BROOMFIELD, Colo., Nov. 8, 2010 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Ball
Corporation (NYSE: BLL) announced today that John A. Hayes will become chief executive
officer of the corporation at its January
2011 board of directors meeting, as R. David Hoover retires as an active employee
after more than 40 years with Ball.
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Hayes, 44, is currently president and chief operating officer of
Ball. He joined the company in 1999.
Hoover, 65, has been Ball's CEO since 2001. He has been a member
of Ball's board of directors since 1996 and will remain its
chairman.
"Ball Corporation has had a remarkable record over the past
decade with Dave Hoover as its CEO,"
said Georgia R. Nelson, presiding
director of the Ball Corporation board and chairperson of its
nominating/corporate governance committee. "During that period, he
and John Hayes have worked together
closely as John held senior positions in various areas including
strategic planning, marketing and operations. The entire board has
been impressed with John's leadership skills and his strategic
acumen. We look forward to working with him as the company builds
on the strong foundation it has in place. We are equally pleased to
have Dave Hoover remain chair of the
Ball board."
During Hoover's 10 years as CEO, Ball Corporation's stock has
provided a total return to shareholders of more than 500 percent.
Ball's sales grew from $3.66 billion
in 2000, the year before Hoover became CEO, to $7.35 billion in 2009. Sales in 2010 are expected
to approach $8 billion. The company
made a number of key strategic moves under Hoover, including
greatly expanding its international presence.
Hayes came to Ball after beginning his career in investment
banking, where Ball was one of his clients. At Ball he worked in
corporate planning, marketing and development until he went to
Europe in 2005 and first became
executive vice president and later president of Ball Packaging
Europe, one of Ball's largest operating segments. He returned to
the U.S. in 2008 to become executive vice president and chief
operating officer of Ball. In January of this year he became the
tenth president of Ball Corporation in the company's 130-year
history and joined its board of directors.
Hoover joined Ball in Indiana
in 1970 as assistant to the treasurer and held various corporate
treasury and credit positions until 1980 when he moved to
Colorado to become part of Ball's
technical products group. In 1987 he returned to Indiana as assistant treasurer. In 1992
he became Ball's chief financial officer and in April 2000, vice chairman, president and chief
operating officer. He became CEO at the beginning of 2001 and
chairman of the board in 2002. He is also on the boards of Eli
Lilly and Company, Qwest Communications International, Inc. and
Energizer Holdings, Inc.
Ball Corporation is a supplier of high-quality packaging for
beverage, food and household products customers, and of aerospace
and other technologies and services, primarily for the U.S.
government. Ball Corporation and its subsidiaries employ more than
14,000 people worldwide and reported 2009 sales of more than
$7.3 billion including discontinued
operations. For the latest Ball news and for other company
information, please visit http://www.ball.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains "forward-looking" statements concerning
future events and financial performance. Words such as "expects,"
"anticipates," "estimates" and similar expressions are intended to
identify forward-looking statements. Such statements are subject to
risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results to differ
materially from those expressed or implied. The company undertakes
no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking
statements, whether as a result of new information, future events
or otherwise. Key risks and uncertainties are summarized in filings
with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including Exhibit 99.2
in our Form 10-K, which are available at our website and at
www.sec.gov. Factors that might affect our packaging segments
include fluctuation in product demand and preferences; availability
and cost of raw materials; competitive packaging availability,
pricing and substitution; changes in climate and weather; crop
yields; competitive activity; failure to achieve anticipated
productivity improvements or production cost reductions; mandatory
deposit or other restrictive packaging laws; changes in major
customer or supplier contracts or loss of a major customer or
supplier; and changes in foreign exchange rates or tax rates.
Factors that might affect our aerospace segment include: funding,
authorization, availability and returns of government and
commercial contracts; and delays, extensions and technical
uncertainties affecting segment contracts. Factors that might
affect the company as a whole include those listed plus: accounting
changes; changes in senior management; the current global recession
and its effects on liquidity, credit risk, asset values and the
economy; successful or unsuccessful acquisitions, joint ventures or
divestitures; integration of recently acquired businesses;
regulatory action or laws including tax, environmental, health and
workplace safety, including in respect of climate change, or
chemicals or substances used in raw materials or in the
manufacturing process; governmental investigations; technological
developments and innovations; goodwill impairment; antitrust,
patent and other litigation; strikes; labor cost changes; rates of
return projected and earned on assets of the company's defined
benefit retirement plans; pension changes; reduced cash flow;
interest rates affecting our debt; and changes to unaudited results
due to statutory audits or other effects.
SOURCE Ball Corporation