In Memory of Reini Simonis

Mr. Reini Simonis believed strongly that a formal education in supply chain management was key to the success of the individuals working in the field. This belief came from his own short but very successful career as the owner and president of Simtech Supply Chain Management, a logistics/distribution and supply change management company in London.

Simtech SCM, which began as a modest five-person operation in 2005, has blossomed into a 70-plus employee operation with multiple locations in southwestern Ontario and a diverse collection of clients. Mr. Simonis observed that the people involved in his segment, Warehousing and Logistics, were aging and technology was moving faster every day. He also believed this was a people business; people created it, ran it and would continue to do so.

Mr. Simonis was a graduate of Fanshawe College’s marketing program and was instrumental in having the presentation on the status of formal supply chain education in Canada at the spring 2014 symposium. Unfortunately, Mr. Simonis died tragically in the late spring of 2014, which prompted the International Warehouse Logistics Association to honour him with this award.