James J. Connor Joins Tecumseh Products Company as Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
08 January 2010 - 11:00PM
PR Newswire (US)
ANN ARBOR, Mich., Jan. 8 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Tecumseh
Products Company (NASDAQ:TECUANASDAQ:TECUB), a leading global
manufacturer of compressors and related products, announced today
that James J. Connor has been named vice president, treasurer and
chief financial officer, effective immediately. Connor has broad
experience with manufacturing companies at the CFO and CEO levels
and as a strategic advisor. Connor's appointment follows the
Company's Dec. 23 announcement that Michael A. Noelke has been
named executive vice president, sales, marketing and engineering.
Noelke is joining Tecumseh from the Sporlan Division of Parker
Hannifin Corp., Washington, Mo., where he was global vice
president, business development. "Jim, Mike and I share a
commitment to lean manufacturing, continuous improvement in quality
and product design, excellent customer service and financial
discipline," said James Wainright, Tecumseh Products' president and
chief executive officer. "That's the formula that will drive our
results going forward. We will work together to take advantage of
our improved balance sheet, accelerate our drive to become
cash-flow positive and create a platform for profitable growth."
Jim Connor Connor brings deep operational, financial and leadership
skills to Tecumseh Products. As a managing director of BBK, Ltd.,
since 2005, he has worked with automotive suppliers and other
manufacturing companies to help them develop and implement their
product, financial and operating strategies. From 2000 to 2005, he
was president and chief executive officer of Newcor, Inc., which
manufactures precision-machined components and related products for
the automotive, heavy truck, agricultural and appliance industries.
At Newcor, he implemented a Toyota-like lean production system that
helped improve the company's design and manufacturing processes and
quality. He also led the company through a successful Chapter 11
reorganization in 2002-2003. He joined Newcor in 1999 as vice
president and chief financial officer. Before joining Newcor, he
was vice president and chief financial officer for Rockwell Medical
Technologies, Inc., from 1996 to 1999 and coordinated that
company's initial public offering. From 1991 to 1996, as president
of engine bearing manufacturer Glacier Vandervell, Inc., he helped
drive improved performance across all facets of the business.
Connor is an active member of the Turnaround Management
Association, the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants
and the Michigan Association of Certified Public Accountants. Mike
Noelke During his 32-year career with Sporlan, a leading global
supplier of heating, ventilation, air conditioning and
refrigeration components, Noelke served as division general
manager, operations manager and marketing manager, as well as in
various sales, engineering and planning positions. Under his
leadership, Sporlan delivered significant improvements in quality,
customer service and revenue driven by lean manufacturing, a
disciplined supply chain management process and customer-focused
product development. Noelke has been active in supporting the
refrigeration and air conditioning industry throughout his career
as a member of the Refrigeration Service Engineers Society, past
president of the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and
Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) St. Louis chapter, and as a
member of the communications committee and past president of the
Valves and Accessories section of the Air-Conditioning, Heating,
and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI). About Tecumseh Products Company
Tecumseh Products Company is a full-line independent global
manufacturer of hermetically sealed compressors for residential and
commercial refrigerators, freezers, water coolers, dehumidifiers,
window air conditioning units and residential and commercial
central system air conditioners and heat pumps. Press releases and
other investor information can be accessed via the Investor
Relations section of Tecumseh Products Company's website at
http://www.tecumseh.com/. Cautionary Statements Relating to
Forward-Looking Statements This release contains forward-looking
statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995 that are subject to the safe harbor provisions
created by that Act. In addition, forward-looking statements may be
made orally in the future by or on behalf of the Company.
Forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of terms
such as "expects," "should," "may," "believes," "anticipates,"
"will" and other future-tense and forward-looking terminology.
Readers are cautioned that actual results may differ materially
from those projected as a result of certain risks and
uncertainties, including, but not limited to, i) unfavorable
changes in macro-economic conditions and the condition of credit
markets, which may magnify other risk factors; ii) the success of
our ongoing effort to bring costs in line with projected production
levels and product mix; iii) financial market changes, including
fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates and interest rates;
iv) availability and cost of materials, particularly commodities,
including steel and copper, whose cost can be subject to
significant variation; v) actions of competitors; vi) our ability
to maintain adequate liquidity in total and within each foreign
operation; vii) the effect of terrorist activity and armed
conflict; viii) economic trend factors such as housing starts; ix)
the ultimate cost of resolving environmental and legal matters,
including any liabilities resulting from the regulatory antitrust
investigations commenced by the United States Department of Justice
Antitrust Division, the Secretariat of Economic Law of the Ministry
of Justice of Brazil or the European Commission, any of which could
preclude commercialization of products or adversely affect
profitability and/or civil litigation related to such
investigations; x) emerging governmental regulations; xi) the
ultimate cost of resolving environmental and legal matters; xii)
our ability to profitably develop, manufacture and sell both new
and existing products; xiii) the extent of any business disruption
that may result from the restructuring and realignment of our
manufacturing operations or system implementations, the ultimate
cost of those initiatives and the amount of savings actually
realized; xiv) the extent of any business disruption caused by work
stoppages initiated by organized labor unions; xv) potential
political and economic adversities that could adversely affect
anticipated sales and production in Brazil; xvi) potential
political and economic adversities that could adversely affect
anticipated sales and production in India, including potential
military conflict with neighboring countries; xvii) increased or
unexpected warranty claims; and xviii) the ongoing financial health
of major customers. These forward-looking statements are made only
as of the date of this release, and the Company undertakes no
obligation to update or revise the forward-looking statements,
whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
DATASOURCE: Tecumseh Products Company CONTACT: Jim Cain, The Quell
Group, +1-248-649-8900, Web Site: http://www.tecumseh.com/
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