Tecumseh Products Company Announces Appointment of Edwin L. 'Ed' Buker as Chief Executive Officer
01 August 2007 - 10:00PM
PR Newswire (US)
TECUMSEH, Mich., Aug. 1 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Tecumseh Products
Company (Nasdaq: TECUA; TECUB) ("Tecumseh" or the "Company") today
announced the appointment of Edwin "Ed" L. Buker as the Company's
Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Buker, whose appointment is effective
August 13, 2007, joins Tecumseh from Citation Corporation, a
leading supplier of metal components based in Birmingham, Alabama,
where he had served as President and Chief Executive Officer since
March 2002. Prior to joining Citation, Mr. Buker, 54, served as
Vice President and General Manager of the Chassis Systems Division
at Visteon Automotive; as President, Electrical Systems-The
Americas, for United Technologies Automotive; and as Vice President
of New Model Development for BMW Manufacturing Corporation in
Munich, Germany. He also held leadership positions at BMW's
Spartanburg, South Carolina, facility and at Honda's East Liberty,
Ohio, manufacturing plant. Among other accomplishments, Mr. Buker
was co-leader of the design, building and operations management of
Honda's East Liberty facility and of BMW's Spartanburg plant. Mr.
Buker holds a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from
Tri-State University in Angola, Indiana, and an MBA from Ohio
University in Athens, Ohio. David M. Risley, Chairman of Tecumseh,
said: "The appointment of Ed Buker as Chief Executive Officer adds
a seasoned, proven, highly successful executive to Tecumseh. His
manufacturing expertise, customer orientation and overall
management and strategic acumen make him an ideal choice to lead
Tecumseh's continuing efforts to improve its operational and
financial performance." Mr. Buker will become a member of
Tecumseh's Board of Directors when he joins the Company this month,
and will eventually succeed Mr. Risley as Chairman. Since January
2007, the Company has been functioning under the leadership of
interim President and Chief Operating Officer James J. Bonsall, who
will provide transition services to Mr. Buker before returning to
his ongoing role as a Managing Director of AlixPartners LLP. "Jim
Bonsall provided capable leadership at a challenging time for the
Company. I want to thank Jim for his outstanding work at Tecumseh
in our continuing efforts to place the Company on a solid
strategic, operational and financial footing," Mr. Risley said.
"Tecumseh has a long and proud history of serving customers around
the world. We look forward to Ed's role as a team builder and team
leader as Tecumseh continues to serve its customers and drive for
improved performance and market position." CAUTIONARY INFORMATION
REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS This release may contain
forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that are subject to the
safe harbor provision 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)
the outcome of the judicial restructuring of our Brazilian engine
manufacturing subsidiary; ii) the success of our ongoing effort to
bring costs in line with projected production levels and product
mix; iii) our ability to reduce a substantial amount of costs in
the Engine & Power Train group associated with excess capacity;
iv) 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; v) the ability of the
Company to maintain adequate liquidity in total and within each
foreign operation; vi) financial market changes, including
fluctuations in interest rates and foreign currency exchange rates;
vii) availability and cost of materials, particularly commodities,
including steel, copper and aluminum, whose cost can be subject to
significant variation; viii) weather conditions affecting demand
for air conditioners, lawn and garden product, portable power
generators and snow throwers; ix) the ultimate cost of resolving
environmental and legal matters; x) changes in business conditions
and the economy in general in both foreign and domestic markets;
xi) potential political and economic factors that could adversely
affect anticipated sales and production in Brazil; xii) potential
political and economic factors that could adversely affect
anticipated sales and production in India, including potential
military conflict with neighboring countries; xiii) the effect of
terrorist activity and armed conflict; xiv) economic trend factors
such as housing starts; xv) the effect of any business disruption
caused by work stoppages initiated by organized labor unions; xvi)
emerging governmental regulations; xvii) increased or unexpected
warranty claims; xviii) actions of competitors; xix) our ability to
profitably develop, manufacture and sell both new and existing
products; and xx) the ongoing financial health of major customers.
The forward-looking statements are made only as of the date of this
report, and we undertake no obligation to update or revise the
forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,
future events or otherwise. Contacts: Roy Winnick or Michael
Freitag Kekst and Company 212-521-4842 or 4896 Teresa Hess
Director, Investor Relations Tecumseh Products Company 517-423-8455
Press releases and other investor information can be accessed via
the Investor Relations section of Tecumseh Products Company's
Internet web site at http://www.tecumseh.com/. Tecumseh Products
Company now offers media access to news releases via RSS. Please go
to http://tecumseh.mediaroom.com/ to sign up for our RSS feeds.
DATASOURCE: Tecumseh Products Company CONTACT: Roy Winnick,
+1-212-521-4842, , or Michael Freitag, +1-212-521-4896, , both of
Kekst and Company; or Teresa Hess, Director, Investor Relations, of
Tecumseh Products Company, +1-517-423-8455, Web site:
http://www.tecumseh.com/ http://tecumseh.mediaroom.com/ Company
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