Executive News: Eaton, enStratus, Graybar, Infinity

It's been a busy week for execuytive appointments in the data center and cloud computing business. Here's a roundup.

Eaton Names Ames to Run Wright Line Unit: Eaton Corporation announced the promotion of Jeff Ames to Wright Line Business Unit Manager. Ames will be responsible for leading the growth of the company’s data center and airflow management solutions, network and server racks, command and control consoles, modular lab systems and general office products. Ames joined Eaton in 1998 through the Powerware acquisition. He most recently held the position of senior manager for the Distributed Power Quality Division in Raleigh, N.C., where he directed Eaton’s single-phase uninterruptible power supply and enclosure power distribution product team. Ames previously held roles in product management and global account sales, and led the commercial integration efforts for the Phoenixtec and MGE Office Protection Systems acquisitions. He holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Syracuse University and an M.B.A. from Marist College in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. "I am extremely pleased to have Jeff in this role," said Ed Komoski, president, Eaton Power Quality Operations - Americas. "His strategic vision, motivational leadership style and strong drive for results will be tremendous assets in continuing to build the unit’s history of excellence in outfitting technology-intensive workspaces." Eaton acquired Wright Line in 2010.

Graybar Appoints Kathleen Mazzarella President: Graybar, a leading distributor of electrical, communications and data networking products,  today announced that Kathleen Mazzarella has been appointed president, effective June 1, 2012.  Mazzarella currently serves as executive vice president and chief operating officer, a position she has held for the past year.  In her new role, she will continue to set the strategic direction for Graybar’s sales and marketing function, while overseeing the day-to-day operations of the overall business. Also on June 1, 2012, Graybar’s Chairman, President and CEO, Robert A. Reynolds, Jr. will serve as executive chairman.  He will remain actively involved in the company as the lead executive, overseeing the company’s strategy and providing guidance to the executive team. "As Chairman, President and CEO, Bob has done a remarkable job of leading the company," said Mazzarella.  "I have enjoyed working with him over the years and look forward to learning from his experience during this transition."Reynolds said that Mazzarella's appointment "reinforces Graybar’s philosophy of managing the company for the long-term.  Her leadership will enhance the way we work to our customers’ advantage, both today and in the future.” Graybar, a Fortune 500 corporation and one of the largest employee-owned companies in North America, is a leader in the distribution of high quality electrical, communications and data networking products, and specializes in related supply chain management and logistics services.

McKenzie Named Chairman of Infinity SDC: Specialist data centre operator Infinity SDC has announced the appointment of Ian McKenzie as the Company’s new Chairman. McKenzie has more than 40 years of international experience in the telecommunications and broadcast industry. McKenzie has substantial experience in the telecoms and broadcast industry, having spent 32 years at British Telecom in a number of senior roles in the UK and Europe, and later as COO for the Asia-Pacific region. On leaving British Telecom in 2000, McKenzie was COO of Kingston Communications, a leading provider of communications solutions to business and public sector organisations in the UK, and has served as a board director for several international communications companies. His appointment is part of the company’s overall growth plans and its commitment to meet and exceed the requirements of its growing global customer base. "Ian’s extensive experience will be invaluable to Infinity," said outgoing Chairman John Leighfield. "It’s imperative for that, as Infinity grows, we continue to maintain the extremely high level of diligence in the way we operate and scale our business. Infinity is looking to set the gold standard for service operations in the data centre industry. Ian brings with him vast knowledge and leadership experience in similar businesses which will be invaluable in supporting the Infinity board.”

James Urquhart Moves to enStratus: Cloud infrastructure management provider enStratus announced the appointment of James Urquhart as its new Vice President of Product Strategy. In this new role, Urquhart will be responsible for defining the product strategy and overseeing product management to ensure enStratus solutions meet the needs of the enterprise cloud management market. "We are excited to add James and his deep cloud experience to our leadership team," said David Bagley, CEO of enStratus. "The enterprise cloud adoption and our customer demand is growing dramatically and James will be pivotal in delivering the next generation of our cloud management solution." Urquhart is a seasoned field technologist with 20 years of experience in distributed systems development and deployment, focusing on service-oriented architectures, cloud computing, and virtualization. Prior to joining enStratus, Urquhart held leadership roles in cloud computing for Cisco Systems. Urquhart also held leadership positions at Cassatt Corporation, Sun Microsystems and Forte Software.

Future Facilities Expands Staff, Offices: Future Facilities North America has appointed two new Application Engineers: Matt Green and Matt Renner, who are both graduates of Santa Clara University. Mr. Green received a BSME and MSME, and Mr. Renner received a BSME. In addition, Future Facilities NA has relocated its headquarters to 2055 Gateway Place, San Jose to meet the needs of its expanding staff and customer base throughout the United States and Canada. "Over the last year, Future Facilities has experienced explosive growth from customers looking to get accurate visibility into their data centers," said Sherman Ikemoto, General Manager, Future Facilities NA. "We're delighted to bring on board Mr. Green and Mr. Renner - accomplished thermal engineers who will help us ensure that our clients' data centers operate at peak efficiency."