People in Composites: January 2020

 

Albany International Corp. appoints new president and CEO

Albany International Corp. (Rochester, N.Y., U.S.) announced on Jan. 21 that its Board of Directors has appointed A. William Higgins as president and CEO, effective Jan. 20, to succeed Olivier Jarrault, who has resigned by mutual agreement with the Board. Erkie E. Kailbourne, who currently serves as a director of Albany, will return to his role as chairman of the Board of Directors, succeeding Higgins. Jarrault will assist with the transition.

Higgins previously worked as CEO and chairman of CIRCOR International Inc. from 2008-2012. Prior to joining CIRCOR, he held a variety of senior management positions with Honeywell International and AlliedSignal. Higgins has served on the Board of Albany since 2016 and as chairman of the Board since February 2019. Higgins will be closely supported by business segment leaders Daniel Halftermeyer, President – Machine Clothing – and Greg Harwell, Group President – Albany Engineered Composites, as well as Chief Financial Officer Stephen Nolan.

“I am excited to assume this role and will continue the progress we have made in driving operational excellence across the business under Olivier’s tenure. We have an exceptional team at Albany, and I look forward to working closely with Daniel, Greg, Stephen and the other members of the senior management team as we execute our strategy to deliver great value to our customers and shareholders,” says Higgins.

 

DH Sutherland hires new senior technical salesperson

DHSutherland (Beaverton, Ore., U.S.) announced on Jan. 21 that it has added Matt Pentland as senior technical salesperson to its team. Pentland brings more than 10 years of experience at companies such as Toray Composite Materials America and Heatcon Composite Systems, where he served leading aerospace companies across both OEM and MRO parts of the industry.

“We are very excited to have Matt join our team. His unique skillset of both OEM and MRO parts of the aerospace industry will help us to serve a broader range of our advanced composite customer’s needs. With Matt stepping into the role in the Eastern U.S., he’ll bring tremendous value to the DHSutherland network of customer and supply partners,” says Andrew Crouse, DHSutherland president.

 

National Composites Centre announces new member of steering board

The National Composites Centre (NCC, Bristol, U.K.) has announced that Colette Cohen OBE will join its steering board as independent chair.

Cohen has been CEO of the Oil and Gas Technology Centre (OGTC) since 2016, successfully establishing it as the ‘go to’ technology center for the industry. She has worked in the oil and gas industry for more than 25 years and is a committed and active role model for women in the industry. In recognition of her contributions, Cohen received an OBE for her services to the oil and gas industry and government collaboration in the 2020 New Year’s Honours list.

At her NCC role, Cohen is responsible for providing independent scrutiny and challenge to ensure the NCC is successful in achieving its mission and strategic objectives. She will independently advise the University Executive Committee on NCC and strategic matters. Colette will also support and challenge the NCC CEO.

Cohen has previously served on the board of Oil & Gas UK and the OGA Decommissioning Board. She is now the Chair of the National College for Onshore Oil and Gas, sits on the Technology Leadership Board and is a Non-Executive Director for both OPITO and NORECO. She is also a Commissioner for the Just Transition Commission for Scotland.

“Colette is a fantastic fit for the NCC — bringing a wealth of industrial experience and diversity of thinking to our steering board at this critical time. We are impressed by her championing of industrial transition of the oil and gas industry to a net zero future and look forward to her input on our composite sustainability initiatives. We also hope that Colette will work with us to help the U.K. unlock capability in digital engineering across the engineering portfolio,” says Richard Oldfield, NCC CEO.

 

Scott Bader appoints new non-executive chairman

Adhesives, resins and gelcoats manufacturer Scott Bader Co. Ltd. (Wollaston, U.K.) announced on Jan. 16 that Paul Smith has been appointed as non-executive chairman. Scott Bader’s current executive chairman, Kevin Matthews, will remain as CEO of Scott Bader.

Smith is an experienced chemical industry professional and has held a number of executive and non-executive positions. He is currently executive chairman of Duranta Energy Ltd., a 120-Ktpa food waste to biogas plant in the U.K. He brings more than 45 years of experience growing specialty chemistry-based businesses, including 14 years as chief executive at Rahu Catalytics and the Catexel Group Companies within the Unilever Ventures portolio.

“I have known Scott Bader since my early days in the chemical industry some 40 years ago, visiting Wollaston as a young salesman and long been an admirer of the company and its values. I am excited to join a strong and forward looking management team, and look forward to making a material contribution to its future growth and success,” Smith says.