Meritor Inc. has appointed Stephen Gudgel to the position of managing director, Axles & Drivelines, Commercial Truck, Europe; and Silvio Barros to the position of managing director, Axles & Drivelines, Commercial Truck, South America. Both appointments are effective immediately.
Gudgel is responsible for driving the strategic growth and profitability of the business, and managing Meritor’s customer relationships in the region. “Steve is a great asset to our European organization,” says Tim Bowes, president, Commercial Truck, Meritor. “His significant business, operations and plant management experience, combined with his industry knowledge, will be key as we continue our growth in Europe.”
Gudgel was formerly general manager, Operations, Europe. Prior to joining Meritor in December 2008, he served as vice president, Operations, Electrical Aftermarket, for Remy International in Anderson, Ind., where he spent 10 years in a variety of leadership positions of increasing responsibility. Before joining Remy, Gudgel spent several years with Delphi and Delco-Remy in plant management and operations roles.
Barros is responsible for the profitability, strategic direction and continued regional focus on Meritor’s global customers. “Silvio is an energetic leader who has successfully managed the growth of Meritor’s business in South America,” says Bowes. “There is no better choice for this position than Silvio.”
Previously, he was general manager, South America. Barros has held several sales, marketing and engineering positions during his 14 years with Meritor. Prior to joining the company, Barros held senior leadership positions in marketing and sales at SKF and Bosch Corp.
Meritor also recently named Tim Burns vice president and general manager, Defense & Specialty, Industrial; and Mikel Slater vice president, Business Unit/Functional Human Resources and Talent Acquisition.
Burns is responsible for the planning, organization and execution of all strategies and policies for the Defense and Specialty businesses. “Tim is a fantastic leader with a wealth of experience,” said Pedro Ferro, president, Industrial, Meritor. “He has an extensive background in strategic planning, program management and sales and service, which makes him an ideal candidate to lead these growing businesses.”
Previously, he was vice president, Global Defense. Burns has been with Meritor and its predecessor companies for 30 years, holding various positions within Rockwell Aerospace & Electronics, the former aircraft business unit, with increasing responsibilities in the areas of industrial engineering, contract administration and contract and pricing management.
Slater is responsible for leading the Human Resources team directly in support of Meritor’s business segments, as well as all staff functions; additionally, he is responsible for the company’s Talent Acquisition activities. Prior to taking on this new role, Slater was senior director, Global Human Resources. He joined Meritor in October 2000. Prior to joining Meritor, he held positions of increasing responsibility at MichCon, now DTE Energy.
“Mikel has played an integral role in the development and execution of Meritor’s human resource policies and programs,” said Larry Ott, senior vice president, Human Resources, Meritor. “His knowledge and background will provide his team the strategic direction needed to implement Meritor’s global HR strategy.”
