Cooper Standard's Stephenson to retire, firm appoints three to global team

NOVI, Mich.—Keith Stephenson, chief operating officer of Cooper Standard Automotive Inc., will retire on April 2, concluding a 12-year career with the firm.

The company said his leadership helped to lay the foundation for success across key areas of the business, including installing the Cooper Standard operating system; setting up the company's i3 innovation process and global innovation team; upgrading Cooper Standard's information technology and purchasing infrastructures; helping establish global councils for regional collaboration; and bringing on key acquisitions and joint ventures.

"On behalf of the entire Cooper Standard organization, I want to extend our gratitude to Keith for all his contributions, especially for the leadership, integrity and energy he brought to the business and the many community initiatives he championed on behalf of the Cooper Standard Foundation," Jeff Edwards, chairman and CEO of Cooper Standard, said in a statement. "His tireless efforts helped build a solid foundation for our future success and we wish him well."

The firm also is restructuring its management team to reflect its transition to three new global organizations—manufacturing, engineering and innovation—and has appointed three new leaders of each respective unit.

Patrick Clark will become the company's chief global engineering and product strategy officer, Christopher Couch will become chief innovation officer and Hans Helmrich will serve as chief global manufacturing officer.

Clark brings 23 years of automotive industry experience and serves as the chair of the company's global engineering council, where he focuses on aligning the global engineering organization to implement best practices and improve overall efficiency and effectiveness worldwide.

Couch will lead Cooper's i3 innovation process and also serves as the chair of the firm's global technology council, which oversees development of technologies in all areas of the business, including materials science, product design, manufacturing process technology, analytics and artificial intelligence. He brings more than 20 years of global automotive manufacturing, research and development, and technology development experience.

Helmrich, who has more than 25 years of experience in the manufacturing industry, is responsible for leading Cooper Standard's automotive and non-automotive manufacturing operation toward world-class levels in support of the firm's profitable growth targets. He also serves as chair of Cooper Standard's global manufacturing council, where he focuses on driving global world-class operations throughout all of Cooper Standard facilities.

"While we have made impressive strides in the past five years with our systems and processes, the next five years will require that we accelerate our global standardization to proactively address a changing global economy," Edwards said. "With Patrick, Chris and Hans in these three crucial global positions, Cooper Standard is better able to keep pace with today's evolving market forces and compete in our key automotive and non-automotive markets."