CASSIDIAN APPOINTS PETER GUTSMIEDL AS FIRST HEAD OF ASIA-PACIFIC

• New role complements existing position as India CEO
• Cassidian sees considerable growth potential in Asia
• India operations set to expand into regional hub

15-2-2013 — /europawire.eu/ — Cassidian has appointed Peter Gutsmiedl as the company’s head of operations in Asia-Pacific. Gutsmiedl takes up this newly created role in addition to his position as India CEO.

“India plays a strategic role for us and continues to be the main focus in Asia”, explains Cassidian CEO Bernhard Gerwert. “In addition to further increasing our industrial footprint in India, we also plan to tap considerable growth potential in the wider region.” Commenting on the new leadership appointment, Gerwert adds: “Peter Gutsmiedl has been instrumental in positioning Cassidian for a comprehensive long-term partnership with India. He is the perfect choice for also strengthening Cassidian’s reach in other Asian markets, while building on our established Indian base.”

Welcoming his new responsibility, Gutsmiedl says: “I am looking forward to expanding Cassidian’s Indian operations into a springboard for strong and sustained growth in Asia-Pacific. The capabilities at our Engineering Center in Bengaluru allow Cassidian to customize products from our global portfolio according to local requirements. This gives Cassidian a competitive advantage in India which we can also leverage to target other Asian markets with similar requirements.”

Besides combat aircraft opportunities, Cassidian sees potential especially in the areas of professional mobile radio, Avionics for fighter aircraft and helicopters, radar/EW systems and border control systems and infrastructure in the region.

As a regional hub, India gains further importance for Cassidian. The company is committed to establishing a world-class defence industrial footprint there and is working towards plugging India firmly into its global value chain. In its Engineering Center in Bengaluru, around 60 Indian engineers are engaged in challenging assignments. Cassidian is also consulting the Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO) on topics related to India’s Light Combat Aircraft (LCA), besides jointly reviewing an indigenous Airborne Early Warning & Control Radar (AEW&C) system with the same organisation. Recently, Cassidian India was awarded the globally recognized aerospace industry quality certification EN/AS 9100 – another example of continuously deepening engagement.

About Peter Gutsmiedl
Peter Gutsmiedl (55) has more than two decades of experience in various senior and board level roles at Cassidian. He has played a key role in the success of Cassidian programmes related to Eurofighter Typhoon, Tornado, F-18, F-4, A400M, AWACS, Euro Hawk and several UAV programmes. Before taking up the position of India CEO, Gutsmiedl served as Head of Engineering at Cassidian Air Systems. He was also Head of Programme Management for Strike Aircraft & Airborne Mission Systems. Peter Gutsmiedl holds a PhD in Physics from the Technical University of Munich.

About CASSIDIAN (www.cassidian.com)
Cassidian, an EADS company, is a worldwide leader in global security solutions and systems, providing Lead Systems Integration and value-added products and services to civil and military customers around the globe: air systems (aircraft and unmanned aerial systems), land, naval and joint systems, intelligence and surveillance, cyber security, secure communications, test systems, missiles, services and support solutions. In 2011, Cassidian – with around 23,000 employees – achieved revenues of € 5.8 billion. EADS is a global leader in aerospace, defence and related services. In 2011, the Group – comprising the Divisions Airbus, Astrium, Cassidian and Eurocopter – generated revenues of € 49.1 billion and employed a workforce of more than 133,000.

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Contact
Claas Belling
Tel.: +49 (0) 8459. 81-8 04 82
claas.belling@cassidian.com