Electrical goods manufacturer Glen Dimplex has appointed former Bank of Ireland chief executive Richie Boucher to its supervisory board in a shake-up of the oversight body within the group.
As part of the move, group founder Martin Naughton has been named chairman emeritus of the board, which oversees group operations on behalf of its shareholders. The announcement was made by Mr Naughton’s son, Fergal Naughton, Glen Dimplex executive chairman, who will now chair the supervisory board.
Mr Naughton said the appointment of his father to the emeritus role is an acknowledgment of his “remarkable impact and his ongoing commitment to supporting the board, and indeed the entire group”.
He also said group chief executive Fergal Leamy will be appointed to the board alongside Mr Boucher, the chairman of building materials giant CRH, who brings “an exceptional array of experience and wisdom” to the role.
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The shake-up will also seen the departure of long-time non-executive director Joe Menendez, who will step down at the end of the current calendar year, Mr Naughton said.
“Joe joined us when the board was first formed and has always been a pragmatic operations voice, with a particular understanding of the French market,” he said. “I would like to sincerely thank him for his incredible support over the last nearly nine years.”
The Naughton family-owned electrical goods company, which reported an almost threefold rise in pretax profits at its main Irish arm in 2023 to €120.9 million, announced an overhaul of its operations in Ireland in February.
The group is moving production of its gas and electrical fire products to a partner business in China as it consolidates its two facilities in Dunleer, Co Louth into one with an investment of €15 million. Workers at the Dunleer sites, where Glen Dimplex is understood to be seeking around 60 redundancies, voted in August to accept a revised redundancy offer negotiated between the company and Siptu.
Glen Dimplex also announced the closure of its site in Portadown, prompting workers there, represented by trade union Unite, to vote in favour of industrial action in August.
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