Beckhoff Automation has announced that Aurelio Banda will become the company’s president of North American operations, overseeing all operations at the headquarters of Beckhoff Automation LLC in Savage, MN, effective January 1, 2015. The subsidiary’s current president, Graham Harris, will assume a regional management role as part of a planned transition from the leadership role he has held since 2003.
According to Hans Beckhoff, founder and managing director, “Beckhoff Automation has seen tremendous business development and yearly revenue increases in North America under the leadership of Graham Harris…. I thank Graham Harris for his proven track record of success and dedication to serving the machine builders and manufacturers of North America.”
Beckhoff Automation—a subsidiary of Verl, Germany-based Beckhoff Automation GmbH—grew under Harris’ leadership by more than 20 percent each year, on average, from $5 million in revenue in 2003 to a projected $60 million by the end of fiscal year 2014. As Banda wraps up his current role as vice president of sales and marketing, North America, the Beckhoff subsidiary is expected to hit its sales target under his guidance.
Harris said, “In my new, regionally-focused role, I look forward to continue promoting the most advanced automation technologies in the industry while collaborating with a highly-skilled team of colleagues and innovative customers.”
The company’s product lines include PC-based control products, TwinCAT automation software, a range of I/O solutions, high-performance motor and drive technologies, and support of the EtherCAT industrial networking protocol.
As president, Banda will direct all operations at the headquarters in Savage, including administration, sales and marketing, customer service, and technical services/support. The Savage facility also houses a repair and modification center, customer training area, and the main warehouse for Beckhoff North America.
“I am honored by this opportunity to lead Beckhoff’s North American business, and I see even brighter developments in our future,” said Banda. “Since the company’s inception, Beckhoff Automation has led the convergence of automation technology (AT) and IT standards, resulting in great success for customers who embrace PC-based control as their foundation. Today this has only accelerated, with the full integration of computer science programming standards in TwinCAT 3 automation software, and with full support of OPC UA as the communications standard for Industry 4.0 and the Internet of Things. This creates unique competitive advantages for our North American customers.”
