Ryder has appointed Phil Ashton as its new business development director.

He joines the contract hire, rental and maintenance services business from Montracon, where he held the position of sales and marketing director.

Ashton previously worked at Ryder for 17 years.

He said: “I’ve recently been working in a capital sales environment but was keen to return to a rental and leasing organisation.

“The only leasing organisation I would ever work for is Ryder.”

Ashton will report to John Murray, Ryder’s sales and marketing director.

His role will predominately cover business growth and targeting large lease accounts for the company.

Murray added: “delighted to have Phil back on board, it means a lot to the company to have someone of Phil’s experience in such a key role.

"Recruiting senior sales people with the right experience can be difficult, so hiring Phil removes any risk and gives us an industry heavyweight who can hit the ground running."

Ryder was founded in 1971 and has a fleet of nearly 20,000 vans, trucks and trailers.

Ryder’s class of 2019 recently celebrated the completion of its Trainee Technician Graduation Awards in Birmingham..

The apprenticeship programme continues to bring graduates through to full-time positions, and has done so for the last 25 years.