Laird appoints Drax FD as new CFO

LAIRD, the wireless connectivity and radio frequency (RF) engineering outfit has appointed Tony Quinlan as its new CFO.

Quinlan, group finance director of Drax Group – the British electrical power generator and owner of the Drax coal-fired power station, the largest in Western Europe, will join Laird on 1 July 2015.

The chartered accountant previously worked at retailer Marks & Spencer where he held a number of senior positions within internal audit, corporate finance, investor relations and financial control. His last position was director of finance, deputy to the group finance director, before joining Drax in 2008. Quinlan is also vice chairman of the Port of London Authority (PLA), where he chairs the audit committee.

Quinlan will be appointed to the board effective from 28 July 2015, while Jonathan Silver, Laird’s current CFO, is standing down as a director on 8 May. He has agreed to continue until 8 August to ensure a smooth handover.

David Lockwood, Laird chief executive, said Quinlan “brings a wealth of experience in managing complex global companies undergoing rapid growth and corporate transformation”. These skills will be extremely valuable in supporting our future growth.”

Drax said it will now start a process to appoint a new FD as soon as practicable, while Michael Scott, its head of corporate finance, will take over as interim FD.