Mr Russell Gould has succeeded Mr Peter French as Chairman of the Society of Maritime Industries (SMI). Russell Gould is Chief Executive of Kelvin Hughes Ltd and has been a member of the SMI’s Board since 2004, the Society of Maritime Industries reported.
SMI announces new Chairman – Russell Gould (left) succeeds Peter French (right)Russell Gould has worked for Kelvin Hughes since 1985, and was appointed Chief Executive for the Group in 2007, leading the management buyout from Smiths Group PLC in November of that year. From 1998 until his return to the Company in 2001, Russell worked at GEC Marconi Radar and Defence Systems. His return to Kelvin Hughes saw him lead the Commercial Radar and Navigation Equipment Division.
In acknowledging his appointment Russell Gould commented:
“I am very happy to take on this role at such a dynamic time for the industry. In recent years the SMI has grown to be the trade association of choice for many companies in the maritime industries across its six business sectors. I look forward to working with my fellow Directors on representing the best interests of the industry.”
Paying tribute to his predecessor, Mr Gould added:
“Peter French has been a valued member of the Board since 2005 and over the last ten years has provided strong and balanced leadership as the SMI Chairman. We therefore owe him a great debt of gratitude for his unstinting commitment in support of the sector.”
Alongside being a Board member of the SMI he is Chairman of the Maritime UK Export & Investment Group, and Vice President of CIRM (Comité International Radio-Maritime) an international body accredited as a non-governmental organisation with consultative status to the International Maritime Organization (IMO). Russell is also a member of the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) and a Chartered Engineer.
