Thorne Bartlett
Global New Business Development Manager
Dow Wire & Cable
Thorne Bartlett is the new business development leader for Dow Wire & Cable, a global market-facing business unit of The Dow Chemical Company.
Thorne completed a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering and Polymers Science and a Master of Science degree in Chemical Engineering, both at Rutgers University. Following that, he held a number of positions in product development and engineering where he was granted two patents before moving into marketing and sales for wire and cable compounds at Union Carbide Corporation.
Thorne has more than fifteen years of wire and cable experience. Prior to his current position, Thorne served as the product-marketing executive for the Power Cable Compounds business within Dow Wire & Cable. In this role he was responsible for global business strategy for Dow’s power cable compounds product line, including coordinating research and development projects and asset management.
Thorne is based in Houston, Texas.
Gary W. Buckler
Global Improvement Leader
Dow Wire & Cable
Gary Buckler is the global improvement leader for Dow Wire & Cable. In this position, Mr. Buckler leads all process technology improvements, translates business strategy to technology needs, leads/leverages prioritization of plant improvement opportunities, optimizes process technology, defines and implements Most Effective Technology -- a powerful Dow work process encompassing the best collective knowledge and experience in cost-reduction methods. He was named to this role in 2001. Mr. Buckler joined Union Carbide in 1978. His first roles were in mechanical reliability engineering. He then assumed various production assignments, becoming a production leader in 1990 and taking on roles with increasing levels of responsibility in manufacturing in various production facilities. In 1994 he became group leader in UCC Wire & Cable Licensing and was named director of manufacturing for UCC Wire & Cable in Seadrift, Texas in 1996.
Graduated from the University of Houston, Houston, TX with a BS in Mechanical Engineering and from State University of New York with and MBA.
Mark Burtch
North America Market Manager
Dow Wire & Cable
Mark Burtch, Global Segment leader for Medium Voltage, is primarily responsible for the market segmentation strategy and leading new business development opportunities aligned with the medium voltage market segment.
Previously, Mark served as the North American Marketing Manager for Dow’s Wire & Cable Business.
Mark began his career in field sales at The Dow Chemical Company in 1991. In 1996, he transferred to the Midland, Michigan to lead the market research efforts in the Engineered Films and Laminates business in Fabricated Products. Mark was then promoted to the Global Marketing/Product Manager for the Engineered Laminates Business.
Mark is a chair of the Global Medium Voltage Market Team for the Wire & Business.
Mark earned his bachelor’s degree in Marketing from Michigan State University in East Lansing.
John Claybrooks
Global Brand and Communication Leader
Dow Wire & Cable
John Claybrooks is the Sr. Global Brand & Communications Leader for the Dow Wire & Cable business unit of The Dow Chemical Company. In this position, Mr. Claybrooks develops business communications, as well as, oversees the strategic development and management of the global brand strategy and positioning for the business portfolio – including products, systems, services, technologies and formulations – that support Wire & Cable's overall business strategy and global marketing plans.
Mr. Claybrooks joined The Dow Chemical Company in 2008. Prior to joining Dow, Mr. Claybrooks was previously the Director of Brand Marketing for The Home Depot corporation where he was responsible for overseeing the strategic direction and execution of marketing The Home Depot brand and all Home Depot private label brands in the U.S., Canada, Mexico and China. With more than 17 years of experience in brand strategy and architecture development for business-to-business and business-to-consumer product lines, he has also been responsible for the oversight of media and marketing communications from various marketing management positions previously held at IBM, Procter & Gamble and GE. Mr. Claybrooks is based in Midland, Michigan.
Graduate of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN with a Bachelor of Science degree in Marketing from; and Emory University School of Law, Atlanta, GA with a Juris Doctorate degree; and Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, with an MBA degree in Marketing and Organizational Design.
Benoit Fritz
Commercial Director, Europe, the Middle East and Africa
Dow Wire & Cable
Benoit Fritz is the commercial director for Europe, the Middle East, Africa and India for Dow Wire & Cable. In this position, Mr. Benoit is responsible for managing the commercial activities and is responsible for quarterly profitability of the area’s business. He was appointed to this position in 2006 and is based in Horgen, Switzerland. Prior to taking up this position, Mr. Benoit served as the market manager for Dow Wire & Cable in the above geographies. He joined Dow in 2005 from DuPont-Dow Elastomers where he was global Wire & Cable team leader for ethylene copolymers and the sales development manager for Europe. In this role, he doubled sales in Wire & Cable applications by leading a 14-member team focused on market opportunity analysis, program prioritization, and global business plan implementation.
