Staff Report

LADSON -- Force Protection Inc. has announced the appointment of Michael Moody as the Company’s chief executive officer, president and chairman.

In a statement, the company said the appointment recognizes Moody’s leadership ability and strategic insight into the future of the business. While a formal search process, which included Moody as a candidate, had been underway, the board of directors concluded that Moody’s background in turn-around situations, his familiarity with the company’s operations and his proposed strategic initiatives would directly and immediately serve the interests of the company and its shareholders.

Moody has more than 30 years of senior management experience in operational management, reorganizations, acquisitions and business transformation. He has undertaken many business transformations in the roles of chief operating officer or president of domestic and international companies.

Moody holds a CPA with extensive domestic and international investment banking experience including difficult turnaround situations.

“I am very proud to take this position with Force Protection. Recent events have clearly underlined that there is a tremendous amount of work to do and that there is significant urgency to many of the tasks at hand," Moody said. "I believe deeply in the importance and quality of our products and in the opportunities provided by our niche orientation in the survivability market. It is our intent to utilize the strength of our product offerings to both reinforce our position in the tactical wheeled vehicle space and to diversify our business into other categories of survivability products.”

The company also announced that Raymond Pollard, the company’s chief operating officer, has departed Force Protection to pursue other interests. The Company has determined not to fill the COO's role.

Moody will assume immediate responsibility for Pollard’s direct reports, which include Executive Vice Presidents Damon Walsh, Daniel Busher and Mark Edwards.

The company also announced that Michael Durski, chief financial officer, left the company in late February to pursue other interests. The company’s board has appointed Francis E. Scheuerell Jr., a managing director of Huron Consulting Group LLC, as the interim chief financial officer and has begun an external search to select a CFO for the company.

“The changes we are announcing today are intended to mark the beginning of a new chapter in the history of this company," Moody said. "In order to leverage the opportunities that exist for us, we must take decisive action both internally and externally. Our business is intensely competitive. We demand excellence of every facet of this organization as we go forward and we will continue to evolve our organization and management to meet business requirements and opportunities."

Ladson-based Force Protection Inc. is a leading American designer, developer and manufacturer of life saving survivability equipment, predominantly ballistic- and blast-protected wheeled vehicles currently deployed by the U.S. military and its allies to support armed forces and security personnel in conflict zones.