Mechanical Technology's New Executive Team In Place To Implement New Energy Strategy
ALBANY, N.Y., Nov. 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Mechanical Technology Inc. (Nasdaq: MKTY - news) announced the new executive team chosen to guide it in developing new energy technologies and companies, according to Dr. William Acker, president of Mechanical Technology.
The team includes Dr. Michael Adler, vice president/technology; Dr. Judith A. Barnes, vice president/chief marketing officer; James T. Bunch, vice president/business development; and Catherine Hill, Esq., vice president/corporate development. They join Dr. Acker, who was named president in June 2000, and Cynthia A. Scheuer, vice president/chief financial officer.
``We are extremely fortunate to have attracted this talented team, whose broad experience will be critical to implementing the strategy outlined at Mechanical Technology's annual shareholder meeting last March,'' said Dr. Acker.
At that meeting, George McNamee, chairman of Mechanical Technology's board of directors, said the company, which had gained recognition for its involvement in the new energy sector, would focus its future efforts on further developing new energy technologies and companies.
He pointed to Mechanical Technology's joint venture with Detroit Edison (NYSE: DTE - news) in 1997 to create Plug Power, Inc. (Nasdaq: PLUG - news), a manufacturer of residential fuel cells. Mechanical Technology holds 13.7 million shares of Plug.
Mechanical Technology also holds 1.8 million shares of SatCon Technology Corporation (Nasdaq: SATC - news), which manufactures and sells power and energy management systems, and 1.4 million shares of Beacon Power Corporation, which develops flywheel energy storage systems.
``Mechanical Technology helped develop the strategic partnerships, capital investment, and initial growth strategy for Plug Power, and we plan to be actively involved in the creation of other new energy companies. We also plan to use our resources to help back other developing companies in the field, much as we have done with Beacon and SatCon,'' said Dr. Acker.
``Our goal is to develop a series of coordinated new energy efforts and holdings in areas which may include embedded, distributed and improved power, advanced power transmission and storage, enabling technologies, or service for this sector. The experience, expertise and contacts of our executive team will help us accomplish this goal,'' he added.
Dr. Adler, vice president/technology, held scientific and managerial positions at General Electric Company from 1971 to 2000, most recently directing the research and development work of over 150 scientists and engineers in power electronics and controls systems. A leader in power and energy research, he has published over 100 technical articles and authored 15 patents. He also serves as research professor in advanced power devices at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and is vice president/publications for the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, the world's largest professional society. Dr. Adler received his Ph.D., M.S., and B.S. in electric engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Dr. Judith A. Barnes, vice president/chief marketing officer, has had a consulting practice for more than 25 years in marketing, advertising, management communication and technical communication with clients in business and industry, finance, the arts, education, healthcare, retailing and entertainment. For over a decade, Dr. Barnes has also been an adjunct professor in the Lally School of Management and Technology at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, teaching in its graduate and executive programs. Barnes received her M.S. and Ph.D. in communication from Rensselaer and her B.A. from Russell Sage College. She has been on the board of directors of many civic, educational and cultural organizations.
James Bunch, vice president/business development, has worked in the energy sector as an equity research analyst for various investment banks. He evaluated the international integrated and Russian oil companies with Goldman, Sachs in New York and London. He also worked in Moscow with Renaissance Capital, a Russian investment bank, where he was involved in the sale of a significant portion of one of Russia's largest integrated oil and gas companies to one of the world's leading petroleum companies. Mr. Bunch has a B.A. in international relations from Stanford University and an MBA from Harvard University.
Catherine Hill, Esq., vice president/corporate development, has focused on counseling high technology start-up firms throughout her career, first at Wilmer, Cutler & Pickering in Washington, D.C., and then at Whiteman, Osterman, Hanna in Albany, N.Y. She was instrumental in forming Plug Power and in developing and implementing its early strategic relationships. Most recently, Ms. Hill worked as outside general counsel for a number of start-up internet and software companies. Ms. Hill received her B.S. in business from the State University of New York at Albany and her J.D. from Albany Law School of Union University, and from 1988-1990, was personal clerk to Judge Ruggero Aldisert, Chief Judge of the Third Circuit, United States Court of Appeals.
Cynthia A. Scheuer has served as vice president/chief financial officer since October 1997. From 1983 to 1997, she served in a number of management positions at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, where she was responsible for client audit and consulting services to multinational manufacturing and SEC reporting companies. Ms. Scheuer, who is a certified public accountant, received her B.A. in economics and accounting from Ohio Wesleyan University.
In addition to its involvement in the new energy sector, Mechanical Technology has a subsidiary, MTI Instruments, which is active in the manufacturing and marketing of precision, non-contact instrumentation. |
