The tenure of Bill Bond behind a forklift parts counter ended on 30 April, but his performance and reputation remain intact for his customers and colleagues.

Bond held sway at the Orlando branch of Ring Power Corp's lift truck division for 14 years.

Bond provided "exceptional customer service (and) never called in sick", says Curt Ballard, the division's assistant parts operations manager for the state of Florida.

Another person dealing with forklifts regards Bond as an outstanding person. "Over the years, you deal with many people within our industry, and there are a few who stand out," the contact says. "There still are some people out there who go above and beyond what's expected. Bill is one of these people."

Bond, 62, served with the US Marine Corps from 1968-1970 and the US Army from 1971-1992 before transitioning to the private sector.

Functioning as a quartermaster distributing supplies and provisions to military personnel taught Bond "how to deal with people".

After leaving the service, he worked for four years at Mid-Florida Forklift, three years for Hyster and six months for Clark before joining Ring Power in March 1989.

Bond and his wife, Pamela, live in Orlando, have three children and nine grandchildren. She works for an Orlando credit union. They plan to travel widely within the US. "I want to see the country I defended," Bond says.

St Augustine, Florida-based Ring Power has 18 Florida branches including regional facilities in Orlando and Tampa and crane and forklift sales and service facilities in Pompano Beach and Miami. In addition, Ring Power has eight facilities in Rhode Island, New Jersey, the Carolinas, Georgia, Texas and California to serve specialised industries and customers. Ring Power is among the largest Caterpillar dealers in the south-eastern US.