15.10.2015

Ron DeFeo retires

Terex has appointed John L. Garrison, Jr. as chief executive, effective from the start of November. He replaces Ron Defeo who moves to executive chairman until the end of the year. He will then retire, but remain as a consultant for a further year.

Garrison joins Terex from Textron where he has been chief executive of its Bell Helicopter operation since 2009. Prior to that he was president of its Industrial division which includes E-Z-GO, Greenlee, Jacobsen and Kautex, until that point he was president of E-Z-GO.
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John Garrison

Before joining Textron in 2002 he was chief executive of water company Azurix, prior to which he was general manager of Case’s North American Agricultural group. Before that he served as an officer in the United States Army.

Terex lead director David Sachs said: “John is a proven leader with considerable experience across a variety of industries. The Board considered a highly qualified pool of outstanding candidates and we strongly believe that John is the right person to lead Terex and Konecranes Terex into the future. We are grateful for Ron’s many contributions to Terex over the years and his leadership through both good and bad economic cycles in continuing to improve the Company into the premier company it is today. We are pleased that Ron will be available through the leadership transition.”
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Ron Defeo

DeFeo added, “I am proud of the company Terex has become in my 23 years as Terex’s leader. With my planned retirement, this day was inevitable and I am confident that John will be able to continue to create value for our shareholders and the shareholders of Konecranes Terex.”

“I am extremely excited to be leading Terex at such an important time in its history. I look forward to building on the strong foundation the team has built and positioning Terex and Konecranes Terex for success in the future,” said Garrison.

Vertikal Comment

The speed of Ron Defeo’s retirement is something of a surprise as it was expected he would be the first chief executive of the merged KoneCranes-Terex business, if and when it completes sometime next year.

Garrison has big shoes to fill but will manage to do so more easily with Defeo as a consultant rather than had he remained as executive chairman. Defeo’s retirement will be a significant milestone for Terex, given the critical role he has played in building the business over the past 23 years, during which time the company acquired a number of crane manufacturer’s topped by Demag mobile cranes and more recently Demag port and industrial cranes. On the aerial lift front he was responsible not only for acquiring Genie, but also for keeping the Genie’s owners and senior management on board and then using their expertise to improve other parts of the group.

One assumes that he will receive a major send off at Bauma in April.