VanDeMark Corporate Leadership Responsibilities
Administration
Boudewijn van Lent – President and CEO
Boudewijn joins VanDeMark from dss+ where he served as the Global Chemical Industry Director. Prior to joining dss+, Boudewijn was Executive Vice President and Member of the Board of Management of the Specialty Construction Chemicals business of GCP Applied Technologies. In addition, Boudewijn has served as CEO of Bilfinger’s Industrial Services, Inc. (NA), President of Rhein Chemie (NA), and as a Vice President for Celerant Consulting.
Boudewijn started his career at Bayer in 1989 and held various roles at Bayer and LANXESS in Germany, Canada and in the US. Fluent in English, German, and Dutch, Boudewijn earned his Doctor of Philosophy, Physical and Colloid Chemistry, and his Master of Science, Molecular Science from the University of Wageningen in The Netherlands. He is a member of the National Association of Corporate Directors and is a former member of several industry and government affairs associations. He has authored numerous technical articles and presented at industry conferences.
Tamás Vörös – Managing Director
Tamás Vörös joined Framochem in March 2022 as Managing Director. He has over 20 years of experience in phosgene based chemical manufacturing and the pharmaceutical industry. His former positions include manufacturing director at KisChemicals, plant manager at Teva Pharmaceutical Industries and BorsodChem Ltd., and API Production manager at Alkaloida Chemical Inc. He holds a Chemist degree and an MSc degree in separation techniques.
Finance
Tamás Bodnár – Finance Director
Tamás Bodnár joined Framochem in January 2022 as Finance Director for the operations in Hungary. Mr. Bodnár has long finance experience in FMCG sales and manufacturing and household electronics manufacturing. Prior to his employment at Framochem, he worked for Mars Inc. in Hungary in various finance and accounting positions and at Vestfrost A/S, a Danish refrigerator and freezer manufacturer as CFO. Mr. Bodnár has collage degree in economics and qualified as chartered accountant and tax advisor.
Marketing
Duane Govitz – Vice President of Marketing
Joining the company in 2023, Duane Govitz brings more than 25 years of experience and results-driven performance in the specialty chemicals industry. His primary responsibility is to develop the strategic market initiatives, assist sales efforts through execution and lead the M&A efforts for VanDeMark Chemical as the business continues to evolve into a Life Science Solutions Provider.
Govitz most recently served as Global Marketing Director – Industrial, Medical & Consumer Markets for DuPont Mobility & Materials business. He previously spent more than 18 years with Dow Corning Corporation, including his latest role as Global Sales Director for the XIAMETER silicones business.
Duane has a significant amount of experience developing strategic market plans, leading global marketing & sales teams, portfolio management, negotiating supply agreements and mergers & acquisitions. He has been responsible for the global management of marketing and sales as well as customer acquisition and distinction, employee development, and profit and loss (P&L) across global and regional specialty chemicals businesses. He earned an M.B.A. in Management from the Richard DeVos School of Business and a B.A. in Business Management from Northwood University.
Sales
Larry Grubb – Vice President of Global Sales & Business Development
Grubb most recently served as Director of Business Development for Axiall Corporation, a leading manufacturer of integrated chlorovinyls and vinyl-based building and home improvement products. He previously spent more than 33 years with PPG Industries, including service as the General Manager for Specialty Phosgene Derivatives. He earned a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Toledo.
Larry has a significant amount of experience negotiating project agreements, acquisitions, and sales of divisions on a worldwide basis. He has been directly responsible for management of the sales force as well as customer acquisition and retention, personnel development, and profit and loss (P&L).
Research & Development
Bill Ewing – Director of Research and Development
Dr. Ewing joined VanDeMark in 2023 as the Director of Research and Development where he is responsible for overseeing R&D efforts into new products and process improvements. Additionally, Dr. Ewing’s role includes fostering the expansion of VanDeMark’s product portfolio through identification and evaluation of new target compounds and applications.
Dr. Ewing brings a background in evaluating the chemistry of emerging technologies with experience in battery technology, hydrogen storage, polymer manufacture, ionic liquids, and industrial approaches to reactive, high-energy or otherwise challenging synthetic products. Prior to joining VanDeMark, Dr. Ewing served as the Director of Chemistry for Boron Specialties, LLC, where he was tasked with overseeing chemistry operations, along with identifying customers and applications for the company’s specialty materials. Before this he held both an international postdoctoral position at the University of Würzburg (Germany) and the Seaborg Fellowship at the Los Alamos National Laboratory.
Dr. Ewing received a Bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Harvard University, a Master’s degree in Materials Science and Engineering from the University of California at Berkeley and a Doctorate in Chemistry from the University of Pennsylvania. He has authored more than thirty-five original research papers in a range of high impact publications.
Plant
Paul Ameis – General Manager
In his current role, Mr. Ameis is responsible for the leadership of plant operations, material planning requirements, plant engineering, research and development, and process engineering. During his tenure at VanDeMark, Mr. Ameis has played an instrumental role in the development of many of the Company’s proprietary processes and products, as well as the Company’s continuous improvement initiatives throughout its manufacturing operations.
Prior to joining VanDeMark, Mr. Ameis gained meaningful manufacturing, and management experience at Occidental Chemical Corporation. Mr. Ameis graduated Summa Cum Laude with a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from the State University of New York at Buffalo.