LONDON and NEW YORK, June 6 /PRNewswire/ -- Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, a leading private equity firm today announced that Fred Kindle, the former President and Chief Executive Officer of ABB Ltd. (NYSE: ABB), has become a Partner of the Firm.
Under Mr. Kindle's leadership, ABB, the world's leading supplier of electrical and automation equipment, systems, and services accomplished an impressive turnaround in performance during the period 2004-8, with core operating sales and profitability both rising substantially. Prior to ABB, Mr. Kindle served from 1999-2004 as President and Chief Executive Officer of Sulzer, a global industrial engineering and manufacturing company, where he led a significant portfolio restructuring and profit enhancement.
Donald J. Gogel, Chief Executive Officer of CD&R, commented: "Europe is an important market for Clayton, Dubilier & Rice. We believe that our success working on large global divestitures across a range of industries and building value by improving long-term business performance aligns well with the opportunities to help large, global companies reshape their portfolios. We are pleased to welcome Fred to the Firm."
Roberto Quarta, Chairman of CD&R Europe, commented: "We are very excited to have an exceptional industrial leader of Fred's calibre join our team. Our operating partners are integral to the CD&R model, and instrumental in helping source transactions and supervising the transformation and growth of our portfolio companies."
Mr. Kindle commented: "CD&R is a firm with a long and successful record of improving the underlying operating performance of portfolio companies, which has never been more relevant than it is today. I am pleased to join a group with such a strong sense of shared values, and I look forward to applying my management experience as part of the CD&R team."
Prior to Sulzer, Mr. Kindle also served at McKinsey & Company in New York and Zurich. He is a member of the Boards of Zurich Financial Services and VZ Holding Ltd.
About Clayton, Dubilier & Rice
With 30 years of history, Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, Inc. is one of the most experienced and respected private equity firms. The Firm's focused investment strategy is predicated on producing superior financial returns through building stronger, more profitable businesses. Approximately 90 percent of the Firm's historical returns have resulted from improved operating performance. CD&R's portfolio investments include global market leaders such as Rexel Group (RXL.PA), Hertz Global Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: HTZ), Sally Beauty Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: SBH), HD Supply and The ServiceMaster Company. The firm is based in New York and London. http://www.cdr-inc.com.
Contact: Thomas C. Franco, +1-212-407-5225, tfranco@cdr-inc.com; Daniel G. Jacobs, +1-212-232-2227, djacobs@broadgate.com; Philip Gawith, +44(0)20-7379-5151, pgawith@maitland.co.uk
