CROWN Asia Pacific appoints new president

CROWN Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: CCK) has appointed Robert H. Bourque, Jr. President of CROWN Asia Pacific. As he moves up from his current role as Senior Vice President – Crown Beverage Packaging, China and Hong Kong, Mr Bourque succeeds Jozef Salaerts.

During Mr Salaerts’ nine-year term, CROWN Asia Pacific went through significant growth with sales of $1.2 billion and segment income of $145 million in 2015, compared to sales and segment income of approximately $480 million and $45 million respectively in 2007, when he was first appointed President of the Division.

Mr Bourque who assumed office on 1 May 2016 will oversee operations across Southeast Asia and China, from Crown’s headquarters in Singapore. He will report to Timothy J. Donahue, Crown’s President and Chief Executive Officer.

Robert H. Bourque, Jr.

“We are fortunate to have someone of Bob’s caliber ready to lead the Asia Pacific Division as it continues to grow. I am confident that the Company will continue to benefit from Bob’s management skills, knowledge of our business and commitment to our customers,” comments Mr Donahue.

“CROWN Asia Pacific has experienced continuous growth over the years with the regional consumers’ growing preference for beverage in metal cans. I look forward to continuing this exciting journey and partner closely with our customers in Asia to deliver innovative and sustainable metal packaging solutions,” said Mr Bourque.  “I would also like to thank Jozef for his visionary leadership which positioned Crown as the right partner to help brands connect with their consumers and achieve sustainability in the region.”

Crown has operations in 32 plants with beverage, food can, aerosol and general line packaging production lines across China and Southeast Asia, supporting both global and local customers. Building on the continued growth in popularity of soft drinks and beer in Asia, the company is building a third Cambodian beverage can plant in Phnom Penh and adding can end capability to the Sihanoukville beverage can plant. Both are expected to begin commercial production during the second quarter of this year.