| Affinia Group Inc., a global leader in the on- and off-highway replacement parts and service industry, has announced the appointment of Thomas Skidmore to the position of Vice President of Strategic Business Development and Global Supply. Skidmore will have global responsibility for all Under Vehicle Group procurement activities as well as development of new manufacturing alliances. Skidmore will continue to develop and manage the Asian offices related to establishing sources of supply and potential strategic business opportunities. In addition he will lead Affinia’s Global Procurement Council. This group oversees quality and supply chain initiatives and quality control as Affinia expands its global manufacturing and sourcing base.
In his new role Skidmore will report directly to John R. Washbish, President of Customer Relationship Management and Vice President/General Manager of the Under Vehicle Group. “In his former job as Vice President of Strategic Business Development, Tom did an outstanding job in helping Affinia reshape its worldwide manufacturing footprint and enhance its global sourcing efforts,” said Washbish. “In this expanded role Tom will assure that we realize full benefit from the global network his team has created over the past 18 months. At the same time he will continue to seek new manufacturing and sourcing opportunities for Affinia. Our customers rely on us to provide them with the best quality and best value possible, and that requires searching every corner of the globe as Tom and his have done.”
“Tom has been instrumental in establishing business offices for Affinia in Asia, and will continue to drive Affinia’s global supply efforts to fully benefit our customer base,” said Terry McCormack, President and CEO of Affinia. “As we work through our restructuring we will reposition top level people as our changing business requires. Our goal is to be ready to take full advantage of our emerging structure as early as possible, and moves like this will ensure it.”
Prior to joining Affinia, Skidmore worked with A.T. Kearney in Chicago as part of their Global Automotive Practice. During that time, he managed multiple business development initiatives as well as a broad array of consulting engagements focused on revenue growth and cost reduction.
Skidmore holds a bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Texas at El Paso. He earned a master of business administration degree from the Kellogg School of Management with majors in operations, strategy and finance.
Affinia Group Inc. is a global leader in the on- and off-highway replacement parts and service industry. In North America the Affinia family of brands includes WIX® Filters, Raybestos® brand brakes and Aimco® brake products, and McQuay-Norris® and Spicer® Chassis parts. South American and European brands include Nakata®, Urba® and Quinton Hazell®. Affinia has operations in 19 countries and more than 11,000 people dedicated to keeping the world’s wheels turning. For more information, visit www.affiniagroup.com.
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