GEBHARDT appoints Klaus-Dieter Wurm, an industry-wide respected leader, as the new head of its American subsidiary. With Mr. Wurm’s 28 years of professional experience in North America, GEBHARDT was able to hire an accomplished professional to guide its further expansion in the USA. Through his national and international experience in the areas of management, production, sales, and marketing, Mr. Wurm has a proven track record of increasing sales while leading operational improvements which ultimately resulted in significant productivity gains.

"We are sure that Mr. Wurm, with his commitment and profound knowledge of the American intralogistics market, will further drive the expansion in Brunswick, while always keeping GEBHARDT’s positive and familiar corporate culture in mind," says Fritz Gebhardt, CEO of the GEBHARDT Intralogistics Group.

Klaus-Dieter Wurm’s goals include expanding the brand awareness of GEBHARDT in the North American market and gaining new customers for the high-performance products of the GEBHARDT Intralogistics Group. Above all, Mr. Wurm believes the US market has a "huge potential in all GEBHARDT product lines."

"I would like to take this opportunity to thank Fritz and Marco Gebhardt for the confidence they have placed in me to lead GEBHARDT USA Inc. into the next chapter of the company’s history. I am looking forward to working with my colleagues in Sinsheim, because only together can we successfully solve the huge tasks that lie ahead of us," said new CEO Klaus-Dieter Wurm.

Jim Kappele, who was responsible for the development of GEBHARDT USA Inc. prior to Mr. Wurm’s leadership, will now concentrate on product portfolio sales as Head of Sales. "A special thanks goes to Jim, who has significantly shaped and managed GEBHARDT USA Inc. since 2002. I look forward to relying on Jim’s know-how in the future and continue to count on him as an important partner in the company," added Mr. Wurm.

Professional Career Klaus-Dieter Wurm

Mr. Wurm completed his MBA with a focus on marketing and internal/external auditing at the University of Applied Sciences in Frankfurt am Main from 1985-1991 before moving to the US in 1992. His first US management position was Vice President Sales / Marketing at Krones AG for two years, before he joined SSI Schäfer in 2000 as Vice President and CEO. He was President and CEO of Wanzl (formerly Technibilt) for four years. Since September 15, he now leads the American subsidiary of the GEBHARDT Intralogistics Group.