Staff Report

Ladson -- The CEO for mine-resistant vehicle manufacturer Force Protection Inc. said that he will retire at the end of the month.

Gordon McGilton, who has served as Force Protection’s CEO since 2005, said he was confident that the company would continue to be successful in the future and that he would be available to work with the management team to ensure the continuity of the company's mission.

"The board of directors of Force Protection had originally asked me to step in as a CEO while the Company developed and organized itself to meet the challenges of its extraordinary growth," McGilton said. "As the scope of that potential began to expand, so did the scope of my task and the length of time commitment."

During his tenure at Force Protection, McGilton helped the Company establish itself as a market leader in ballistic- and blast-protected wheeled vehicles with the creation of Force Protection’s Buffalo, Cougar and Cheetah vehicles, the company said in a statement. But 2007 was a year that brought uncertainty for the company.

The Army and Marine Corps announced they would scale back their orders of mine-resistant vehicles after the current contracts are filled, and though Force Protection said it had enough orders to stay busy for at least two more years, the company's stock tumbled.

Force Protection's stock dropped from a high of $30 per share in May to just over $4 per share recently. The stock closed at $4.11 per share Wednesday.

"No other changes are planned in personnel at this time," said Tommy Pruitt, government communications and public relations director for Force Protection Inc. "The board will begin searching for a permanent replacement for Gordon right away. In the meantime, we're going to go full-speed ahead on continuing to build and deliver vehicles on the schedule we previously agreed to with our customer."

Force Protection also established a joint venture, Force Dynamics LLC, with General Dynamics Land Systems to produce Cougar vehicles to meet the immediate demand to protect service personnel in conflict zones in Iraq and Afghanistan during McGilton's watch.

The board of directors has appointed Michael Moody, 61, presently serving as president, as the interim CEO, while a search is conducted to select a CEO from internal and external candidates.

“Force Protection is in a great position to build on the foundation of the Company’s innovative lifesaving ballistic- and blast-protected wheeled vehicles," Moody said. "It is an honor to be entrusted with this transitional role, and I welcome the challenges and opportunities as we work to advance the Company’s strategy for continued growth and success."

The board of directors also appointed Moody as chairman and Roger G. Thompson as the non-executive lead independent director. Moody has been a Force Protection director since 2006.

Force Protection builds mine-resistant ambush protected vehicles for the U.S. military and its allies. The company quickly became a leading manufacturer of ballistic- and blast-protected wheeled vehicles as the conflict in Iraq escalated. The company's products are currently deployed by the U.S. military and its allies to support armed forces and security personnel in conflict zones, including Iraq and Afghanistan.