Graduated from P&M Curie, Paris VI University with Bachelors and Masters in Organic Chemistry. Attend the Dow Academy for advanced marketing training.
Supot Katetopragran
Executive Vice President, Nippon Unicar Co., Ltd
Dow Wire & Cable
Supot Katetopragran is the executive vice president of Nippon Unicar (NUC), a joint venture between The Dow Chemical Company and Tonen Chemical Company. In this position, he oversees the strategic development and management of NUC. He was previously product director of Dow’s polystyrene business for Asia Pacific from 2006 to 2008. He is based in Tokyo, Japan. He joined Dow Chemical Japan Company in 1991 in polyols manufacturing in Japan. He then started up a polyol plant in Map Ta Phut, Thailand, in 1992 and moved to work in technical service and development (TS&D) for Polystyrene in 1995. He became a regional account manager for Polystyrene based in Singapore in 1997. He assumed a role in implementation of Dow’s customer interface project in Asia Pacific in 2000. He was named product manager for low density polyethylene, AFFINITYÒ polyolefin plastomers, and PRIMACORÒ copolymers and marketing manager for Food and Specialty Packaging for Asia Pacific in 2003. He then was named product director for Polystyrene Asia Pacific in 2006 before he took his current role in August 2008.
Graduated from Chulalongkorn University, Thailand, with a degree in Chemical Engineering and from Kyoto University, Japan, with a Masters in Chemical Engineering.
Tim Laughlin
General Manager
Dow Wire & Cable
Tim Laughlin is the general manager and global business director for Dow Wire & Cable. In this position, Mr. Laughlin oversees the strategic development and management of the Dow Wire & Cable business portfolio and the incorporation of new polymers and technologies from the Plastics Business Group of The Dow Chemical Company. Mr. Laughlin was appointed to this position in 2004. Mr. Laughlin joined The Dow Chemical Company in 1984 in the commercial development program. His first role at Dow was in Specialty Chemicals. He then moved to a global raw material purchasing role. He also held various marketing and business management positions in the chlor alkali and ethylene oxide and derivatives chemicals businesses. He moved to a commercial director for building solutions in 1995. Mr. Laughlin was named senior commercial manager for Olefin Feedstock in 1996, and was appointed to the position of global business director for Hydrocarbons & Energy in 1999, located in Horgen, Switzerland.
Graduate of Indiana University, Bloomington, IN with a degree in Chemistry and University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI. Executive MBA program.
Andy LeBlanc
Finance Leader
Dow Wire & Cable
Andrew LeBlanc has been the finance leader for the Dow Wire & Cable business since April 2006. Andrew’s primary responsibility is to provide objective, strategic and economic counsel for the business and to ensure the overall integrity of global financial information. In Mr. Leblanc’s previous role, he provided business finance support for the VERSENEÒ chelating agents, Quaternaries, and DAXAD/Glycine value centers. In this role he participated in three separate strategy developments, a competitive mapping exercise and the divestiture of the DAXAD/Glycine business. Prior to this he served for three years in the Polyglycol business as a manufacturing analyst and participated as the key finance member of the Strategy Development Process for the newly merged Dow/Union Carbide Corporation Polyglycols business. From 1993 to 1996, Mr. LeBlanc was a production engineer at the LaPorte, Texas, site for Polyurethanes and then worked in R&D for Polyglycols from 1996-1998.
Graduated from Lamar University with a BS degree in Chemical Engineering and from the University of Houston, Clear Lake, TX with a Masters in Finance.
