Horiba has appointed Jürgen Knott as the new Managing Director of Horiba Fuelcon, effective October 1st, 2022. This appointment follows a restructuring of the company to accommodate the massive growth rates of approximately 25 percent in the hydrogen business of the Horiba Fuelcon market alone. Horiba Fuelcon has appointed a total of three Managing Directors, who will be able to fully concentrate on their respective areas by dividing responsibilities. Jürgen Knott will be responsible for Operations. Among other things, this includes procurement, manufacturing, and customer-related project management and engineering. Dr. Ingo Benecke, founder of the former Fuelcon, will focus on the company’s research and development as Managing Director. Kazufumi Uie is another new addition to the company, who joined Horiba Fuelcon as the new Managing Director for Sales and Business Development from Horiba Japan on September 1st, 2022.

Jürgen Knott has a lot of experience in the automotive sector. After his apprenticeship as an industrial mechanic and his degree in automotive engineering, he constantly expanded his knowledge at internationally renowned business schools and other management seminars. In addition to many years of corporate experience, he held management positions in various medium-sized companies.  During his 20-year tenure at Robert Bosch, he spent many years abroad in Japan, was Regional President in China, and held global responsibilities for business units. At Knorr-Bremse, he was Vice President of Sales and Marketing, responsible for worldwide OE sales of the commercial vehicle division. During his time at Meritor, he was responsible as General Manager Sales and Marketing for the China and Japan regions as well as the aftermarket business in Germany. Most recently, as President China at SAF-Holland, he led the restructuring of all business activities in the region Jürgen Knott has extensive experience in establishing and managing complex business units, and exceptional intercultural competence. With his international background and broad experience, Jürgen Knott is ideally suited to support Horiba Fuelcon in its growth trajectory and steer it into the future.

„I am excited to work alongside Dr. Benecke and Mr. Uie to drive Horiba Fuelcon’s growth and strengthen our corporate position. The hydrogen market holds a lot of potential, and I see Horiba Fuelcon in an exciting position to advance this market sustainably. Therefore, I am looking forward to the challenge of expanding and optimizing the operations as a basis for growth,” Knott said. “At the same time, I cherish the opportunity to work at the interface between Europe and Asia again. With such experienced colleagues as Dr. Benecke and Mr. Uie, we can use our knowledge and skills to jointly shape the future of Horiba Fuelcon.”