Alpitronic appoints new COO

The Italian charging station manufacturer Alpitronic announces the appointments of René Krahn as the company's new Chief Operating Officer (COO) and Lars Kuba as Vice President Sales & Marketing. Thomas Schultze, who was COO of Alpitronic for almost three years, had previously left the company.

According to the press release, the two management changes “reflect Alpitronic’s commitment to strengthening its operations and customer focus in the evolving electric mobility market.” With its Hypercharger range, Alpitronic has become one of the market leaders for DC charging stations in Europe. However, the South Tyrolean company (like other charging station manufacturers) had to contend with demand not rising as predicted. Last summer, production had to be reduced due to falling demand and full customer stocks.

“The appointments of René Sebastian Krahn and Lars Kuba align with Alpitronic’s strategic goals to improve operational capabilities, enhance customer readiness, and solidify its position as a market leader in high-power charging solutions,” Alpitronic now announces. “By bolstering its leadership team with experienced professionals, Alpitronic is ensuring it can continue to meet global demand while
maintaining its reputation for delivering reliable, innovative technologies.”

On paper, the new COO and long-standing Continental manager René Krahn does indeed appear to be the ideal candidate to reorganise production. He brings with him experience as a mechanical and production engineer with a proven track record in change management and digital transformation in the automotive industry. “He has extensive knowledge of product development and operations, coupled with leadership experience and expertise in engineering, strategy, business management, and lean principles,” writes his new employer. And Alpitronic is also giving Krahn a specific task: The focus should be “driving efficiency, implementing scalable systems, and fostering collaboration,” in order to “support the continued development of Alpitronic’s operations.” With optimised production processes, capacities are to be increased without affecting quality. In addition, the new production facility will enable Alpitronic to remain ‘responsive’ in a dynamic market environment.

As Chief Operating Officer, Krahn succeeds Thomas Schultze, who left Alpitronic at the end of November 2024. Schultze joined the company in March 2022 and took direct responsibility for the operational business. However, Schultze has not moved to a competitor but has left the eMobility industry completely, according to his own statements. According to his LinkedIn profile, Schultze is now COO at Minitube International AG in Tiefenbach, Bavaria.

Lars Kuba takes over the role of Vice President of Sales & Marketing at Alpitronic – he comes from Huawei Technologies Deutschland GmbH. According to Alpitronic, Kuba has a “history of success in driving revenue growth, building and structuring teams, and streamlining organizations for scalability.” “His understanding of customer and business needs in the EV charging industry makes him a key addition to Alpitronic’s leadership team.”

With the two new additions, the management team consists of the two co-founders Philipp Senoner (CEO) and Andreas Oberrauch (CTO) as well as Wolfgang Ademmer (CMO), Andreas Rogger (CHRO) and Patrik Herrnegger as CFO. Senoner, Oberrauch and the other co-founders Sigrid Zanon and Alessandro Ciceri also form the Board of Directors.

Source: Info via email