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ABB
named Sami Atiya as head of the Discrete Automation and Motion
Division and moved its former boss Pekka Tiitinen to head the
country's operations in his native Finland, the engineering
company said in a statement on Monday.
Atiya worked at Germany's Siemens for 18 years and had run its
Mobility and Logistics division since 2011 before leaving the
company last December.
The automation unit which Atiya will lead has seen its operating
margin on earnings before interest, taxes and amortization
decline to about 13 percent from more than 18 percent as demand
for its motors and drives slumped and as U.S. and Chinese
customers ordered fewer robotic products.
Sustained low oil and gas prices have particularly hurt demand
for automation solutions. Tiitinen has responded with a wave of
job cuts, including at factories in Finland.
A margin turnaround will hinge on a recovery in energy
customers' businesses, analysts said.
"They have been reducing production capacity for more than half
a year, but an increase in volume is likely to take longer,
given that so much of the division's business is related to
process industries such as oil and gas," said Richard Frei, a
Zuercher Kantonalbank analyst.
The shares fell 1.9 percent to 19.67 francs at 1015 GMT, their
lowest level since April and trimming ABB's gain on the exchange
in Zurich this year to 9.6 percent.
ABB highlighted Atiya's experience in restructuring as well as a
doctorate in robotics, sensors and data processing as key
reasons for his hiring.
"Sami Atiya has tremendous experience in leading industrial
portfolios across a wide range of markets and geographies as
well as a proven track record of delivering strong results in
growth, restructuring and integration situations," the company
said.
(Reporting by John Miller; Editing by Michael Shields and Keith
Weir)
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