Michael Liesfeldt
Global Supply Chain Manager
Dow Wire & Cable
Michael Liesfeldt is the global supply chain manager for Dow Wire & Cable. In this position, Mr. Liesfeldt oversees the strategic development and management of the Dow Wire & Cable business supply chain. He is based in Horgen, Switzerland. Mr. Liesfeldt joined The Dow Chemical Company in the Manufacturing and Engineering Organization in Germany in 1993. In 1996 he worked as project manager in Asia on Supply Chain infrastructure projects. He was named business supply chain planner for Polystyrene in Europe and relocated to Terneuzen, The Netherlands, in 1997. Mr. Liesfeldt became the global planning leader for the Dow Wire & Cable business in 2003 and relocated to Houston, Texas. He was named to his current role and moved to Horgen in April 2008.
Graduated from the University of Hamburg, Germany with a Master’s Degrees in Business and Financial Economics.
Simon Leung
Regional Marketing Manager
Dow Wire & Cable
Simon Leung is the regional marketing manager for Dow Wire & Cable in Asia and the Pacific. He is based in Hong Kong.
In his present role, Simon is responsible for driving marketing strategies and leading application development opportunities for the Dow Wire & Cable business portfolio across the region.
Simon career began at Ciba Geigy in 1986 in their polymer division. He moved to Union Carbide Corporation (UCC) as product manager for wire and cable in 1997, and following the merger between UCC and Dow in 2001, he was named account manager for the business. In 2006, he was named end use marketing manager for Dow Wire & Cable in Asia/Pacific.
Simon holds a Bachelor of Science (Chemistry) from the University of Hong Kong.
Brian Maurer
Senior Research & Development Director
Dow Wire & Cable
Brian Maurer is the senior research and development (R&D) director of Dow Wire & Cable R&D, as well as site director for Dow’s New Jersey operations. His global R&D group provides product R&D, application development, technical service and new business development for the Wire & Cable business. In his New Jersey site role, Mr. Maurer is an executive board member for the Union Carbide Corporation, as well as vice-chairman the Chemistry Council of New Jersey. Prior to his current role, Mr. Maurer spent three years as senior director of R&D for Dow’s Water Soluble Polymer (WSP) business. His market-focused WSP R&D group developed new technologies for pharmaceutical, personal care, food, building, chemical, paint, and industrial specialty applications. Mr. Maurer was previously senior R&D Director of Dow Automotive for five years as it transformed from a market-focused business group to a market-facing business unit. He had responsibility for the development of plastic, fluid, film and foam technologies for use in automotive interior and exterior applications. During his 25 year career at Dow, Mr. Maurer also has been a member of Core R&D, Polystyrene R&D, and Engineering Thermoplastics R&D. He is the author of seven patents, was a recipient of Dow’s “Inventor of the Year Award,” received two CRI report awards, and was a recipient of Dow’s Genesis Award for excellence in people development.
Graduate of Central Michigan University, Mt. Pleasant, MI with a degree in Chemistry. Executive Education at Thunderbird University, Glendale, AZ and IMD, Lausanne, Switzerland.
Jon Penrice
Global Marketing Director
Dow Wire & Cable
Jonathan Penrice is global marketing director for Dow Wire & Cable. In this role, Mr. Penrice leads Dow business development, product marketing, strategic marketing and branding programs globally for the business. Mr. Penrice joined The Dow Chemical Company to assume this position in September 2007. He also serves on Dow's Global Executive Marketing Council. Mr. Penrice began his marketing career at Unilever in the consumer marketing discipline, and today has more than 20 years of experience successfully building and leading business-to-business and market-facing business strategies. He has held a variety of other marketing executive roles in DuPont China and DuPont USA. Prior to joining Dow, Mr. Penrice was the global executive vice president of Marketing for Koch Industries’ Invista Switzerland, a $2 billion apparel business unit formerly known as DuPont Textiles and Interiors.
Graduated from Cambridge University, England with a Masters in Natural Sciences.
Verónica Pérez Aguilar
Commercial Director, Latin America
Dow Wire & Cable
Verónica Pérez Aguilar is the commercial director for Dow Wire & Cable in Latin America. Mrs. Pérez oversees the commercial activities and is responsible for quarterly profitability of the area’s business. Mrs. Perez joined The Dow Chemical Company in Mexico as a customer service representative in 1995. She developed her commercial career from 1997 to 2003 in field sales, managing polyethylene and automotive products and customers, implementing business strategies oriented to sales growth. In 2004, she was appointed commercial manager for Dow Automotive and was responsible for implementing business strategies as well as all sales-related activities in Mexico, Caribbean and Central America. In 2006, Ms. Pérez was named product and market manager for Food and Specialty Packaging for Latin America, located at Dow’s Latin America Headquarters in Sao Paulo, Brazil. She was awarded with Dow’s Pinnacle Award for Sales Excellence in 2002.
