NAMES IN THE NEWS

Dr. Barry Arkles, Chair, Founder and CEO of Gelest Inc., has been elected to membership in the National Academy of Engineering (NAE). Dr. Arkles is recognized for his "contributions to organosilicon materials and organometallic and biochemical reagents."

Sparc Technologies Limited has appointed Mike Bartels as Chief Executive Officer. As part of this change to the Senior Executive team, Tom Spurling will stand aside as Managing Director and will remain on the board as a Non-Executive Director.

Osborn, a provider of surface treatment and finishing products, has appointed Brian Cassady as its new Chief Executive Officer.

Micro Powders Inc. (MPI) announced that Rich Czarnecki has been appointed Vice President. Czarnecki will continue to lead the Technology and Business Development functions for the company and will also work closely with the Sales, Marketing, Operations, Finance and Customer Service teams to improve the alignment of operations, facilitate coordination and communication, and develop strategic initiatives for business improvement and growth.

Paul Dounian recently joined the Miltec UV sales team as a Regional Sales Representative. He is responsible for sales in the Great Lakes region and surrounding states.

The ChemQuest Group has hired Rich Gibson, formerly the Director of Corporate Strategy for Milliken & Co., as a Director.

Aaron Krohn, Vice President of Technology at Allied PhotoChemical, was recently chosen as one of Michigan’s Most Valuable Professionals by CORP! Magazine.

At the annual general shareholders’ meeting of Bühler Holding AG, Ruth Metzler-Arnold resigned as a member of the Board of Directors and Chairwoman of the Audit Committee. Rainer Schulz, member of the Board of Directors, will succeed Metzler-Arnold as Chairperson of the Audit Committee.

Keim-Additec Surface USA LLC has hired Nicole Perna to fill the newly created position of Manager of Distribution Services. Perna will be responsible for administering several internal silos such as banking, purchasing, inventory, report generation and accounting functions oversight.

Stefan Schweikart has joined chembid as CEO, taking over from Christian Bürger, who has supported the platform since its foundation. With the addition of Schweikart, chembid strengthens its management with an expert in B2B product data and digital services.

Chromaflo Technologies recently hired Benjamin Woeste as Territory Sales Manager, Coatings & Thermosets, Southwestern U.S. Woeste will be responsible for the overall management of coating and thermoset products sold in the Southwest region through market development and conversion of primary sales targets, including the proliferation of existing product lines and new product line introductions. Woeste will also manage the distribution network in his territory.

PPG recently appointed Tony Wu as Vice President, Automotive Refinish, Asia. He will report to Chancey Hagerty, Vice President, Global Automotive Refinish, and will succeed Pauline Yuen, who retired on March 19.