Materials firm PolyOne Corp. has appointed new leaders for two of its business units.
Both new appointees already hold positions at Avon Lake, Ohio-based PolyOne. Mark Crist will serve as president of Color, Additives & Inks, and J. Scott Horn Jr. will become president of PolyOne Distribution. Both moves are effective July 3. Crist replaces John Van Hulle, who is retiring.
Crist joined PolyOne in 2008 as a global commercial director for the company's Geon-brand PVC compound business. He was later promoted to vice president of key account management, where he was responsible for building and growing PolyOne's largest multinational customer relationships. Crist also served as vice president of Asia, while based in Shanghai.
Since 2014, Crist has served as president of Distribution, where officials in a June 1 news release credited him with "driving the business to unprecedented success and growth." Prior to joining PolyOne, Crist spent 20 years with Nalco Chemical Co. in various sales, marketing and general manager roles.
In the release, Chairman, President and CEO Robert Patterson said that Crist's "broad global experience — and the success he's achieved in each of his roles while at PolyOne — make him the ideal person to lead our Color business to the next level." He added that Crist is "a trusted leader with our employees and an innovative, valued collaborator with our customers and suppliers."
Horn now will replace Crist in leading PolyOne's distribution unit. Officials described Horn in the release as "a widely respected, 36-year veteran of the chemical distribution industry." He began his career with Fiberchem in 1981 as a sales rep and became president of that firm in 1991, shortly before it was acquired by PolyOne predecessor M.A. Hanna. Horn has continued to serve regional and industry sectors in general manager roles for PolyOne's distribution business.
"Few people have the combined credibility, vast experience and strong relationships in polymer distribution as Scott Horn," Patterson said in the release. "He has been a consistent driving force behind our Distribution business success since PolyOne was created, and I'm extremely pleased and excited he will be leading our future growth and expansion in POD."
Van Hulle will retire after 11 years with PolyOne. Prior to joining the firm, Van Hulle had 16 years of chemical industry experience, most recently with ChemDesign Corp.
Patterson said that Van Hulle retires "with our complete support, appreciation and admiration for an exemplary career." He added that Van Hulle's "lasting legacy is that he transformed and grew our Color business into the specialty leader we are today, creating unprecedented value for our customers, shareholders and employees."
PolyOne is North America's largest compounder and concentrates maker and one of its largest resin distributors. The firm posted sales of $3.3 billion in 2016.
Based on 2016 sales before eliminations, Distribution was the largest of PolyOne's five business units, generating almost 31 percent of the firm's sales total. Color, Additives & Inks held the No. 2 sales spot with a share of almost 23 percent.
