Brings 20+ years of operations management expertise to growing water
meter manufacturer
MILWAUKEE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sep. 8, 2017--
Badger
Meter, Inc. (NYSE: BMI) today announced that it has appointed
Kenneth C. Bockhorst, 44, to the newly created position of senior vice
president and chief operating officer. Bockhorst brings more than 20
years of experience in global operations management to Badger Meter, the
only major independent water meter manufacturer in the United States.
Bockhorst, who most recently served as executive vice president of the
energy segment of Actuant Corporation (NYSE: ATU), will assume his role
at Badger Meter on or before November 1, 2017.
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Kenneth C. Bockhorst (Photo: Business Wire)
“Ken brings a wealth of valuable knowledge in global manufacturing and
continuous improvement to his new role at Badger Meter, as well as
extensive experience in delivering high-quality products and services in
a competitive global environment,” said Richard A. Meeusen, chairman,
president and chief executive officer of Badger Meter. “One of our
ongoing priorities is to develop the next generation of Badger Meter
leaders. As a key member of the senior management team, Ken will play a
vital role in developing strategies for our continued growth and
innovation, both domestically and internationally.”
As chief operating officer, Bockhorst will oversee the company’s
municipal water and flow instrumentation manufacturing, engineering,
sales and marketing and acquisition activities. He will also assume
responsibility for the company’s continuous improvement initiatives and
new product development.
Bockhorst spent the last six years at Actuant Corporation, a $1.1
billion diversified industrial company with operations in more than 30
countries. As executive vice president of the company’s $330 million
energy segment, he oversaw 1,500 employees globally and managed the
segment’s three business units. His previous roles included president of
the Hydratight business unit and global vice president of operations for
Enerpac.
During his tenure at Actuant, Bockhorst established a demonstrated track
record of building strong customer relationships and motivated business
teams, driving sales growth, executing robust operational excellence
initiatives and improving profitability. He also developed and executed
strategic plans that included major portfolio enhancements with both
acquisition and divestiture activities. Prior to Actuant, he held
product management and operational leadership roles at IDEX Corporation
(from 2007-2011) and Eaton Corporation (from 1991-2007). Bockhorst
earned a bachelor’s degree in operations management, marketing and human
resources from Marian University and an Executive MBA from the
University of Wisconsin-Madison.
“I’m thrilled to join such a capable senior leadership team at Badger
Meter, a company I’ve long admired for its commitment to high-quality
products, innovative technology, and helping customers improve their
water usage and overall sustainability efforts,” said Bockhorst. “The
Board and senior leadership team are a dynamic group that is committed
to thoughtful, strategic growth, and I’m looking forward to being a part
of this exciting time at Badger Meter.”
In fiscal 2016, Badger Meter achieved record sales, earnings and
earnings per share, in addition to marking its 24th
consecutive year of increased dividend payments. Over the past five
years, the company has delivered an annualized total return to
shareholders of 21.8 percent.
About Badger Meter
Badger Meter is an innovator in flow measurement, control and
communications solutions, serving water utilities, municipalities, and
commercial and industrial customers worldwide. The Company’s products
measure water, oil, chemicals, and other fluids, and are known for
accuracy, long-lasting durability and for providing valuable and timely
measurement data. For more information, visit www.badgermeter.com.
Certain statements contained in this news release, as well as other
information provided from time to time by Badger Meter, Inc. (the
“Company”) or its employees, may contain forward looking statements that
involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to
differ materially from those in the forward looking statements.The
words “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “think,” “should,”
“could” and “objective” or similar expressions are intended to identify
forward looking statements.All such forward looking statements
are based on the Company’s then current views and assumptions and
involve risks and uncertainties.Some risks and uncertainties
that could cause actual results to differ materially from those
expressed or implied in forward looking statements include those
described in Item 1A of the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the
year ended December 31, 2016 that include, among other things:
- the continued shift in the Company’s business from lower cost,
manually read meters toward more expensive, value-added automatic
meter reading (AMR) systems, advanced metering infrastructure (AMI)
systems and advanced metering analytics (AMA) systems that offer more
comprehensive solutions to customers’ metering needs;
- the success or failure of newer Company products;
- changes in competitive pricing and bids in both the domestic and
foreign marketplaces, and particularly in continued intense price
competition on government bid contracts for lower cost, manually read
meters;
- the actions (or lack thereof) of the Company’s competitors;
- changes in the Company’s relationships with its alliance partners,
primarily its alliance partners that provide radio solutions, and
particularly those that sell products that do or may compete with the
Company’s products;
- changes in the general health of the United States and foreign
economies, including to some extent such things as the length and
severity of global economic downturns, international or civil
conflicts that affect international trade, the ability of municipal
water utility customers to authorize and finance purchases of the
Company’s products, the Company’s ability to obtain financing, housing
starts in the United States, and overall industrial activity;
- unusual weather, weather patterns or other natural phenomena,
including related economic and other ancillary effects of any such
events;
- economic policy changes, including but not limited to, trade policy
and corporate taxation;
- the timing and impact of government funding programs that stimulate
national and global economies, as well as the impact of government
budget cuts or partial shutdowns of governmental operations;
- changes in the cost and/or availability of needed raw materials and
parts, such as volatility in the cost of brass castings as a result of
fluctuations in commodity prices, particularly for copper and scrap
metal at the supplier level, foreign-sourced electronic components as
a result of currency exchange fluctuations and/or lead times, and
plastic resin as a result of changes in petroleum and natural gas
prices;
- the Company’s expanded role as a prime contractor for providing
complete technology systems to governmental entities, which brings
with it added risks, including but not limited to, the Company’s
responsibility for subcontractor performance, additional costs and
expenses if the Company and its subcontractors fail to meet the
timetable agreed to with the governmental entity, and the Company’s
expanded warranty and performance obligations;
- the Company’s ability to successfully integrate acquired businesses
or products;
- changes in foreign economic conditions, particularly currency
fluctuations in the United States dollar, the Euro and the Mexican
peso;
- the inability to develop technologically advanced products;
- the failure of the Company’s products to operate as intended;
- the inability to protect the Company’s proprietary rights to its
products;
- disruptions and other damages to information technology and other
networks and operations due to breaches in data security or any other
cybersecurity attack;
- transportation delays or interruptions;
- violations or alleged violations of the U.S. Foreign Corrupt
Practices Act (FCPA) or other anti-corruption laws and the Foreign
Account Tax Compliance provisions of the Hiring Incentives to Restore
Employment Act (referred to as FATCA);
- the loss of certain single-source suppliers; and
- changes in laws and regulations, particularly laws dealing with the
content or handling of materials used in the Company's products.
All of these factors are beyond the Company's control to varying
degrees.Shareholders, potential investors and other readers are
urged to consider these factors carefully in evaluating the forward
looking statements contained in this news release and are cautioned not
to place undue reliance on such forward looking statements.The
forward looking statements made in this document are made only as of the
date of this document and the Company assumes no obligation, and
disclaims any obligation, to update any such forward looking statements
to reflect subsequent events or circumstances.
Badger Meter company news is available 24 hours a day, online at: http://www.badgermeter.com.
View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170908005068/en/
Source: Badger Meter, Inc.
Badger Meter, Inc.
Dawn O’Neill, (414) 371-7276