivated by these achievements, Bill transitioned into Sales where he has effectively combined his engineering experience and passion for the industry to sell Combi packaging equipment to potential customers.

Aside from work, Bill spends time with his wife, Debi, and two sons, Austin and Bailey. He enjoys being outdoors- hiking, boating, and wood working.

Ruben Ortiz has been the Manufacturer’s Representative at Combi since 2018. He develops existing and potential customers, along with direct sales and relationships with distributors and integrators in Latin America. After completing his mechanical engineering degree, Ruben gained 11 years of experience in sales of packaging machinery for food, pharmaceutical, personal care, and chemical sectors. His work is supplemented by working alongside his coworkers who are in the best position to support and share their knowledge with him. Ruben enjoys being challenged by new projects, solving problems, and meeting customers’ needs.

Outside of life at Combi, Ruben spends time with family and friends, and enjoys running and biking. He is currently working on manufacturing his own telescope.