University of Maryland Business School Honors Industry Leaders for Freight Transportation Contributions

College Park, Md. October 27, 2006 The Logistics, Transportation and Supply Chain Management (LTSCM) Society and the Supply Chain Club (SCC) of the University of Marylands Robert H. Smith School of Business today named the 2006 Person of the Year this year a joint award shared by Jeffrey N. Shane, under secretary for policy at the U.S. Department of Transportation, and Ron Widdows, chief executive of global transportation company APL Ltd. Both accepted their awards at a ceremony at the university.

Jeff and Ron are honored for boosting the visibility of freight transportation in the public-sector transportation community, which has historically focused on commuter and traveler issues, said William DeWitt, Professor of the Practice, Logistics, Transportation, and Supply Chain Management at the Robert H. Smith School of Business. Both leaders are committed to creating awareness and understanding of the significance of freight transportation in United States logistics and supply chains a significant departure from the past and a critical initial step to building the capabilities needed in the future to maintain our countrys global competitiveness.

Shane and Widdows have brought shippers and other key freight transportation stakeholders into the public transportation arena with U.S. Department of Transportation sessions, National Academies Transportation Research Board presentations, and by garnering attention from trade publications.

As CEO of APL, Widdows is responsible for the commercial, financial and all operational and regional activities of the APL liner organization. He has 35 years experience in the industry and joined APL in 1980. APL is a global container transportation company operating at more than 90 ports in Asia, Europe, the Middle East and the Americas. It is a unit of Singapore-based Neptune Orient Lines, a global logistics and transportation company.

Shane was appointed by President George W. Bush as under secretary for policy of the Department of Transportation in March 2003, following confirmation by the U.S. Senate. In this position, he supervises the departments policy staff and serves as principal policy advisor to Secretary of Transportation Mary E. Peters, with oversight responsibility for the Office of Transportation Policy and the Office of Aviation and International Affairs. Previously, Shane was appointed associate deputy secretary of transportation. Before that, he was a partner at international law firm of Hogan & Hartson LLP. He has also held a variety of other senior positions at DOT and served for four years as deputy assistant secretary of state for transportation affairs.

The LTSCM Society provides networking and career development opportunities for Smith School undergraduate students, while the SCC provides networking and placement opportunities for the schools MBA students. Each year, the groups present the Person of the Year Award to an individual or individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the logistics, transportation and supply chain management industry. The award is presented as part of LTSCM Industry Day, which also includes a career fair. More than 100 recruiters from nearly 40 companies were expected to participate in this years event.

Previous Person of the Year honorees include the Dell Corp., accepted by Ro Parra; Jeffrey Crowe, chairman of Landstar System Inc.; Linda Morgan, former chair of the Surface Transportation Board and the Interstate Commerce Commission; Michael J. Ward, chairman, president, and CEO of CSX Corp.; Don Schneider, president of Schneider National Inc.; Herb Johnson, past president of the Council of Logistics Management; and Edward Emmett, president of the National Industrial Transportation League.

The Smith Schools logistics, transportation and supply chain management program is consistently recognized among the best business school programs in the country. U.S. News & World Report ranked the undergraduate program No. 6 and the MBA program No. 12 in the United States in 2006. In addition to offering a range of supply chain management courses, the school is home to the Supply Chain Management Center, which provides research, consulting services and education highlighting the latest advances in e-supply chain management.

About the University of Marylands Robert H. Smith School of Business
The Robert H. Smith School of Business is an internationally recognized leader in management education and research for the digital economy. One of 13 colleges and schools at the University of Maryland, College Park, the Smith School offers undergraduate, full-time and part-time MBA, Executive MBA, MS PhD and executive education programs, as well as outreach services to the corporate community. The school offers its degree, custom and certification programs in learning locations on three continents North America, Europe and Asia.