ZENON ENVIRONMENTAL INC ("ZEN,ZEN.A-T") - Appoints New Executive Team And Cuts Overhead By $2 Million
ZENON Environmental Inc., a global leader in membrane water treatment technology, announced that its Board of Directors has approved a new management team for the Company along with a cut in overhead salaries. The decision follows a significant increase in the company''s selling, general and administrative expenses during the last year.
The move will strengthen ZENON''s senior management team and refocus the Company''s financial and accounting areas to improve the corporation''s long-term profitability and operational effectiveness in response to strong growth prospects.
"Starting with a record backlog, ZENON is entering a growth phase. This demands that we create a lean, efficient management structure, control internal costs and bring a renewed operations focus to the company in order to profit from existing growth opportunities," said Dr. Andrew Benedek, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of ZENON.
"The company is evolving, becoming a major supplier of membrane systems to the water market sector," continued Dr. Benedek, "and that demands new management strengths and capabilities."
Under the refocusing, the Board of Directors has appointed a Chief Operating Officer and a new Chief Financial Officer, both with extensive experience in the manufacturing of water processing equipment.
"Our new Chief Operating Officer, Mr. Jim Russell, brings with him more than two decades of experience in the manufacturing of large scale water processing equipment," said Dr. Benedek.
Prior to coming to ZENON, Mr. Russell, a mechanical engineer by profession, was the General Manager, Manufacturing for Babcock and Wilcox Canada, a division of Babcock & Wilcox, Ohio, a leading international energy services company with sales of $1 billion.
Mr. Russell contributed significantly in senior engineering, project management and manufacturing roles, to making Babcock & Wilcox a world leader in power generation equipment, and capturing a leading share of the North American market. His leadership contributed to significant growth through the advancement of Canadian operations, and in development of joint venture manufacturing operations in several target market countries.
As part of the refocusing, Chief Financial Officer Mr. David Hull has been replaced by Mr. John Barker who will occupy the roles of Chief Financial Officer and Vice President, Finance and Administration, reporting to Mr. Russell.
"Mr. Barker, a Certified Management Accountant, brings nearly three decades of experience in the manufacturing industry with a comprehensive background in finance, general management, and acquisitions."
Prior to joining ZENON, he was Chief Financial Officer and Senior Vice President, Finance and Administration at Glegg Water Conditioning, Inc., an international manufacturer of industrial water purification systems, including large membrane equipment. Mr. Barker managed the Finance, Human Resources and Computer Systems areas of the company.
At Glegg, his team building skills were instrumental in implementing measures that significantly improved the company''s processes, in addition to initiating new systems for financial control and reporting.
Prior to this, he spent much of his career in senior financial roles with Bonar Inc., a publicly traded packaging manufacturer with 15 North American manufacturing facilities.
In line with its renewed focus on profitability, ZENON is also cutting approximately $2 million on an annual basis from its selling, general and administrative costs.
ZENON is a world leader in providing advanced membrane products and services for water purification, wastewater treatment and water reuse. The ZENON group of companies operates from seven locations in North America, six in Europe, and one in each of Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East.
ZENON''s products and services are marketed for a variety of municipal and industrial applications through ZENON''s offices and representatives located throughout the world. |
