Stäubli is starting the new year with a new chief executive officer. Gerald Vogt, previously responsible for the global business of the Robotics Division, will take over as CEO from Rolf Strebel on January 1, 2021.

Vogt, an experienced manager from within the company's own ranks, will take over the management of the diversified and growing family-owned company. The 50-year-old Franco-German engineer and business economist has been responsible for the global Robotics business as Group Division Manager since mid-2016 and is already a member of the Group Management.

When he joined Stäubli almost 20 years ago, Vogt initially moved from the development and production site in Faverges, France, to the U.S. for several years. As Division Manager he significantly expanded business for Stäubli Robotics North America. Afterwards, he returned to Faverges as Head of Development before taking over responsibility for the German business as head of Stäubli Robotics in Bayreuth.

To ensure a smooth transition and prepare for his future tasks as CEO, the Stäubli Board of Directors nominated Vogt as the designated successor to Strebel at the beginning of 2020. Since then, Vogt has accompanied the current CEO and is responsible for the introduction and implementation of the new business strategy for Stäubli through 2030.

"We are delighted to have found in Gerald Vogt a forward-looking manager with extensive international experience and a clear entrepreneurial spirit who is already very well connected within the Group. He has our full confidence to further advance the business of the entire Stäubli Group worldwide," said Yves Serra, chairman of the Board of Directors.

"On behalf of the entire Board of Directors and the Stäubli family, I would like to take this opportunity to thank Rolf Strebel for more than 40 years of dedication to Stäubli and his outstanding work as CEO of the Stäubli Group over the past 14 years. We wish him all the best for the time ahead," added Serra.

Christophe Coulongeat will assume the global responsibility for the Robotics Division on January 1, 2021. The French national has been Deputy Division Manager since 2018 and previously gathered extensive experience in the packaging and automation industry in France, Austria, the United Arab Emirates and Switzerland.

With this succession in management, Stäubli is setting the course to consistently pursue its growth and further expand its market position worldwide, especially in North America and Asia.

The company, which is celebrating its 40^th anniversary In North America this year, features a 100,000-square-foot North American headquarters in Duncan, South Carolina, focused on fluid connectors, robotics and textile machinery, and a 5,000-square-foot training facility and service center in Novi, Michigan. Stäubli Electrical Connectors is headquartered in Windsor, California. The company has a regular presence at trade shows across North America including Automate, where it introduced its new line of TS2 four-axis robots in 2019.

Stäubli has been owned by the same family since 1892 and has used superior design and a customer-centric approach to establish itself as a global leader, reshaping manufacturing and improving efficiency and safety across a variety of industries.