The Manitowoc Company, Inc. today announced several management team transitions in line with the company’s long-term succession planning process.

Eric Etchart, who has served as president of Manitowoc Cranes for the past nearly eight years, will move to a new role as senior vice president, business development of The Manitowoc Company effective immediately. Larry Weyers will succeed Mr. Etchart as president of Manitowoc Cranes. Mr. Weyers has most recently served as global executive vice president for Manitowoc Cranes. Since joining the company in 1998, he has held various executive management positions at Manitowoc, including executive vice president of Crane Care.

“Eric has played an integral role in enhancing Manitowoc’s leadership globally. His leadership has helped position the Crane segment as a market leader evidenced by the segment’s ability to deliver innovative products and technologies, execute operational excellence initiatives and expand its global footprint. In his new role, Eric will leverage his multi-faceted expertise and understanding of our customers to expand our business development efforts at an enterprise level. With a planned retirement in the coming years, this transition will allow him to replicate his successes going forward,” commented Glen Tellock, chairman and chief executive officer of The Manitowoc Company. “At the same time, we are pleased to announce the appointment of Larry Weyers to segment president of Manitowoc Cranes. Mr. Weyers’ proven leadership, deep knowledge of the global crane market, and ability to execute on operational goals will undoubtedly support our Crane segment’s ongoing success.”

In addition, Manitowoc has announced the planned retirement of Mark Beffel, vice president, operational excellence effective February 2. Josef Matosevic will assume the role of senior vice president of global operational excellence of The Manitowoc Company and will lead the company’s manufacturing, quality, and safety initiatives upon Mr. Beffel’s retirement.

“We want to thank Mark for his contributions to Manitowoc during his tenure. His commitment to our long-term strategy has further advanced our cost optimization goals. As executive vice president of manufacturing – Cranes, Josef has worked closely with our regional and functional teams worldwide to ensure efficient and cost-effective execution of these strategies, making him the ideal person to lead our efforts going forward,” continued Mr. Tellock. “Our deep management bench and longstanding succession planning process provide a solid foundation to ensure a smooth transition and execution of our long-term strategy.”