The First Facility Management Blog

Danfoss announced recently that its president and CEO, Jorgen M. Clausen, has retired and that his successor, Niels B. Christiansen, has assumed these positions. Clausen will become chairman of the company after Danfoss’s annual general meeting in the spring of 2009, its board of directors said. 

Christiansen joined the company in 2004 as its chief operating officer and a member of its executive committee. In May, 2007, he earned a promotion to the position of vice CEO. 

“Niels will lead a young, dynamic team, and I have great confidence in their collective ability to succeed and drive Danfoss forward,” Clausen said. “During his time at Danfoss, Niels has shown that he is highly capable of renewing our business while affirming the company’s values and history. As a socially responsible innovator in the manufacturing industry, we are committed to engineering technology that conserves energy and slows climate change, and this approach will not change at all.” 

Christiansen will head the company’s executive committee, which consists of the executive vice presidents Kim Fausing (COO) and Frederik Lotz (CFO). 

“I am excited about our opportunities and challenges that lie before us,” stated Christiansen. “We are completely focused on driving our business forward and meeting the needs of our customers in tackling global energy efficiency and conservation issues.” 

Jorgen Clausen is the eldest son of Danfoss founder Mads Clausen, an engineer who established the company in 1933 in his parent’s attic in Nordborg, Denmark. 

“Now is the best time for me to retire from the company’s day to day operations and concentrate on my directorships, which include both the chairmanship of Sauer-Danfoss and membership of the board of the Bitten and Mads Clausen Foundation, the charitable organization established by Danfoss’s founder and my father,” Jorgen Clausen concluded.

Danfoss, a company focusing on the research, development. and production of mechanical and electronic components and systems, celebrates its 75th anniversary this year. Danfoss products and components have focused on providing the control and efficiency to suit the application and customer requirements. Worldwide, the company has 70 factories in 25 countries, 114 sales offices, and 23,000 employees.

Danfoss Employees

Danfoss, a researcher, developer and producer of mechanical and electronic components and systems, is celebrating its 75^th anniversary this year. To mark the milestone, employees at Danfoss’ North American headquarters in Baltimore, MD posed for a company photograph to commemorate the occasion.

Approximately 200 employees at the Baltimore facility received new polo shirts bearing the Danfoss logo and the number 75, denoting the number of years since engineer Mads Clausen established the company in 1933, in Denmark. Employees then gathered for the photograph, posing in the shape of a 75.

“We wanted to take time out of our busy day to recognize this significant milestone in the life of our company and celebrate the achievements of our rich heritage,” said John Galyen, president, Danfoss Sales America, Refrigeration & Air Conditioning Division.

“And as we honored the accomplishments of the past, we found ourselves looking forward to the challenges of the next 75 years. We anticipate a pace of change that will come even faster than the pace we’ve experienced in recent years. Fortunately, we’re confident in our ability to respond to change, both locally and globally, in a time-sensitive way and deliver innovative solutions that will continue to improve the quality of life in an environmentally responsible way.”

Danfoss’ products and solutions include refrigeration and A/C; heating; VLT® drives; industrial automation; water controls; high-pressure systems; and solar energy. In this decade, the company has seen global sales growth of about 9% per year, with a higher rate in North America. Worldwide, the company has 70 factories in 25 countries, 114 sales offices and 22,300 employees. Company headquarters are in Denmark.