SOUTHFIELD — In support of the expansion and growth in the North American region, DENSO announced today the following executive management changes.
They are:
Sadahiro “Sam” Usui has been appointed chairman of DENSO’s North American board of directors and CEO of DENSO International America. Located in Southfield, Usui will oversee all North American group companies and affiliates and will continue to serve as executive director of DENSO Corp.
Kazumasa “Kaz” Kimura will now serve as president of DIAM, where he is responsible for overseeing all aspects of business related to Original Equipment Manufacturers customers for DENSO in the Americas. He will also continue to serve as chief operating officer of DIAM and executive director of DENSO Corp.
Doug Patton has been promoted to executive vice president of DIAM’s Engineering Division. As executive vice president and chief technical officer, he will oversee operation of development facilities, testing and technical services, engineering administration and the company’s product engineering. He previously served as senior vice president. In addition, he has been appointed to senior director of DENSO Corp.
Jack Helmbolt, president and CEO of DENSO Manufacturing Tennessee, has been appointed to executive director of DENSO Corp. He previously served as senior director. In addition to overseeing operations in Tennessee, he is responsible for developing overall strategy and direction of North American Information and Safety business and assisting with DENSO’s manufacturing strategy development.
Included within these changes, Hikaru “Howard” Sugi will retire as chief executive officer of DIAM and chairman of DENSO’s North American board of directors. Sugi has helped strengthen the company’s North American business structure over the past three years and will now serve as North American chairman emeritus to support with the transition in leadership.
