The RUAG Board of Directors has appointed Christoph Eisenhardt as the new CEO of the RUAG Ammotec division and a member of the Group Executive Board. He is the successor to Cyril Kubelka, who has occupied this role since 2004, enjoying great managerial success during this time. Christoph Eisenhardt will take up his new position on 1 October 2017.
The 49-year old is an economics graduate from the University of St. Gallen, has Swiss and German citizenship and boasts many years of experience as CEO of international industrial and technology companies such as Siemens Building Technologies in Zug (Switzerland), Continental AG, Frankfurt, and Volex plc in London. Christoph Eisenhardt went to school in Brazil and Argentina, and speaks six languages fluently. He also holds the rank of First Lieutenant in the Swiss Armed Forces.
As the CEO of the RUAG Ammotec division, Christoph Eisenhardt will continue to drive the strong international growth of the Hunting & Sports and Armed Forces & Law Enforcement business units. RUAG Ammotec is a specialist in high-quality pyrotechnic products for military and civil use, as well as for industrial use. RUAG Ammotec is the leader in the European market for hunting and sports munition. The division has approximately 2200 employees and generated net sales of CHF 385 million in 2016.
Christoph Eisenhardt is the successor to Cyril Kubelka, who has transformed the division into an extremely successful company over the last 14 years and is set to take up a new role outside of RUAG. Under his leadership, RUAG Ammotec has enjoyed strong international growth and further established itself as the European market leader. Born in Austria, Cyril Kubelka studied Economics at the Vienna University of Economics and Business, which he followed up by completing the Senior Executive Program at the Columbia University of New York. He also studied lead vocals at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna. Before joining RUAG, Cyril Kubelka held many roles, including Managing Director of Dynamit Nobel Ammotec GmbH as well as Deputy Managing Director of Tego Chemie Service GmbH, Germany.
Urs Breitmeier, CEO of the RUAG Group, was very pleased with this appointment and recognized the hard work of Cyril Kubelka: “We are very happy to have gained in Christoph Eisenhardt a manager with a good track record, technological expertise and an international vision. I would like to thank Cyril Kubelka on behalf of both the Board of Directors and myself for his valuable contribution over the years and wish him only the best for the future. We are not only losing an experienced manager, but also a good colleague in the RUAG management team.”
RUAG develops and markets internationally sought-after technology applications in the fields of aerospace, security and defense for use on land, in the air and in space. 57% of RUAG’s products and services are destined for the civil market and 43% for the military market.
The Group is headquartered in Bern (Switzerland). It has production sites in Switzerland and in 13 other countries in Europe, the USA and Asia-Pacific. Around 8700 employees - of whom 430 are trainees represent 48 nationalities and generate sales of some CHF 1.86 billion.
