Royal Group appoints Hock as President, Royal Pipe Systems
December 20 2005 - 3:21PM
PR Newswire (US)
TORONTO, Dec. 20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Royal Group Technologies
Limited (RYG-TSX; RYG-NYSE) today announced the appointment of
Helmut Hock as President of its Royal Pipe Systems division. Mr.
Hock succeeds Stephen Kleynhans who has resigned from the company,
with effect from the end of January 2006, to focus on several
private business interests. "In recruiting Helmut Hock to join
Royal Group, we have been able to attract an executive with
extensive senior management experience and a very successful record
in all aspects of plastic injection molding and extrusion," said
Lawrence J. Blanford, Royal Group's President and Chief Executive
Officer. "Under Stephen Kleynhans' leadership, Royal Pipe Systems
sales have grown tenfold during the 15 years he has been President
of this profitable core business unit. Stephen's strong
entrepreneurial inclination has led him to new challenges, but he
has agreed to assist with the transition and to be available to
assist the pipe unit as necessary in the future," Mr. Blanford
said. Prior to joining Royal Group, Mr. Hock was President of
Progressive Moulded Products Ltd., Concord, Ontario, a Tier 1
supplier of interior sub-systems to the North American automotive
industry with 10 manufacturing plants in Ontario, Missouri, and
Texas and some 1,700 employees. In the face of waning demand for
auto parts from the OEMs (original equipment manufacturers), he
maintained profit margins and won new business to position the
company for future growth. Mr. Hock's 24-year career includes
senior management positions in Europe as well as Canada with
several manufacturers, including Husky Injection Molding Systems
Ltd., Paintplas (1989) Inc., Angus Environmental Limited, Magna
International, Standard Products Ltd., and Schlegel Canada Inc.
Born and raised in Brampton, Ontario, he holds a Bachelors of
Applied Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from the
University of Waterloo. "I have enjoyed my 15 years with Royal
Group, helping to build a team that has successfully grown the pipe
& fittings business unit," said Stephen Kleynhans. "I decided
to leave to pursue other exciting investment opportunities. I have
every confidence that Helmut Hock and the outstanding team at Royal
Pipe Systems will maintain the great relationships that we have
forged over the years with our customers, suppliers, and our
dedicated employees." Royal Pipe Systems Royal Pipe Systems is a
manufacturer of plastic pipe and fittings for the municipal,
plumbing, and electrical construction industries. With its head
office in Woodbridge, Ontario, Canada, it has extrusion and
fabrication facilities in Woodbridge, Ontario; Abbotsford, B.C.;
Surrey, B.C., and an injection molding plant in Shelby Township,
Michigan. Sales offices are located in Woodbridge; Surrey; Calgary,
Alberta; Winnipeg, Manitoba; Laval, Quebec; and Shelby Township,
Michigan. Royal Group Technologies Royal Group Technologies is a
manufacturer of innovative, polymer-based home improvement,
consumer, and construction products. The company has extensive
vertical integration, with operations dedicated to provision of
materials, machinery, tooling, real estate, and transportation
services to its plants producing finished products. Royal Group's
manufacturing facilities are primarily located throughout North
America, with international operations in South America, Europe,
and Asia. Additional investment information is available on Royal
Group's web site at http://www.royalgrouptech.com/ under the
"Investor Relations" section. The information in this document
contains certain forward-looking statements with respect to Royal
Group Technologies Limited, its subsidiaries and affiliates. These
statements are often, but not always made through the use of words
or phrases such as "expect", "should continue", "continue",
"believe", "anticipate", "suggest", "estimate", "contemplate",
"target", "plan", "budget", "may", "will", "schedule" and "intend"
or similar formulations. By their nature, these forward-looking
statements are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and
assumptions that, while considered reasonable by management, are
inherently subject to significant, known and unknown, business,
economic, competitive and other risks, uncertainties and other
factors affecting Royal specifically or its industry generally that
could cause actual performance, achievements and financial results
to differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking
statements. These risks and uncertainties include the ongoing
shareholder value maximization process and its outcome; the ongoing
internal review and investigations by the Special Committee of the
Board of Directors and its outcome; the outcome of the ongoing
assessment and review of the Royal Building System's compliance
with the smoke generated elements of the US building code and the
safety of buildings constructed with the Royal Building System;
fluctuations in the level of renovation, remodeling and
construction activity; changes in product costs and pricing; an
inability to achieve or delays in achieving savings related to the
cost reductions or increases in revenues related to sales price
increases; the sufficiency of our restructuring activities,
including the potential for higher actual costs to be incurred in
connection with restructuring activities compared to the estimated
costs of such actions; the ability to recruit and retain qualified
employees; the level of outstanding debt and our current debt
ratings; Royal's ability to maintain adequate liquidity and
refinance its debt structure by April 30, 2006, the expiry date of
its current bank credit facility; the ability to meet the financial
covenants in our credit facilities; changes in product mix; the
growth rate of the markets into which Royal's products are sold;
market acceptance and demand for Royal's products; changes in
availability or prices for raw materials; pricing pressures
resulting from competition; difficulty in developing and
introducing new products; failure to penetrate new markets
effectively; the effect on foreign operations of currency
fluctuations, tariffs, nationalization, exchange controls,
limitations on foreign investment in local business and other
political, economic and regulatory risks; difficulty in preserving
proprietary technology; adverse resolution of any litigation,
investigations, administrative and regulatory matters, intellectual
property disputes, or similar matters; changes in securities or
environmental laws, rules and regulations; currency risk exposure
and other risks described from time to time in publicly filed
disclosure documents and securities commission reports of Royal
Group Technologies Limited and its subsidiaries and affiliates. In
view of these uncertainties we caution readers not to place undue
reliance on these forward-looking statements. Statements made in
this document are made as of December 20, 2005 and Royal disclaims
any intention or obligation to update or revise any statements made
herein, whether as a result of new information, future events or
otherwise. DATASOURCE: Royal Group Technologies Limited CONTACT:
Mark Badger, Vice President of Marketing and Corporate
Communications, Royal Group Technologies Limited,Phone (905)
264-0701
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