Velocity Comp Regulatory News (VEL)

27 September 2017

Velocity Composites plc

("Velocity" or the "Company")

Strengthening of senior management team

Velocity Composites plc, the leading supplier of advanced composite material kits, providing engineering value-solutions for the global aerospace industry, is pleased to announce the strengthening of its senior management team through the following appointments:

· Matthew Archer as Chief Commercial Officer

o Responsible for driving forward the Company's new business opportunities and in-country strategies in new territories, in particular EMEA

o 15 years' experience in the aerospace industry, most recently Head of Commodity Management - Composites, at GKN Aerospace

· Chris Skinner moves into a new role as Head of Corporate Development, EMEA from his previous position delivering business growth and infrastructure in the South of England

o Responsible for the Company's corporate entry into new territories

o Previously Director of Asset Management Operations at Deutsche Bank, with a 17 year military career

· Jon Haden-Brown as Information Systems Manager

o Responsible for Velocity's IP and in particular the integration of Velocity's Production System and developing real time information systems

o 20 years industry experience

· Frederic Hinnekens to join as Head of European Programmes in December 2017

o Responsible for customer engagement and supporting the CCO project managing new business responses in EMEA

o Most recently Regional Sales Manager of Aerospace Materials at Solvay Composites

Velocity Composites currently employs 117 staff across its two UK facilities, one in Burnley, Lancashire, where it is also headquartered, and one in Fareham, Hampshire.

Jon Bridges, CEO commented:

"We are delighted to announce the new additions to our senior management team, supporting the Company as we enter our next stage of growth, with a specific focus on EMEA. Matt, Chris, Jon and Frederic all have excellent track records, a complementary skill set and strong sector expertise.

"Matt was most recently at GKN where he successfully led the global procurement strategy for a number of categories across all GKN Aerospace sites in Europe, North America and Asia. At Velocity his priority market wil be EMEA and working alongside Frederic, who has vast experience in the aerospace composite sector, will be focused on building and converting our strong pipeline of opportunities.

"Chris' wide ranging corporate skills and capabilities will be of considerable importance to the Company as we enter new territories to ensure we have the right systems and processes in place to leverage our unique offering.

"Jon, in his newly created role, is responsible for building and integrating our information systems, Velocity Composites' intellectual property, core to our offering.

"We are confident that these additions ensure we have the right team to execute our growth strategy, meet the demands of new and existing customers and support the Company in its journey as we grow from a UK focussed business into a multi-national business."

Matthew Archer, Chief Commercial Officer

Matt has worked in the aerospace industry for 15 years and has significant sector expertise. He started his career as a graduate at the UK Ministry of Defence before becoming a Commercial Manager. Prior to joining Velocity Composites Matt was Head of Commodity Management - Composites at GKN Aerospace and before this Head of Procurement and Logistics - Western Approach. Matt graduated with a BSc (Hons) in Business with Manufacturing Systems from the University of Hertfordshire and is a Professional Member of the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (MCIPS).

Chris Skinner, Head of Corporate Development

Chris started his career in the British Army and during his 17-year military career was promoted to Chief of Staff responsible for a 700-strong specialist Joint Service Unit. Prior to joining Velocity Composites, Chris worked at Deutsche Bank, initially as a Programme Manager before becoming a Business Manager, governance lead and operations change programme manager for the UK Asset and Wealth Management Businesses. Chris graduated with a BA (Hons) in Geography from Staffordshire University before completing a Commissioning Course at Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and a MBA at the Open University Business School.

Jon Haden-Brown, Information Systems Manager

Jon has worked in the IT sector for over 20 years. Most recently Jon held the position of Online Operations Manager for a global hospitality company responsible for developing and implementing multiple data capture systems and bespoke in-house solutions across multiple sites in the Europe and Asia. Prior to this he was Head of Ecommerce for Europe managing remote teams based across several countries. Jon graduate with a BSc (Hons) in Computer Science from Lancaster University.

Frederic Hinnekens, Head of European Programmes

Frederic was most recently Regional Sales Manager of Aerospace Materials at Solvay Composites from 2011 to 2017 responsible for the UK, Northern Europe, Poland, Italy, Israel, Turkey and South Africa. Prior to this he was an Account Manager at the Company managing global aerospace companies such as Bombardier, GKN and Aircelle UK. Frederic graduated with a Bachelor of laws from the Facultés Universitaires Notre Dame de la Paix, Namur, Belgium and a Masters of laws form the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium and Humboldt Universität zu Berlin, Germany (Erasmus).

Ends 

CONTACT DETAILS:

About Velocity Composites

Velocity Composites is a manufacturer of composite material kits for the aerospace industry, delivering engineered kits for its customers to build component parts. The Company's clients include multi-national manufacturers of composite parts and assemblies, who in turn deliver to the world's leading civil and military aircraft manufacturers. The Airbus A330, A350, A380, Eurofighter Typhoon, F35 Joint Strike Fighter and Bell Boeing V22 Osprey are all constructed using parts manufactured from Velocity's kits. The Company's business model reduces the operating costs of preparing composite materials ahead of their usage in the construction of an aircraft part and as such, its offering is disposed to being self-financing for aircraft parts' manufacturers. Velocity Composites also exports to Denmark, France, and Belgium.