Graduated from UNAM, Mexico with a degree in Chemical Engineering and from ITESM – Queretaro, Mexico with a MBA in Business Administration.
Damien Polansky
Global Market Segment Leader, Telecommunications
Dow Wire & Cable
Damien Polansky is global telecommunications market segment leader for Dow Wire and Cable, a business unit of The Dow Chemical Company. He is also regional marketing manager for North America across all W&C segments. In these roles, Damien is responsible for creating and implementing marketing strategies.
Damien joined Dow in 1997 as a co-op in polymer manufacturing. In 1999 he became a full-time employee of Dow Polyolefins TS&D and a year later served as a Six Sigma Blackbelt project leader where he led projects ranging from supply chain to sales.
In 2002, the lure of the commercial-side brought Damien into Wire and Cable as an account manager in Atlanta, GA. Polansky’s role changed to focus on market development for W&C starting in 2005 and a year later he relocated to Midland for a marketing role in Dow Elastomer’s building and construction market.
In 2009, Damien rejoined W&C in his current role in Houston, TX.
Damien holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin. He is also currently enrolled in a Masters of Business Program at the Univeristy of Notre Dame, class of 2010.
Ram Ramachandran
Director of End Use Marketing
Dow Wire & Cable
S. “Ram” Ramachandran is Dow Wire & Cable’s global director of End Use Marketing. Responsible for leading the group of dedicated end use marketing managers, Mr. Ramachandran directs the initiative to work closely with end users, down the value chain, to demonstrate Dow Wire & Cable technologies and solutions for the transmission, distribution and consumption of power, voice and data. He and his End Use Team interface with global end users such as utilities, communications groups, off-shore drillers and regulatory boards, to understand their cable needs, issues and trends. This information is then shared with customers and Dow internal teams to help develop products and services that meet the needs and interests of the end users. Prior to his current assignment, Mr. Ramachandran served as senior program manager for Dow Wire & Cable’s End Use Marketing. He has also held various research and technology positions at Union Carbide Corporation, which was acquired by Dow in 2001, in metals, specialty gases, and wire and cable. He is a Senior Member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) and is the Chair of the Power Cable Standards Discussion Group of IEEE/Insulated Conductors Committee. He holds eight patents and is the author of more than 20 papers. He has recently been appointed as co-editor of the High Voltage Engineering Magazine from Wuhan, China.
Graduated Madras University, India, with Bachelor's Degree in Chemistry, from the Indian Institute of Science with a Bachelor's in Metallurgical Engineering, from Columbia University, New York with a Master of Engineering in Minerals and Materials Science, and from State University of New York with a MBA.
Jim Rosborough
Commercial Director, North America
Dow Wire & Cable
Jim Rosborough is the North America commercial director for Dow Wire & Cable. In this position, Mr. Rosborough, based in Houston, Texas, oversees all commercial activities and is responsible for quarterly profitability of the area’s business. He began his career at The Dow Chemical Company as a research engineer in Louisiana Operations in 1981. In 1984, Mr. Rosborough joined the sales force for Plastic-Lined Pipe, and subsequently held business research, product and marketing management roles for businesses in the Performance Chemicals group. In 1997, he moved to Dow Pacific as an area commercial manager, including assignments with the Plastic-Lined Pipe, Gas Treating, and Automotive businesses. Mr. Rosborough returned to the U.S. in 1999 and held several business development roles, beginning an assignment in alternative feedstocks and energy efforts in 2001. Mr. Rosborough became senior leader, Global Energy Alternatives and Gasification Options in 2006, and then assumed the role of commercial director for Alternative Feedstocks and Government Advocacy in 2007.
Graduated from the University of Florida, Gainesville, FL with a degree in Chemical Engineering.
