Industrial and commercial products manufacturer Ingersoll-Rand plc (IR) said Friday that its Board of Directors elected Michael Lamach as chairman of the company, effective immediately. He succeeds Herbert Henkel, who was the chairman since May 2000. Lamach will continue his current roles of the company's president and chief executive officer.
It was in February 2010 that the company promoted the then President and Chief Operating Officer Lamach to the position of Chief Executive Officer, succeeding Henkel. He was named president and chief operating officer in February 2009.
Lamach joined Ingersoll Rand in February 2004 as president of the company's Security Technologies Sector, and in 2008, became president of Trane Commercial Systems after Ingersoll Rand acquired Trane Inc.
Prior to Ingersoll Rand, Lamach was with Johnson Controls for 18 years in both the automotive and controls businesses where he advanced into leadership roles with greater global responsibilities.
In February, Lamach was also been appointed a member of the Ingersoll Rand Board of Directors. He also serves on the Board of Directors of Iron Mountain Inc. (IRM).
Richard Swift, lead independent director of Ingersoll Rand's Board, commented, "The Board has complete confidence in Mike's leadership and commitment to the success of Ingersoll Rand. At the same time, we are deeply appreciative of Herb's invaluable contributions to our company and his assistance in ensuring a seamless and well-planned transition."
The Dublin, Ireland-based company noted that Henkel, who joined the company in April 1999, led the company's transformation from a machinery manufacturer to a diversified industrial company serving commercial, residential and industrial markets.
In its first quarter, Ingersoll-Rand had reported a profit of $1.4 million or breakeven per share, compared to a loss of $26.7 million or $0.08 per share last year, reflecting productivity and cost-reduction initiatives, revenue growth and margin expansion across operating segments. Net revenues edged up 1% to $2.95 billion from $2.93 billion in the same quarter last year.
While announcing the results, Lamach had said, "Our first-quarter 2010 earnings were in line with our expectations, even though revenues were slightly lower than forecast. The significant increase in orders we saw in the first quarter and our growing backlog gives us confidence that we will achieve the revenue and earnings guidance we established for 2010."
For fiscal 2010, the company expects earnings from continuing operations in a range of $1.88 to $2.23, while adjusted earnings from continuing operations are projected in a range of $2.00 to $2.35 per share. Revenues for the full year are now projected between $13.6 billion and $13.8 billion. Analysts expect the company to report earnings of $2.25 per share on revenues of $13.74 billion for the full-year 2010.
IR is currently trading at $38.30, down $0.87 or 2.22%, on a volume of 130 thousand shares. In the past 52 weeks, shares have been trading between $19.48 and $40.60.
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