Alpen High Performance Products announced a new chief executive officer, Andrew Zech, formerly the chief operating officer of Nuveen Green Capital. Former CEO Brad Begin, who purchased the company in 2006, is transitioning to his role as chairman of the board.
Zech's experience
As the CEO of Nuveen Green Capital, a provider of sustainable commercial real estate finance, Zech led the firm's loan sourcing, transactions, underwriting, partnerships and go-to-market strategies. Zech specializes in scaling high-growth companies, advises several sustainability-focused startup companies and currently sits on the board of Alpen HPP.
This CEO announcement is made on the heels of an important announcement made by the U.S. Department of Energy, stating that the DOE had pledged $275 million to seven different companies to strengthen domestic supply chains and accelerate American clean energy manufacturing. Alpen was selected for negotiation of $5.8 million in funding to help the company retrofit existing facilities in Louisville, Colorado, and Vandergrift, Pennsylvania, to produce ultra-thin, triple- and quad-pane insulated glass units for windows.
What Alpen says
"I am excited to join Alpen, especially at this time," says Zech. "Brad's leadership and vision has guided Alpen into the market leadership position it enjoys today. I'm excited to work with Brad and for him to focus on the company's product design and strategic partnerships. He is truly an industry thought leader, and I have been looking forward to this day for some time."
"Alpen has a ton of momentum from the recent announcement from the Department of Energy," adds Zech. "We are passionate about our mission to decarbonize buildings. The DOE opportunity, continued private sector investment, and additions to the Alpen leadership team will allow us to dramatically scale our impact."
"With this opportunity from the DOE we expect to create more than a hundred new jobs, in addition to adding a new CEO who can help focus the company's efforts to scale," says Begin. "Andrew's experience with Nuveen and in the green building industry is vast, as is his experience with Alpen as a board member. His vision for this company is sound and our employees are already enjoying working with him. Alpen will continue to lead the marketplace because Andrew, myself and the rest of the Alpen team will continue to champion ideas that make our world's buildings more comfortable, more efficient and more focused on climate resiliency."