Dan Rutherford
Global Product Market Manager
Dow Wire & Cable
Daniel Rutherford is the global product market manager for telecommunications and flame retardant compounds, for the Wire & Cable Compounds business of The Dow Chemical Company, the leading supplier of polyolefins to the wire and cable industry.
As global product market manager, Rutherford has both commercial and asset responsibilities for the telecommunications and flame retardant project areas. His primary commercial responsibilities include driving the global business strategy and working with wire and cable manufacturers to identify new opportunities for Dow to provide materials solutions that meet the evolving application requirements. Most recently, Rutherford provided commercial direction for the development of JQDA-2221 NT EXP2, a unique polyolefin-based compound with enhanced stiffness-toughness balance for fiber optic cable loose buffer tubes; JQDA-2230 NT EXP1, a polyolefin-based compound with enhanced melt strength for high speed solid insulation of copper wires; and DFDA-1643 NT EXP1, a halogen-free thermoplastic FR compound for jacket and insulation. Rutherford is also responsible for oversight of Dow’s on-the-ground assets that manufacture wire and cable compounds for telecommunications and flame retardant applications.
Rutherford joined Dow from the Union Carbide Corporation (UCC) in February 2001 where he was the joint venture manager of UCC European Wire & Cable JV (Aspell). Rutherford joined UCC in 1979 as a project engineer designing UNIPOL® facilities and held numerous technical, marketing and commercial management roles within UCC and its joint ventures. He is based in Houston, Texas.
Horace C.C. Tan
Commercial Director, Asia Pacific
Dow Wire & Cable
CC Tan is the Asia/Pacific commercial director for Dow Wire & Cable. In this position, Mr. Tan, based in Hong Kong, oversees all commercial activities and is responsible for quarterly profitability of the area’s business. Tan joined Union Carbide in Hong Kong in 1982, and held a series of Sales positions in Asia Pacific, with increasing responsibility for sales related to carbon products, food packaging, technology licensing, gasses and air separation technology, and polymers. In 1994, he was named Marketing Manager in Greater China. In 1998, he moved into the Wire and Cable business as Area Marketing manager. During his tenure in W&C, he expanded wire and cable business from nearly 25-fold in the China market, and built a franchise and strong market reputation for the business in the Asian market.
Graduated from Hong Kong University, Hong Kong with a B.S. in Biology, Biochemistry and Geology and Murdoch University, Perth, Australia with a MBA in Business Administration.
Robert Tarimo
Marketing Manager - Europe, Middle East, India and Africa
Dow Wire & Cable
Robert Tarimo is the Market Manager for Europe, the Middle East, Africa and India for Dow Wire & Cable, a market-facing business of The Dow Chemical Company. In this position, Robert is responsible for driving marketing strategies and application development for the Wire & Cable business portfolio across the region. He is based in Horgen, Switzerland.
Robert joined Dow in 1996. Prior to his current position, he was Business Research Manager for Base Plastics and handled numerous business development projects. He developed a broad understanding of the plastics market and drivers through due diligence work and market analyses.
Robert holds a Bachelors Degree in Economics from the University of Newcastle.
Daniel Vacek
Senior Production Leader
Dow Wire & Cable
David Vacek is production leader for the Semicons and LP1 Finishing plants at the Seadrift, Texas, Operations site. He also serves as the Manufacturing representative on the Wire and Cable Business Management Team. Mr. Vacek joined Union Carbide in 1983 as a production engineer at the Seadrift Operations Olefins 2 plant. In 1988, he transferred into the UNIPOLÒ polyethylene business as a production engineer on the G1750 reactor in Seadrift. In this role, Mr. Vacek helped develop and commercialize many new UNIPOL products and technology. In 1992, he participated in the commissioning and startup of a UNIPOL polyethylene plant in Sydney Australia. From 1994 to 1997, Mr. Vacek was the Manufacturing representative on the EPR project where he was actively involved in the process development, process engineering, detailed engineering, construction, commissioning, startup and operation of the EPR plant. In 1999, he became the production leader of the EPR plant. When Dow acquired Union Carbide in 2001, Mr. Vacek became production leader at the UNIPOLÒ polypropylene plant in Seadrift.
Graduated from Texas A&M University, College Station Texas, with a B.S. degree in Chemical Engineering.
