The experienced and accomplished members of AERA Board of Directors and management team have been the driving force behind the organization’s leadership for nearly a century. The AERA Board is made up of leaders from businesses both large and small, across every sector of the industry. Members of the Board provide local and global perspectives on matters of common interest to AERA members, and contribute their leadership and expertise to help guide the organization as it prepares to enter its second century.

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David Bianchi

Chairman
A Seattle native with a bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from Gonzaga University, David brings unique insight to the AERA’s. Early in his career he traveled the world as a sales engineer for Rottler Manufacturing, installing the company’s machines and working with a broad range of customers including Caterpillar Reman. In 1997 he joined high horsepower diesel rebuilder, B&G Machine, Inc. of Seattle, where he held a variety of positions until arriving at his current roll as vice president of sales and marketing where he has successfully orchestrated a growth path that has taken B&G from a regional machine shop to a respected international service provider.

Dwayne J. Dugas

First Vice Chairman
Born and raised in New Iberia, Louisiana, Dwayne is the Owner and Manager of Dugas Engine Services. Established by his father in 1968, Dwayne worked with his father through high school developing a passion for engines and cars. While attending the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Dwayne took a job in the retail auto parts industry and later became part owner of a small chain of regional auto parts stores. After selling those stores, Dwayne served as general manager at PEP Boys and finally purchased Dugas Engine from his father in 1999. Dugas Engine performs service on automotive engines, outboard engines, small compact diesel engines on up to the mid-size diesel engines.

Ron McMorris

Second Vice Chairman
As Engine Division manager for Lordco Parts Ltd, Canada’s largest independent auto parts and machine company, Ron works very closely with every engine parts manufacturer in the industry, and has unusual insight in the business. A certified automotive machinist for more than a quarter of a century, and heavily involved in local motorsports, Ron has depth and breadth of both high level and hands-on knowledge that is difficult to match. He has been a member of the AERA board since 2006.

Dean Yatchyshyn

Treasurer
Dean got started in the business a little earlier than most. As the son of a go-cart track owner he was re-building 3.5 horsepower Briggs & Stratton engines when he was just 10 years old. When he was 18 he bought his first car, a 1970 Chevelle SS 454, but couldn’t afford to pay for the necessary repairs, so he bought a $59 Craftsman toolset and did it himself. Throughout the 70′s he worked at the local VW shop and drag raced his Chevelle, parlaying the experience into a job managing the repair business at a local speed shop. In the early 1980′s he struck out on his own and started a machine shop. The rest, as they say, is history. That $59 tool set is now Cresap Automotive Machine, a thriving full service machine shop with 9,000 square foot facility, customers throughout the mid-Atlantic states, and “all the toys a man could want” to work on engines. Oh, and he still owns that Chevelle too.

John Goodman

President
Prior to becoming president of AERA, John was director of the the Advanced Technology Center (ATC) for Micromatic-Textron. The ATC focused on manufacturing honing solutions and studies for OEM engine manufacturers. Testing of traditional and unique honing abrasive systems, coolants, fixtures, tools and software were among the lab’s primary responsibilities.

Rob Munro

Advisory Board Chairman

Rob is a 27 year industry veteran and owns Valley Speed of Kamloops, British Columbia. Valley Speed is a custom automotive machine shop specializing in automotive, Light Industrial, Powersport, and Mild Performance machine work. He has served on the AERA Board of Directors since 2001, and on the Executive Committee since 2005.

Ronnie Bose

Director
Ronnie owns Dependable Machine, Inc. which specializes in the oil and natural gas, marine diesel and agriculture natural gas and diesel fields. With a service area that covers from Houston to Corpus Christi, TX, Ronnie & Co. have established a reputation as South Texas’ leader in DMI rebuilds, drive lines and marine propellers, as well as service for gasoline engines of all types.

Rex B. Crumpton

Director
Rex graduated with a Bachelor’s of Science in Industrial Operations Management from Northeastern State University in Oklahoma. A second generation small business owner, he is the operations manager of Memorial Machine a natural gas and diesel machine shop with operations in Oklahoma City and Tulsa, Oklahoma, as well as co-owner of Crumpton Aviation, a helicopter training and services provider based in Tulsa, OK.

Steve Edmondson

Director
Born and raised in Louisville Kentucky, Steve began his 32 year career in March of 1979 at Republic Diesel, a leading specialist in medium to large diesel engine machining and spray welding. As a 19 year old kid he began on the shop floor cleaning engines and components. After a few years of cleaning diesel cylinder blocks, heads and crankshafts, moved into the inspection area where he was taught how to check the integrity of cast iron cylinder blocks and heads and qualify them dimensionally. During his tenure at Republic Diesel he has inspected and repaired every major engine component on medium and large diesel engines.

Will Hodges

Director
Northern Georgia born and raised Will Hodges began his career in 1958. Fresh out of North Georgia Trade and Vocational School, in Clarkesville, GA, Will landed a job as a machinist for Genuine Parts Company in Atlanta, where he worked for nearly 20 years mastering the ins-and-out of running a machine shop. In 1977 he left Genuine Parts and, with his son as his side, opened his own shop, Will’s Auto Machine Shop, just up the road in Chamblee. In the 35 years since, the shop has more than tripled in size and now handles a wide range of machine work — boring blocks, performing valve jobs on cylinder heads, regrinding crankshafts, and much more. What hasn’t changed is Will. You’ll still find him there 5 days a week doing the same great work he’s done for nearly half a century.

Bobby Kammerer

Director
A native of Duncan, Oklahoma, Bobby began his career back in 1967 with oil and gas services giant Halliburton. In 1969 he left the company for a stint in the US Army where he served in Vietnam and received the Combat Infantry Badge and Bronze Star. He returned to the US and his job at Halliburton in the early 1970′s and soon became an avid drag racer. The need for quality machine work on his and other dragsters led to his founding BK Engine Specialties, initially as a part time venture, and eventually as a fulltime business. Today BK Engine Specialties is the leading independent Onan & Kohler generator dealer in Oklahoma and provides high quality repairs to both engine & electrical components.

Gary Lewis

Director
A noted author and instructor, Gary’s career began at an early age repairing old cars, farm equipment, and eventually as an apprenticeship machining of aircraft engine parts. Later he went on to earn bachelor’s and master’s degrees at the California State University, San Jose and landed a part time teaching assignment in machine tools at De Anza College in Cupertino, California. In 1969, Gary was hired full time and began building what would become the college’s nationally recognized Machine Tool and Automotive Technologies program. In his three decades as an instructor Gary has written the seminal textbook in the field, developed new machining techniques and technologies, and earned renown as a consultant in the development of similar programs at colleges and private industries around the nation.

Bill McKnight

AMC Chairman
Bill is Team Leader-Training for MAHLE Clevite, a global leader in the automotive and engine industry. In the business for more than 30 years, Bill has earned a reputation as an authoritative voice in the engine rebuilding and race engine , and presents regularly at AERA and other industry organization conferences.

Steven Schoeben

Director
Steve is the owner and operator of HeadWerks, Inc., an automotive machine shop serving Minneapolis and surrounding areas since 1991. HeadWerks specializes in the repair of all types of cylinder heads, ranging from industrial applications and light diesel to motorcycles, antiques, racing and European autos.