People in Composites: November 2021

Arris Composites announces chief operating officer

Hartmut Liebel, Arris Composites chief operating officer.

On Nov. 8, Arris Composites (Berkeley, Calif., U.S.) announced that Hartmut Liebel has joined the company as chief operating officer.

Liebel’s leadership experience, spanning 20+ years, further strengthens the executive team at Arris as the company continues to scale its global operations. Prior to his most recent role as CEO of Sanmina Corp. (San Jose, Calif., U.S.), an integrated manufacturing solutions company, Liebel held multiple executive positions across industries, including Jabil, a global manufacturing services company.

“Arris is well positioned to drive a transformative shift across industries in how mass-market products are designed and manufactured,” says Liebel. “The Arris team is making a significant difference in how top brands around the world deploy next-gen, innovative products at scale.”

“It’s rare to find manufacturing leaders that have scaled divisions from tens of millions to billions in revenue, and Hartmut has not only done that, he’s also run multi-billion-dollar companies. He has the ideal background for what lies ahead for Arris,” adds Ethan Escowitz, CEO and founder of Arris. “This addition to our team is invaluable as we scale to meet the increasing demand for our technology in consumer products, mobility, transportation and industrial applications.”

Montalvo announces Bryon Williams as new CEO 

Bryon Williams, Montalvo CEO.

Montalvo (Gorham, Maine, U.S.) has promoted Bryon Williams to CEO.

Having previously served as Montalvo’s chief operating officer, Williams will continue to develop, expand and execute Montalvo’s short-term and long-term growth strategies expanding into new markets, developing Montalvo’s product line, strengthening Montalvo’s international presence and growing Montalvo’s market.  

“It has been an honor working at this company over the past 11 years, and I only see greater success for the company. Montalvo has one of the strongest teams in its history, with a focus on innovation and achieving our vision of becoming the global leader in web control systems and solutions,” says Williams. “We are expanding our reach into new industries and will be coming out with new products and solutions that reset expectations on web control, while at the same time branching out to offer customers complete solutions for their web handling needs through in-house capabilities and a strong partner network.”

Williams previously served as Montalvo’s COO, director of sales and service, and global marketing manager. He earned his Masters of business administration in leadership from Saint Joseph’s College of Maine and attended Bryant University for his Bachelor’s in business administration in marketing and communication.

Marika Fredriksson to step down as Vestas’ CFO

After almost nine years as chief financial officer (CFO) of Vestas (Aarhus, Norway), Marika Fredriksson has decided to hand over the financial reigns to Hans Martin Smith, currently CFO Vestas Northern & Central Europe (NCE), by March 1, 2022. Having joined in May 2013, Marika has played an integral role in making Vestas a global leader in wind energy. Fredriksson led Vestas’ Finance function during the company’s turnaround, which was followed by significant growth from a €6 billion company to well beyond €15 billion. As a testament to Fredriksson’s contribution to Vestas and the development of the global wind energy industry, she was named CFO of the Year in Denmark in 2015 and among the most influential women in the wind energy industry on several occasions.

“Marika Fredriksson has had a tremendous impact on both Vestas and the wind energy industry as a whole and has been instrumental to creating Vestas’ strong financial foundation and market-leading position,” emphasizes Henrik Andersen, Vesta Group’s president and CEO. “Having known Marika professionally and privately for almost nine years, both as CEO and member of the Board, has been an absolute privilege, and with Marika looking to focus on her board positions, we are delighted that we have such a strong successor in Hans Martin Smith who I look forward to welcoming to executive management. Besides a long and diverse career in Vestas, Hans has all the capabilities and the character to succeed Marika and help us continue our journey towards becoming the global leader in sustainable energy solutions.”

Hans Martin Smith joined Vestas in 2004. Before becoming CFO of Vestas NCE in 2018, Smith grew through the ranks of Vestas serving various leadership positions in several finance areas, including head of Group Treasury & Investor Relations, as well as leadership roles in corporate strategy and technology. During his time as CFO of Vestas NCE, Smith is also said to have played a key role in Vestas NCE’s growth from a €3 billion business to around €7 billion in 2021. As part of this journey, Vestas NCE, with Smith as CFO, has strengthened its position in core markets across Central and Eastern Europe, Scandinavia and Sub-Saharan Africa, as well as integrated the offshore activities after the acquisition of MHI Vestas Offshore Wind.

“It is a fundamentally different Vestas that I will be leaving in late February compared to the Vestas I joined almost nine years ago. Nonetheless, I’m looking forward to focusing more on my board positions and with Vestas and the industry entering a new phase, I’m delighted that Hans has accepted to succeed me,” adds Fredriksson. “I have worked closely with Hans for most of my time at Vestas and I’m confident his industry knowledge, financial prowess and broad experience will make him a great successor and member of executive management.”

Since becoming CFO of Vestas NCE, Smith has worked out of Vestas’ Hamburg offices, and will relocate with his family to Copenhagen. A successor for Smith as CFO of Vestas NCE will soon be appointed to ensure a successful handover.