Two Changes to Hypertherm Leadership Team
Aaron Brandt is the new vice president of engineering and Hidde van Hoeven is the business team leader for Mechanized Plasma.
Posted: July 10, 2014
Hypertherm Inc. (Hanover, NH), a U.S.-based manufacturer of plasma, laser, and waterjet cutting systems, has announced two leadership changes. Aaron Brandt has assumed the role of vice president of engineering, while Hidde van Hoeven becomes the business team leader for Mechanized Plasma.
In his new role, Brandt will oversee an industry-leading team of plasma, laser, and waterjet engineers, fostering innovation and technology advancement throughout the company, and providing functional leadership to Hypertherm’s growing engineering community.
Currently more than 10 percent — or 150 company associates — work in engineering as part of Hypertherm’s commitment to innovation and the introduction of industry changing technologies. In his new role, Brandt will place even greater emphasis on research and development and create additional synergy among Hypertherm’s engineering teams.
A named inventor on ten Hypertherm patents, Brandt’s experience with cutting technology spans 18 years. His responsibilities while at the company include a number of engineering and business roles, such as work as a plasma design engineer, engineering manager, and business leader of the mechanized plasma team. Brandt holds a master’s degree in mechanical engineering from Penn State University where he did his graduate research on laser cutting.
Brandt’s successor is Hidde van Hoeven, a nine-year associate, credited with making significant contributions to Hypertherm’s U.S. and Europe, Middle East, Africa operations. In his role, van Hoeven will lead development of the next generation of high-precision plasma products, like the HyPerformance HPRXD, and work closely with CNC, THC, and CAM software teams on the development of new Built for Business Integrated Cutting Solutions applications.
“We have had a legacy of strong engineering accomplishments since its founding nearly 50 years ago,” said the Hypertherm president Evan Smith. “We are proud of our commitment to research and development and our leadership position in technology innovation. I am confident the appointments of both Aaron and Hidde will help extend that leadership tradition, advancing us on our mission to provide the best industrial cutting solutions to customers around the world.”
Hypertherm designs and manufactures advanced cutting products for use in a variety of industries such as shipbuilding, manufacturing, and automotive repair. Its product line includes plasma, laser and waterjet cutting systems, in addition to CNC motion and height controls, CAM nesting software, and consumables. These systems are trusted for performance and reliability that result in increased productivity and profitability for hundreds of thousands of businesses.
The New Hampshire-based company’s reputation for cutting innovation dates back nearly 50 years to 1968, with its invention of water injection plasma cutting. The 100 percent associate owned company, consistently named one of the best places to work in America, has more than 1,300 associates along with operations and partner representation worldwide.
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