Press Release
Nick Surber is new General Counsel of KNDS
Amsterdam, 1st April 2021
Shortly after establishing its new governance, the Franco-German defence technology group KNDS is also strengthening its administrative management at its headquarters in Amsterdam (Netherlands). On 1 April 2021, Nicander Johannes (Nick) Surber, a Dutch national, joined the company as Legal Counsel. He is thus responsible for Legal, Corporate Governance and Compliance and also assumes the function of Corporate Secretary. In this role, he succeeds Margaret Hill, who is leaving KNDS of her own accord on the best amicable terms after four successful years.
Nick Surber, a 54-year-old fully qualified lawyer, specialises in corporate and contract law. His professional career history includes executive positions in industry and in renowned Dutch law firms. Most recently, he was responsible for Anglo-American and German clients at BarentsKrans in The Hague.
Dr. Wolfgang Buechele, already Board member, will become Chairman of the Board and will succeed Philippe Peticolin.
Philippe Petitcolin remains a Board member and replaces Pierre Todorov, who will be leaving the board.
Ms. Ingrid Jaegering is newly appointed to the Board of Directors and will be taking the previous seat of Dr. Wolfgang Buechele.
Felix Bode, Antoine Bouvier, Dr. Juergen Cammann, Werner Frank, Pierre Jeannin and Alexandre Lahousse remain unchanged members of the KNDS Board of Directors.
Until the arrival of Jean-Paul Alary, who will replace Frank Haun as CEO and Board member of KNDS N.V., Philippe Balducchi will temporarily hold these two positions in addition to his Group CFO role.
Press contact
Dr. Kurt Braatz
Chief Communications Officer
Phone: +31 20 218 4710
E-Mail: kurt.braatz (at) knds.nl
KNDS is the result of the association of Krauss-Maffei Wegmann and Nexter, two of the leading European manufacturers of military land systems based in Germany and France. KNDS forms a Group of around 9,500 employees, with a 2023 turnover of 3.3 billion euro, an order backlog of around 16 billion euro and incoming orders of 7.8 billion euro. The range of its products includes main battle tanks, armored vehicles, artillery systems, weapons systems, ammunition, military bridges, customer services, battle management systems, training solutions, protection solutions and a wide range of equipment. The formation of KNDS represents the beginning of consolidation in land defense systems industry in Europe. The alliance of KMW and Nexter enhances both groups’ competitiveness and international positions, as well as their ability to meet the needs of their respective national army. In addition, KNDS offers to its European and NATO customers the opportunity of increased standardization and interoperability for their defense equipment, with a dependable industrial base. KNDS headquarters are based in Amsterdam.
