Governance

Gary Collar

Sr. VP & Gen. Mgr, Asia Pacific, AGCO Corporation

Gary Collar is Senior Vice President and General Manager, Asia Pacific, for the USA based AGCO Corporation.  Based in Beijing, China he is responsible for leading AGCO’s strategy, operations and all activities in the region stretching from Asia through Australia and New Zealand, including the sub-continent of India.  He was appointed to this position in January 2012.  Mr. Collar was previously Senior Vice President of the company’s operations in Europe, Africa and the Middle East since 2004 and has held various other positions since joining AGCO in 2002.

Mr. Collar has previously held various senior management positions within several divisions at ZF Friedrichshaven A.G. between 1994 and 2002.  These assignments included President and CEO of the company’s Joint Venture producing steering systems for the North American automotive market, and Vice President, Business Development for ZF’s USA automotive group. 

Prior to this, he held various positions with Caterpillar Inc. and the Caterpillar Dealer organization. 

He is currently a member of the Board of Directors of Tractor and Farm Equipment Company Ltd., based in Chennai, India and is a board member of Jason Incorporated, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Mr. Collar holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration, from California State University, East Bay.  He is married and has three daughters.

Steve Cripe, CPA

Chief Financial Officer

A senior financial executive with diverse experience in the automotive, construction equipment, chemical, and electronics industries, Steve Cripe has a proven track record of helping companies increase revenues, profitability and cash flow, improve operational performance, and create a culture committed to continuous improvement and customer satisfaction.

Mr. Cripe’s extensive international and acquisition experience includes roles as CFO, Gear Products at Rexnord Industries, Group Controller at Manitowoc Crane Group, SVP & CFO for Grove Worldwide, VP – Finance at Tenneco Automotive, and other senor leadership positions. Mr. Cripe received a B.B.A. – Accounting from Marquette University and is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.

Sven K. Grasshoff

Vice President, Falcon Investment Advisors, LLC

Sven Grasshoff, Vice President, joined Falcon in November 2005. He was previously an Associate in the Corporate Development Group of Fischer Scientific International. Prior affiliations include Latona Associates and Citigroup Global Markets.

Mr. Grasshoff received a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of Colorado and an M.B.A. from the Johnson School at Cornell University, where he was a Park Fellow.

Vincent L. Martin

Chairman and CEO (Retired)

Vince Martin co-founded Jason in 1985, serving as Chairman and CEO until 1999, and as Chairman until 2004. Under his leadership Jason expanded beyond its strong U.S. base to become a global manufacturing leader. Mr. Martin also established the core strategies that continue to guide Jason’s growth.

Mr. Martin received a B.S. in Industrial Engineering from Stanford and an M.B.A. from Harvard. In addition to being a Director of Jason, he serves on the boards of Modine Manufacturing and Husco International. He is a past board chair of the Milwaukee Repertory Theater, the United Performing Arts Fund, and the United Way of Greater Milwaukee. He is currently active with a variety of non-profit organizations.

Scott Rivard

Principal, Saw Mill Capital

Scott Rivard joined Saw Mill in 2005. Before joining the company, Mr. Rivard was an Investment Manager and Associate at Capital Resource Partners where he was responsible for sourcing, executing, and managing private equity investments in the manufacturing and business services sectors. Prior to joining Capital Resource Partners, he was an investment banker in the natural resource group of Credit Suisse First Boston where he advised clients on mergers, acquisitions and corporate finance transactions. Mr. Rivard has a B.A. degree in Economics from Middlebury College and an M.B.A. from the Kellogg School of Management. 

At Saw Mill, Mr. Rivard works closely with Jason Incorporated and Netshape Technologies, Inc.

John Schnabel

Partner, Falcon Investment Advisors, LLC

John S. Schnabel, Partner, joined Falcon at its inception. Mr. Schnabel was previously a Partner at Canterbury Capital Partners LLC. Prior affiliations include Generation Partners and General Motors Investment Management Corporation. Mr. Schnabel has served on the Board of Directors of numerous portfolio companies, including LVI Services, Seadrift, and Ampac Packaging.

Mr. Schnabel received an M.B.A. with emphasis in Operations Research from Hofstra University and an advanced studies certificate from New York University’s Stern School of Business Administration.

Howard Unger

Managing Partner, Saw Mill Capital

Mr. Unger is the founding partner of Saw Mill Capital LLC, a private equity firm that acquires manufacturing and service companies. Saw Mill’s disciplined process and active involvement allow it to help companies reach their full potential by working collaboratively with their management teams and outside executives to create effective business strategies, implement best practices, and provide global market expertise.

Before founding Saw Mill in 1997, Mr. Unger was a founding partner of Chase Capital, Chase Manhattan Bank’s private equity investing group, which specialized in middle-market acquisitions, recapitalizations, and growth investments. Prior to forming Chase Capital, Mr. Unger was a Managing Director in Chase’s Merchant Banking Group, providing equity as well as senior and subordinated debt to leveraged transactions. Mr. Unger’s professional career began in 1983 with the Leveraged Capital Group of Citibank, providing debt financing for leveraged transactions.

Mr. Unger has a B.S. degree in Accounting from Binghamton University and an M.B.A. from the University of Chicago. He is a Member of The Committee on Conscience of The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.

David C. Westgate

Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer

As Chairman, President, and CEO of Jason, David C. Westgate oversees a global family of manufacturing companies with 34 locations in the U.S. and 12 foreign countries. Jason companies lead the Finishing, Seating, Components, and Automotive Acoustics manufacturing markets.

One of Mr. Westgate’s key initiatives at Jason is the launch of the Jason Business System, a set of shared principles and process that foster best-in-class collaboration throughout the Jason family. JBS helps Jason companies out-execute the competition on everything from daily cost and overall quality to innovation and continuous improvement. He also led a successful global rebranding of Jason.

Mr. Westgate came to Jason from Rieter Automotive, a tier one global automotive supplier, where he was the CEO of Rieter’s Business Group Americas. He has also served as president of Inergy Automotive Systems and in a key leadership role at Rockwell International’s Off-Highway Products and Driveline Division.

Mr. Westgate earned his M.B.A. with Dean’s Award honors from the University of Notre Dame.