American automotive supplier BorgWarner has announced the name of its proposed Fuel Systems and Aftermarket segments spin-off as Phinia, which will see Brady Ericson as President and CEO, while Chris Gropp will serve as Executive VP and CFO.
Phinia is expected to be a product leader in fuel systems, starters, alternators and aftermarket distribution with balanced and synergistic exposure among commercial vehicle, light vehicle, and aftermarket end-markets, and to have broad regional and customer exposures.
Frederic B Lissalde, President and CEO, BorgWarner said “Brady and Chris are well-rounded and respected leaders at BorgWarner and in the industry. They each possess a breadth of knowledge and experience that will be required to guide Phinia as an independent company and pursue its continued success. Today’s announcement is also an exciting next step that personifies and gives an identity to what we had referred to as ‘NewCo’, now Phinia.”
Ericson began his career at BorgWarner in 2000 and has served as VP of BorgWarner and President and General Manager of BorgWarner Fuel Systems and Aftermarket since March 2022. He has been an officer of BorgWarner since 2011 while serving as President and General Manager of three different business units and as BorgWarner’s Chief Strategy Officer. Prior to this, he served in roles of increasing responsibility in operations, manufacturing strategy, engineering, and sales. Earlier in his career, Ericson held various sales and engineering positions with Honeywell (formerly AlliedSignal), Remy International, and Ford
“We will draw upon BorgWarner’s rich 130-year history – maintaining the strong culture of product leadership, integrity and operational excellence. There is a tremendous opportunity and a bright future ahead for our talented employees, with exciting things on the horizon,” said Ericson.
On the other hand, Gropp started her career at BorgWarner in 2001, serving most recently as VP of Finance for Fuel Systems and Aftermarket since October 2020. Over her 22 years at BorgWarner, she has held positions of increasing responsibility in several BorgWarner businesses domestically and internationally, from Plant Controller and Commercial Controller to Finance Director and VP of Finance for three of BorgWarner’s businesses. Prior to joining BorgWarner, Gropp was an auditor for KPMG and Director, Finance/Controller for Pressac. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting from the University of Alabama.
“We’ve delivered significant operational and segment margin improvement over the last couple of years in Fuel Systems and Aftermarket. I’m excited for the opportunity to lead Phinia, as part of Brady’s leadership team, and seek to continue the positive momentum and financial discipline, with the objective of setting us up for success as an independent entity,” said Gropp.
The proposed spin-off is expected to be completed in late 2023, subject to satisfaction of customary conditions.