Arlington, Vt.-based Mack Molding announced Josh Pang will replace Jeff Somple as president of its northern division when Somple retires later this year.
Somple plans to stay on and work closely with Pang, he said, before his planned retirement in a few months.
"I've had this circled on my calendar for quite a while," Somple said in an interview with Plastics News. "With several of the senior managers retiring in the last year, people were a bit concerned about what was going to happen at Mack. I have total confidence that the next 20 years are going to be just as good as the last 20."
Pang "comes from a very strong background in sales," Somple added. "I'm excited to see what new sales channels he's thinking up."
"My background has been heavily focused on the commercial … and medical side, medical devices and … contract manufacturing," Pang told PN. "Mack has a great foundation here to grow that business."
Prior to Mack, Pang was chief commercial officer at Orchid Orthopedic Solutions, where he lead commercial activities for the $400-million orthopedic medical device design and manufacturing services provider.
Pang also worked as distributor principal for CONMED Linvatec Orthopedics and MTF Biologics, directing its Ohio and western Pennsylvania sales team before being promoted to vice president of orthopedic sales.
"I'm going to try to absorb as much as possible, what makes Mack as successful as it is today," Pang said. "There's so many diverse opportunities that we can provide here."
Mack was named the Plastics News Processor of the Year in 2006 and received the PN Sustained Excellence award earlier this year.
Being employee- and customer-focused, Mack is "the ideal deal type of company," he added. "I've worked for many companies where that was the intended culture. But sometimes the execution is harder to do than the idea. Mack's done it in spades here."
As president of Mack Molding's northern division, Pang will be responsible for the company's four Vermont facilities, Mack Prototype, a prototyping and low-volume manufacturing facility in Massachusetts, and Synectic Product Development, an engineering services group in Connecticut.
Pang will report to Mack Group President and CEO Will Kendall, alongside Bryan Campbell, Mack Molding southern division president.
"As a strategic leader with more than 20 years of experience in sales and marketing focused on market share expansion and revenue growth in medical contract and OEM manufacturing, [Pang] is an excellent fit for Mack's business objectives," Kendall said in an April 16 news release.
"On top of that, [Pang's] collaborative approach to managing internal and external stakeholders, along with his strong work ethic, make him an excellent cultural fit to the benefit of our employees and customers."
[Somple] oversaw "tremendous growth … during his tenure … including diversifying our customer base, securing our place in the medical market and establishing Mack as a true, vertically-integrated manufacturing partner," Kendall added. "Over 36 years he has built a strong organization, and we appreciate his commitment to guiding Josh as he prepares to build on this legacy."
"There is something very special about Mack," Pang said. "The legacy established by the Kendall family 104 years ago is as strong as ever. … From the way Mack develops its team members, to its investments in the community, there is a clear devotion to the foundation of the business. A lot of organizations espouse these ideals, but Mack's application of them is second to none, and I look forward to carrying on that tradition."