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Force Protection CEO to retire by end of January
By Dan McCue
Staff Writer
Force Protection Inc.’s chief executive said he will retire by the end of January, ending a three-year tenure that’s been marked by both impressive successes and shareholder unrest.
Gordon McGilton, who has served as CEO of the mine-resistant vehicle manufacturer since 2005, said he was confident that the company would continue to be successful in the future.
He said he would be available to work with the management team to ensure the continuity of the company’s mission.
“The board of directors of Force Protection had originally asked me to step in as a CEO while the company developed and organized itself to meet the challenges of its extraordinary growth,” McGilton said. “As the scope of that potential began to expand, so did the scope of my task and the length of time commitment.”
The board of directors has appointed company President Michael Moody, 61, as the interim chief executive, while it conducts a search to select a CEO from internal and external candidates.
During his tenure at Force Protection, McGilton helped establish the company as a market leader in ballistic- and blast-protected wheeled products with the creation of the manufacturer’s Buffalo, Cougar and Cheetah vehicles.
Under McGilton’s watch, Force Protection also established a joint venture, Force Dynamics LLC, with General Dynamics Land Systems to manufacture Cougar vehicles to protect military service personnel in conflict zones in Iraq and Afghanistan. Despite these high points, 2007 also brought uncertainty for the company.
The U.S. Army and Marine Corps said they would scale back orders of mine-resistant vehicles after current contracts are filled. The company’s stock also has tumbled, falling from a high of $30 per share in May to just over $4 recently.
Tommy Pruitt, the company’s government communications and public relations director, said no other personnel changes are planned. “In the meantime, we’re going to go full speed ahead on continuing to build and deliver vehicles on the schedule we previously agreed to with our customer,” he said.
Dan McCue is a staff writer for the Business Journal. E-mail him at dmccue@setcommedia.com.
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