Kennametal names new business segment leaders

January 16, 2018

Kennametal Inc., Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA, has announced two changes to its business segment leadership and executive management team. Effective January 16, 2018, the company stated that Peter Dragich will be appointed Kennametal Vice President and President of the company’s Industrial business. In the latter role he will take responsibility for the growth and modernisation of the company’s metalworking solutions and services globally.

In addition, Ron Port will become Kennametal Vice President and President of the company’s Infrastructure segment, where he will be responsible for the company’s advanced materials, earth cutting tools, engineering components and ceramics business.

Chris Rossi, Kennametal president and CEO, explained, “These leadership changes are designed to position the company to well execute the growth, simplification and modernisation plans we presented during Analyst Day in December 2017. I want to take this opportunity to thank Chuck Byrnes for his leadership of the Industrial business and certainly wish him well as he pursues other opportunities. Pete will continue to execute the strategies Chuck has started, while working to accelerate the execution of our modernisation program.”

“Pete’s nearly 30 years of experience in supply chain, operations and cross-functional collaboration make him uniquely qualified to lead this effort,” he continued. “Furthermore, Ron brings 25 years of experience leading large P&L’s, strategy and corporate business development. In addition, he was integral to the development of the current Infrastructure business segment strategy. Both leaders have a record of delivering results.”

Dragich has led Kennametal’s Infrastructure business for the past two years, and previously served as the company’s Vice President of Supply Chain and Logistic. Prior to joining Kennametal, he worked as Vice President, Global Field Operations, Climate, Controls and Security for United Technologies Corporation. He also served in several manufacturing management positions at Ford Motor Company and was a Sergeant in the United States Marine Corps.

Ron Port joined Kennametal in 2015 and most recently led the company’s Global Engineered Components business within the Infrastructure team. Prior to Kennametal, he led global P&L roles at Xylem, Inc. and ITT Corporation, and led strategy and business development for SPX Corp. (Flow Industrial).

In their new roles, Dragich and Port will report directly to Kennametal President and CEO Chris Rossi.

www.kennametal.com

Recent issue of Powder Metallurgy review - your go-to resource to stay updated on the world of powder metallurgy and metal powders

In the latest issue of PM Review…

PM Review Spring 2023

Download PDF

Extensive Powder Metallurgy industry news coverage, and the following exclusive deep-dive articles and reports:

  • GKN Powder Metallurgy: A strategic vision for the future of permanent magnets for EVs
  • Building trust in the Powder Metallurgy industry: The role of standardisation and an update on recent work by ISO/TC 119
  • High-volume powder production for Additive Manufacturing: SMS group’s continuous metal powder production process
  • Development of enhanced-performance PM brake pads for high-speed trains by Beijing Tianyishangjia New Material Corp., Ltd.
  • The START project: Creating a sustainable supply chain for green energy harvesting products by Powder Metallurgy
  • World PM2022: Reviewing three innovative methods for metal powder production

The latest news from the world of metal powders, delivered to your inbox

Don't miss any new issue of PM Review, and get the latest industry news. Sign up to our weekly newsletter.

Sign up

Join our community

From the industry…

Discover our magazine archive…

The free-to-access PM Review magazine archive offers unparalleled insight into the world of Powder Metallurgy from a commercial and technological perspective through:

  • Reports on visits to leading PM part manufacturers, metal powder manufacturers and industry suppliers
  • Articles on technology and application trends
  • Information on materials developments
  • Reviews of key technical presentations from the international conference circuit
  • International industry news

All past issues are available to download as free PDFs or view in your browser.

 

Browse the archive

 

Looking for PM production equipment, metal powders, R&D support and more?

Discover suppliers of these and more in our
advertisers’ index and buyer’s guide, available in the back of PM Review magazine.

  • Powders & materials
  • Powder process, classification & analysis
  • PM products
  • Atomisers & powder production technology
  • Compaction presses, tooling & ancillaries
  • Sintering equipment & ancillaries
  • Post-processing
  • Consulting & toll sintering
Download PDF
Share via
Copy link