FORM 6-K
SECURITIES & EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
Report of Foreign Private Issuer
Pursuant to Rule 13a-16 or 15d-16
Of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
December 5, 2003
INFICON Holding AG
INFICON Holding Inc.
(Translation of registrant's name into English)
INFICON Inc.
Two Technology Place
East Syracuse, New York 13057
(Address of principal executive offices)
(Indicate by check market whether the registrant files or will file annual
reports under cover Form 20-F or Form 40-F.)
Form 20-F |X| Form 40-F | |
(Indicate by check mark whether the registrant by furnishing the information
contained in this Form is also thereby furnishing the information to the
Commission pursuant to Rule 12g3-2(b) under the Securities Exchange
Act of 1934.)
Yes | | No |X|
INFICON Board Appoints Lukas Winkler as President and Chief Executive
Officer - Long-Standing INFICON Executive Assumes Role as James L. Brissenden,
65, Retires -
SYRACUSE, N.Y. & ZURICH, Switzerland--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 5,
2003--The Board of Directors of INFICON Holding AG (SWX Swiss Exchange
and NASDAQ: IFCN) has promoted Lukas Winkler to president and chief
executive officer of INFICON, effective January 1, 2004. Mr. Winkler
replaces James L. Brissenden, 65, who is retiring after twenty years
with the company and remains on the board of directors. Mr. Winkler
will be based at the INFICON global headquarters located in Syracuse,
New York.
"Since its IPO in November 2000, INFICON has strengthened its
presence in high growth segments of the semiconductor industry and in
the environmental health and safety markets by leveraging our
expertise in gas sensor technologies," said John Grad, chairman of the
board of INFICON. "With Lukas at the helm, INFICON will continue to
build on its leadership position as a global supplier of critical
instrumentation and advanced process control products. For the past
six years, he has led the vacuum control business unit through the
highly successful introduction of innovative vacuum gauges to
semiconductor OEMs. Lukas is known throughout the company as an
inspired leader. I am confident that his depth of experience at
INFICON will result in a seamless transition to his new
responsibilities and allow the company to quickly address both the
operational and strategic imperatives of our business."
Mr. Winkler added, "As president and CEO, it is my intention to
extend the leadership INFICON has attained by introducing competitive
state-of-the-art products for critical analysis, measurement and
control in targeted markets. We expect to pursue an aggressive agenda
to continue to distinguish INFICON in the marketplace. With the global
economic environment improving and the semiconductor industry trending
upward, we believe INFICON has many attractive growth opportunities."
Commenting further, Mr. Grad said, "Jim Brissenden has
successfully guided INFICON in its evolution from a division of a
worldwide manufacturing company to a successful publicly-traded,
global enterprise. He has strengthened the overall strategic position
of INFICON. On behalf of the board of directors, I thank Jim for his
dedication, insight, and outstanding contributions to our business."
Lukas Winkler has 16 years of executive experience, with the last
eight years at INFICON where he was largely responsible for the
consolidation and integration of two former parent company divisions.
Currently, he serves as vice president of the Vacuum Control Business
Unit, which has pioneered several unique technologies for vacuum
measurement and control. Prior to that, Mr. Winkler was production
manager at Balzers AG and held management positions at Maschinenfabrik
Rieter AG and General Motors Europe AG. He has an engineering degree
from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH-Zuerich) and an
MBA from Syracuse University.
NOTE: A photo of Mr. Winkler is available on the INFICON website.
About INFICON
INFICON is a leading developer, manufacturer and supplier of
innovative vacuum instrumentation, critical sensor technologies, and
advanced process control software for the semiconductor and related
industries and other industrial applications. These analysis,
measurement and control products are vital to original equipment
manufacturers (OEMs) and end-users in the complex manufacturing of
semiconductors, flat panel displays, magnetic and optical storage
media and precision optics. INFICON also provides essential
instrumentation for gas leak detection and toxic chemical analysis to
the air conditioning/refrigeration, emergency response, security, and
industrial hygiene markets. Headquartered in Syracuse, New York,
INFICON has world-class manufacturing facilities in the United States
and Europe and worldwide offices in the U.S., China, France, Germany,
Japan, Korea, Liechtenstein, Singapore, Switzerland, Taiwan, and the
United Kingdom. For more information about INFICON and its products,
please visit the Company's website at www.inficon.com.
This press release and oral statements or other written statements
made, or to be made, by us contain forward-looking statements that do
not relate solely to historical or current facts. Forward-looking
statements can be identified by the use of words such as "may",
"believe", "will", "expect", "project", "assume", "estimate",
"anticipate", "plan", "continue", "resumes", "opportunity",
"potential", or "guidance". These forward-looking statements address,
among other things, our strategic objectives, trends in vacuum
technology and in the industries that employ vacuum instrumentation,
such as the semiconductor and related industries and the anticipated
effects of these trends on our business. These forward-looking
statements are based on the current plans and expectations of our
management and are subject to a number of uncertainties and risks that
could significantly affect our current plans and expectations, as well
as future results of operations and financial condition. Some of these
risks and uncertainties are discussed in the Company's Annual Report
on Form 20-F for fiscal 2002 and the Company's reports on Form 6-K
filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission during 2003. As a
consequence, our current and anticipated plans and our future
prospects, results of operations and financial condition may differ
from those expressed in any forward-looking statements made by or on
behalf of our company. We undertake no obligation to publicly update
or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new
information, future events or otherwise.
CONTACT: Corporate Contact
INFICON
Betty Ann Kram, 315-434-1122
BettyAnn.Kram@inficon.com
OR
European Contact
c-matrix group ag
Bernhard Schweizer/Sara Koch, +41 (0) 41-769-80-40
inficon@cmatrix.ch
OR
North American Contact
Lippert/Heilshorn & Associates, Inc.
Jody Burfening, 212-838-3777
jbs@lhai.com
Enclosure: Press release dated December 5, 2003, announcing Lukas Winkler as
president and chief executive officer.
Signatures
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the
registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the
undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
Date: December 5, 2003 INFICON Holding AG
By: /s/ Peter G. Maier
-------------------------------
Name: Peter G. Maier
Title: Vice President and Chief
Financial Officer