Claremont Savings Bank Taps Next CEO
Claremont — Claremont Savings Bank has chosen a Connecticut banker to become its next president and CEO.
David Birkins, former executive vice president and chief financial officer at Union Savings Bank in Danbury, Conn., has joined Claremont Savings as executive vice president and chief operating officer.
He will become president and CEO of the bank upon the scheduled retirement of current CEO Sherwood Moody in April , the bank said in a news release.
Claremont Savings began its search for a new CEO nearly nine months ago, shortly after Moody disclosed his retirement plan, and received applications from bankers in each of the New England states as well as Pennsylvania, Maryland, Florida, Illinois and California, Moody said. Birkins was chosen from among six finalists who interviewed for the position.
Moody said the board favored Birkins, 53, because of his “background as a chief financial officer and his very personable interactions with employees and the general public.”
In the release, Birkins said he was “proud to be entrusted with this leadership role at a financially strong community bank” and he would be “deeply committed to futhering that mission.”
Moody noted he thought it was important that the bank’s next leader come from New England so as to have an advantage in understanding the region’s economy and people.
Most recently, Birkins provided financial leadership for two Connecticut-based “fintech” startups, Smart Pay Solutions and Insuritas, following a 6 1/2 year executive role at Union Savings Bank, according to Birkins’ LinkedIn profile. He holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Connecticut.
Claremont Savings, which has branches in Claremont, Cornish, Charlestown and Springfield, Vt., had assets of $365.3 million as of Sept. 30, up from assets of $341 million as of Dec. 31, 2014. The bank added about $15 million in assets earlier this year when it acquired the Springfield, Vt., branch of Brattleboro Savings and Loan.
Moody, 66, joined the bank in 1996 after working as a bank president in Maine and Pennsylvania. He plans to continue to live in Newport and to serve on the bank’s board until the board’s mandatory retirement age of 70.
Company News
Hanover-based Hypertherm Inc., the designer and manufacturer of plasma, laser and waterjet cutting products, has been recognized by Environmental Protection Agency as one of the nation’s top purchasers of “green power.”
As part of the EPA’s Green Power Partnership, more than 1,300 organizations are purchasing billions of kilowatt-hours of green power annually, avoiding carbon pollution equal to that created by the electricity use of more than 2.5 million American homes, the agency said in a news release.
In 2014, Hypertherm used green power for 100 percent of its U.S.-based energy needs by purchasing more than 18 million kilowatt-hours of Green-e certified renewable energy certificates.
“Given the energy intensity of the industrial goods and services sector, Hypertherm is one of the industry’s only 100-percent green power users, with 2014 domestic usage equivalent to the annual electricity use of nearly 2,000 average American homes.” the release said.
“Hypertherm and EPA’s other Green Power Purchasers are driving the development of new renewable energy sources and demonstrating that green power makes good environmental and business sense,” said Curt Spalding, regional administrator of EPA’s New England office.
Hypertherm recently opened its LEED Gold manufacturing facility in Lebanon.
The company’s environmental sustainability goals include producing zero landfill waste, improving the energy efficiency of its global operations by 30 percent, and reducing the carbon impact of its products by 20 percent.
“Hypertherm’s decision to use green power is a reflection of our long-standing commitment to the environment and lean business principles that include improvement of our energy efficiencies,” the company’svice president of corporate social responsibility, Jenny Levy, said in accepting the award.
Upcoming Event
Upper Valley chapter of SCORE is offering a workshop on Marketing Through Internet Search Engines on Thursday, from 6-9 p.m., at 20 West Park St., Lebanon, Suite 316, in the Citizens Bank Building.
The workshop will cover selling and advertising products and services through the Internet and how to to get products discovered by potential customers who are using search engines. Gary Horsman and Vasilios Georgitsis are co-presenters of the workshop. Horsman is in charge of marketing at A Global Reach, a business development and Internet marketing company in Woodstock. Georgitsis is president of GlobeInt.com Inc. and co-owner of NHVT Computer Services LLC, both of Lebanon.
Cost is $30, two for $45. Veterans free. For more information or to reserve a spot, visit http://www.uppervalley.score.org, email score@valley.net or call 603-448-3491.
Items of interest to the local business community are published every Sunday. Submissions may be mailed to: Business Notes, c/o Sunday Valley News, P.O. Box 877, White River Junction, Vt. 05001. You may also send your items by fax to 603-298-0212, or by e-mail to biznotes@vnews.com. All items are subject to editing for clarity or space.
